Aengus and X's for kisses?

[Jonathan Lighter]

I can believe the birds but not the bit about the X's.

JL

On Mon, Mar 2, 2009 at 10:19 AM, Joel S. Berson <Berson at att.net> wrote:

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> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       "Joel S. Berson" <Berson at ATT.NET>
> Subject:      Re: Aengus and X's for kisses?
>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> At 3/2/2009 09:04 AM, Jonathan Lighter wrote:
> >Somebody mentioned "Golden Apples of the Sun."  The name of Yeats's poem
> is
> >"Song of the Wandering Aengus."
> >
> >(No, it isn't about a loose cow.)
>
> Since Jon was unforthcoming, I had to find out what it was.  The OED
> tells me it (he, she?) wrote (had?) a Festilogy.  But Wikipedia
> clears it all up with its article.
>
> I notice, however, that the article says "He was said to have four
> birds symbolizing kisses flying about his head (whence, it is
> believed, the xxxx's symbolizing kisses at the end of lovers' letters
> come from", citing
> http://www.godchecker.com/pantheon/celtic-mythology.php?deity=AONGHUS
>
> Joel
>
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