Auld Lang Syne Auld Lang Syne "Auld Lang Syne" (: note "s" rather than "z") is a Scots-language poem written by Robert Burns in 1788 and set to the tune of a traditional folk song (Roud # 6294). It is well known in many countries, especially in the English-speaking world, its traditional use being to bid farewell to the old year at the stroke of midnight on New Year's Eve. By extension, it is also sung at funerals, graduations, and as a farewell or ending to other occasions. The international Scouting movement in many countries uses it to close jamborees and other functions.
William Auld William Auld William Auld (6 November 1924 – 11 September 2006) was a Scottish poet, author, translator and magazine editor who wrote chiefly in Esperanto. Auld was born at Erith in Kent, and then moved to Glasgow with his parents, attending Allan Glen's School. After wartime service in the Royal Armed Forces, he studied English Literature at Glasgow University, and then qualified as a teacher. In 1960, he was appointed to a secondary school in Alloa and he remained there for the rest of his life. He was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1999, 2004, and 2006,