What is the original German title of the carol 'Lo, How a Rose E'er Blooming'?

The original German title of “Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming” is “Es ist ein Ros entsprungen.”

This German Christmas hymn is also translated as “A Spotless Rose” and “Behold a Rose of Judah.” Its rose symbolizes the Virgin Mary in the original Catholic version, while later Protestant interpretations often connect the image more directly with Christ. The imagery comes from Isaiah’s prophecy of a shoot growing from the root of Jesse.

The text is anonymous and dates from the late sixteenth century or earlier. It first appeared in print in the 1599 Speyer Hymnal. The melody became especially famous through Michael Praetorius’s four-part setting, published in 1609.

The English title is not the German carol’s original name; it is a translation of the opening image. Catherine Winkworth’s “A Spotless Rose” and Theodore Baker’s 1894 “Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming” are separate English renderings, which explains why multiple English titles can refer to the same German hymn.