Kanton: JP - Hyvästelyt
Kanton: JP - Hyvästelyt
Ranska: T - Kuvamyyjä
Ranska: T - Kuvamyyjä
Ranska: T - Kuvamyyjä
Ranska: T - Respa
Ranska: T - Respa
FACTS
GERMANY
Capital and largest city: Berlin
52°52’ N, 13°40’ E
Official language: German
Demonym: German
Population: 82,7 million
Religion:
Irreligious: 36 %
Roman-Catholic: 28,9 %
Lutherans: 27,1 %
Muslims: 4,4 %
Others (Jewish, Orthodox etc.): 3,6 %
Wikipedia:
German flag
HISTORY OF CHRISTMAS
Christmas is “Weihnachten” in German. The word first appears in a collection of sermons dated from 1170 as “wîhe naht” and it means “holy night”. It refers to the night between the 24th and 25th of December in which Christians believe the birth of Jesus Christ took place. Even though today’s research is sure that Jesus was indeed a historical and not a fictional figure, it is pretty sure that he was not born on that specific night. There is no source giving us the exact date of Jesus’ birth, so in early Christendom scholars calculated his birthday by connecting it with his death on 25th March for which there are exact sources in the Bible. They stipulated that the date of his death was the same as him being conceived by Mary. This resulted in 25th of December as the date of birth - assuming the pregnancy lasted exactly 9 months. This view was in opposition to another line of scholars who stipulated that the date of Jesus’ death must have been the same as his birth - thus 25th March. During the 4th century, however, the December-date came out as the winner and the birth of Jesus was celebrated on that date ever since, making our Christmas today a winter celebration. It was helpful that this night had already been the date of an important Roman celebration - the Saturnalia.
Christianity - and with it Christmas - came to Germany for the first time with the Roman conquerors. But only a very small part of the land that constitutes Germany today was ruled by the successful Italians. Large parts of the forest-covered land continued to be roamed by tribes for centuries to come. Only during the early middle ages these lands were slowly conquered from the West by kings who had been christianised by the Romans. Even by 1200 there were still people living in Germany who were not christianised yet.
As a result there are a lot of pagan traditions and rituals incorporated into the German Christmas celebration, for example the Christmas tree.
Even though Christmas is originally a Christian celebration, nowadays it is celebrated in almost every German household, even by Muslims and Jews and especially the irreligious. It has become a largely commercialised celebration focused on people buying presents, ornaments and food for the special occasion. Many people do not even know that originally, one is supposed to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ on Christmas.
CHRISTMAS PREPARATIONS
Celebrating Christmas requires a lot of preparation. Presents need to be bought, the house must be cleaned and decorated, food must be prepared. In today’s Germany these preparations usually start in November (not counting the supermarkets, which start selling Christmas-themed candy and other necessities for the celebrations by October or even September!).
Christmas in schools
Especially in Kindergarten and primary school, but also in secondary school, children work on handicrafts to decorate their classroom or their homes. They make presents for their parents or siblings, bake cookies and are read the Christmas story. Many also prepare little performances about the Christmas story for their fellow students, their relatives or their churches, called “Krippenspiel”. Girls usually want to play the part of Mary or the angel in these performances, boys prefer to be the shepherds.
Holidays
Christmas holiday usually starts two or three days before Christmas and ends by 6th to 8th January, giving the children two weeks of school-free time. These Christmas holidays are a hectic time. Everyone is going to the supermarkets, city centres and shopping malls, which are all crowded and packed with people. Everybody needs to buy Christmas presents and ingredients for Christmas dinner, as well as Christmas cookies. Families usually reserve at least one day during December to bake all kinds of cookies together, which will be eaten during Christmas and/or given away to friends and relatives as presents.
DER WEIHNACHTSMANN - SANTA CLAUS
Santa Claus is well known in Germany and is the gift-bringer especially for non-Christians. However, kids only know him by his German name - Weihnachtsmann. He is portrayed as a friendly, fat old man with a long white beard dressed in red. He is generally a friendly guy, but next to his sack full of presents he usually comes with a rod to punish children who have been naughty during the year.
