The song tells a story of a swallow flying into a household to sing of the wealth that will come with the following spring.

"Shchedryk" was originally sung on the night of 13 January, New Year's Eve in the Julian Calendar (31 December Old Style), known in Ukraine as Malanka or Shchedry Vechir [uk] ("Generous Evening").

The song is an example of a Ukrainian shchedrivka [uk], whilst the English words of "The Little Swallow" identifies it as a koliadka.

It tells of a swallow flying into a home to proclaim that the family will enjoy a plentiful and bountiful year.

The original traditional Ukrainian text used a device known as hemiola in the rhythm (alternating the accents within each measure from 3/4 to 6/8 and back again).

Conceptually, the Ukrainian lyrics of this song meet the definition of a shchedrivka, while the English content of "The Little Swallow" identifies it as a koliadka.

It was originally sung on the night of January 13, New Year's Eve in the Julian Calendar (December 31 Old Style), which is Shchedryi vechir.

However, it was first performed on 29 December 1916 in the Kyiv Merchants' Assembly Hall, now part of the National Philharmonic of Ukraine.

[1][5] After "Shchedryk" was performed by Alexander Koshetz's Ukrainian National Chorus for the first time at Carnegie Hall 5 October, 1922, the song was adapted as an English Christmas carol, "Carol of the Bells", by the American composer and educator Peter J. Wilhousky of NBC Radio.

The ostinato of the Ukrainian song suggested to Wilhousky the sound of ringing bells, so he wrote lyrics on that theme.

Хоч не гроші, то полова, В тебе жінка чорноброва.