In preparation for Christmas many German children write their wishes down in a list and send it by mail to Santa Claus. There is an actual place near Hanover where these letters are collected and even answered.
However, Santa Claus is not that present in the German public as it is for example in the USA. You can find him in some malls where he lets children sit on his lap and asks them what they want for Christmas, but it is not very common. Santa Claus mostly visits German homes through commercials, for example by Coca Cola. Also, everyone will at least eat one chocolate version of Santa Claus in the month of December.
OTHER IMPORTANT CHARACTERS RELATED TO CHRISTMAS
Nikolaus and Knecht Ruprecht
Saint Nikolaus was the bishop of Myra (Turkey) in the 4th century and many legends are told about him. His day is the 6th December. Already during the Middle Ages children
were given presents on this day. Nikolaus looks very similar to Santa Claus, he is also an old man with a long beard and he wears a red coat. In addition however, he also wears a bishop’s head. Many Germans don’t know the difference anymore though.
Same as Santa Claus, Saint Nikolaus has a sack and a rod to punish naughty children. Many kids put out a boot on the night of 5th December for Nikolaus to fill with candy and little presents. Saint Nikolaus also visits schools and kindergartens and asks the children if they have been naughty or nice.
Saint Nikolaus has a servant called Knecht Ruprecht. He is a very scary guy with a black painted face and dressed all in black. In some areas Knecht Ruprecht is said to punish the naughty children by beating them and putting them in Saint Nikolaus’ sack who will then take them with him.
Das Christkind
Especially in the catholic parts of Germany the Christkind is Santa’s competition. Instead of Santa it is this little kid who brings the presents. It has blond, curly hair and wings, making it look like an angel. Many see it as the same as little Jesus, but that is actually not true.
Instead of writing to Santa, many children address their Christmas wishes to the Christkind. It also has an office where these letters are collected and answered. Sometime the Christkind is even seen working together with Santa Claus.
Die heiligen drei Könige - The Three Holy Kings
According to the bible, three holy men from far away visited little Jesus when he was just born. These men travelled a large distance , following the star of Bethlehem, to bring the newborn king presents and show him their reverence. The names of these men were Caspar, Melchior and Balthasar.
The celebration of these three holy men takes place on 6th of January. Many children dress up as the kings, take a wooden star on a rod with them representing the star of Bethlehem and walk through the neighbourhood. They ring doors, sing songs and receive candy and cash. The cash is usually donated to charity. These events are largely organised by the churches.
For many Germans this day is the last day of the Christmas celebrations. They take the Christmas tree down, throw it out, take down the Christmas lights and return to their normal life.
CHRISTMAS TRADITIONS
Adventskalender - Advent Calendar
Advent is the period between the 1st December and 24th December and is considered a time of preparation, praying and fasting for Christians. Really few people think of Advent in this way nowadays, even if they are Christians. But even if you don’t fast and pray, you still prepare for christmas. Almost everyone from 1 year old baby to 99 year old grandma has a “Adventskalender” with 24 doors, little bags or pictures by which the days left until the big 24 can be count down. These calendars typically contain little chocolates or small presents, but modern marketing has thought of all kinds of other stuff to put inside. For example, calendars filled with make-up and/or nail polish are very popular among young girls and beauty-junkies. The biggest chocolate/present can be found behind the 24th door.
Weihnachtsmarkt - Christmas Market
Every German town and city has one or several from mid-November to end of December: a Christmas market. These are an original German tradition, but very popular also outside of the country. Thousands of foreign tourists travel to Germany during this period to experience the most beautiful markets.
These Christmas markets consist of a number of small, usually wooden huts, in which craftsmen sell their produce. Among the most popular items are scented candles, handmade soaps, jewellery and other handmade things that you usually don’t find in normal shops throughout the year. This makes the markets the perfect place to buy nice Christmas presents.
But also if you don’t need to buy any presents, these markets are the right place for you, as they also offer a lot of possibilities to try traditional German food and drink. Every German drinks at least one cup of “Glühwein” when visiting a Christmas market. It is heated red wine with delicious spices like cinnamon, carnation and cardamon. But of course you can also find coffee, hot chocolate and any kind of beer. In addition, you can fill up with traditional pastries like waffles or have a savoury bratwurst.
Christmas markets are extremely popular even to the extent that companies have their Christmas parties there, sports club go there together and friends meet there. Most people go several times and enjoy. Christmas markets are the most beautiful at night when they are illuminated by thousands of lights. Note however, that the most popular markets are very crowded and that pickpockets are a big problem.
Tannenbaum/Weihnachtsbaum - Christmas Tree
Every household will get a fir for Christmas, as it is the most essential part of Christmas ornaments nowadays. Some people get theirs at the beginning of December, some just before Christmas. But everyone will put special ornaments in their tree, like fir cones, tinsel, little golden angels, stars and ornamented glass globes. The Christmas tree is the place the presents are placed under on Christmas Eve, making it the center piece of every Christmas celebration.
Krippe - Crib
The crib is a representation of the famous scene in the stable after Jesus was born. The baby is lying in a crib on straw with his parents Mary and Joseph kneeling beside it. Shepherds who have come to see the baby are outside with their sheep. Inside the stable there is usually a cow and a donkey and on top of everything is a bright angel. Cribs are put up everywhere in Germany in December, especially in churches, but also in other public places. Most Christian households will set up a small crib in their living room, usually by the Christmas tree.
Weihnachtsgeschenke - Christmas Presents
It is customary to buy presents for everyone in your family and also for your close friends. Children get the most presents, but also adults buy presents for each other. If you don’t buy a present for a friend you usually agree beforehand not to give presents to each other. Getting the presents is a lot of stress for everyone and most people put it off until the last second. This is why the city centres are packed with crowds especially in the last days before Christmas. The rise of online shopping has made this part a little easier to handle, but most Germans still prefer to buy their presents in a shop.
Children mostly get new toys like Playmobil or Lego, or new bicycles, scooters, or books. Adults mostly give each other kitchen gadgets, coupons or jewellery, but sometimes
people have funny ideas and give something funny or weird, like your own beer brewing set. Christmas is a time to give gifts that are more expensive and more extravagant than for example birthday presents.
CELEBRATING CHRISTMAS
Heiligabend - Christmas Eve
For children, the evening of the 24th December is the most important part of Christmas,
as this is the time they will get their presents. Other than 25th and 26th December, 24th
is not a public holiday, but stores will close earlier than usual. Most people spend this
day wrapping the presents, decorating the Christmas tree, cleaning the house and
preparing the Christmas dinner. By 6pm the family (usually only the close family, parents
and children) gathers around the Christmas tree. Many sing songs together or read a
little story and then start “Bescherung” - the giving of the presents. In the background
there will be Christmas music playing and everyone will be busy unwrapping, setting up
new toys, thanking each other and drowning in wrapping paper.
After Bescherung its time for Christmas dinner. The most popular version to this day is
“Bratwurst und Kartoffelsalat” - bratwurst and potato salad. It’s easy to prepare and one
of the most popular German foods anyways. However, in many families people prepare
a very opulent and special Christmas dinner, for example baked goose or roast beef.
“Heiligabend” is the time for families to be together, spend a quiet evening, watch
Christmas movies and eat lots of candy. Nowadays, however, more and more young people spend the night at special Christmas parties in clubs rather than going home to
their parents.
December 25 and 26
The two days following 24th December are public holidays. Everything is closed. These
days are usually spent visiting relatives. The wider family will come together, eat special
food and exchange more presents.
Popular foods eaten during the Christmas days are all kinds of cookies - especially shortbread, coconut macaroon and Vanillekipferl (small crescent-
shaped biscuitmade with almonds or nuts, dusted with vanilla sugar)-, chocolates and other candy. People usually gain a few pounds during the Christmas holidays!
ABOUT THE LANGUAGE
In Germany, German is the only official language. That doesn’t mean that everybody understands each other! The language has countless varieties and dialects. A person from Berlin for example, has a really hard time conversing with a person from the deepest parts of Bavaria. People from the west use a different word for “meal” than people from the east. If you are familiar with the German language, you can easily hear where someone is from.
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kulttuurista!
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