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CHRISTMAS

What’s the history behind Germany’s Christmas traditions?

We look into some holiday traditions and explain their significance to Germany.

Published: 18 December 2019 14:30 CET
Updated: 22 December 2023 10:03 CET
What's the history behind Germany's Christmas traditions?
Photo: DPA

Some things are synonymous with Christmas: the tree, opening presents, the songs. However, although some are centuries-old traditions, some of these customs are newer than you might expect.

We break down the origins of some beloved signs of Christmas and explain their significance to Germany.

Christmas trees can be purchased in many places across Germany: at farms or on city streets, even delivered to your door. Photo: DPA. 

Christmas Tree (Weihnachtsbaum, Tannenbaum): This ultimate item of Christmas decor probably has its origin as a “paradise tree” in the nativity plays of the Middle Ages. The first record of a Christmas tree is from 1605 in Strasbourg.

Candles came a bit later in the same century. Christmas trees have been part of the celebration in German living rooms since the middle of the 19th century.

READ ALSO: What you should know about German Christmas trees

Tree Decorations (Baumschmuck): The tree is decorated (on Christmas Eve at the latest) with candles, baubles, ornaments, and tinsel. In the USA, one might find pickle-shaped ornaments for sale claiming to be ‘an old tradition from Germany.’ Legend goes that whoever spots the pickle between the branches receives an extra gift. While many Christmas shops have caught on to the trend and sell such ornaments in Germany, most Germans will not recognize the custom. 

READ ALSO: Are Christmas pickle ornaments really a German tradition?

Gifts (Geschenke): Up until the Reformation, children received gifts on St. Nikolaus Day, which occurs every year on December 6th. Martin Luther and his followers wanted to break with the veneration of the saints and urged for the Christkind to become the gift giver. Now, children receive gifts from either the Christkind or the Weihnachtsmann (Santa Claus) depending on which region of Germany they live in—now several weeks later on December 24th.

READ ALSO: Christkind or Santa? A nation divided 

Santa Claus (Weihnachtsmann): There are many different visual representations of Santa Claus to be found in Germany and around the world. The best-known image of a plump man in a red and white suit is largely the work of a Coca-Cola advertising campaign from 1931. Other nicknames for Santa come from original German customs as well: Kris Kringle from Christkind and St. Nick from St. Nikolaus.

A man sells Mistletoe in Rostock. Photo: DPA. 

Mistletoe (Mistelzweig): Kissing under the mistletoe is a Christmas tradition that probably came to mainland Europe from prudish Victorian England. It has its origins in Celtic customs. Mistletoe can be found at most Christmas markets and grocery stores in Germany during the holiday season.   

READ ALSO: How to prepare for Christmas like a German

Moravian stars are still produced at a factory in Saxony. Photo: DPA. 

Moravian star (Herrnhuter Stern): These multi-pointed stars which can be found adorning houses, churches, and the stalls of Christmas markets originated in a Christian boarding school at the beginning of the 19th century. They came from the Herrnhut community in southeast Saxony and were also exported by the GDR and easily shipped around the world, as they can be dismantled and packed flat.

Christmas songs (Weihnachtslieder): A list of popular Christmas songs in Germany saw “Silent Night” came out on top with 44 percent. The next best were a mix of classics such as “O Tannenbaum” or “King, Glöckchen, klingelingeling” and newer hits like “White Christmas” or “Last Christmas.”

READ ALSO: Throwback: “Last Christmas” in Germany

Christmas food (Weihnachtsessen): When it comes to eating on Christmas, each region has its own customs. Most families also have their own traditions. For most, home-cooked meals are a must. In a recent survey by YouGov, only 26 percent of Germans said they could ever imagine visiting a restaurant on Christmas.  

READ ALSO: Christmas goose?

A youth choir sings at a Christmas service in Baden-Württemburg. Photo: DPA. 

Church service (Gottesdienst): Christmas services, whether on Christmas Eve or early morning on Christmas Day, are among the best attended events of the major churches in Germany. The Catholic churches are known to provide a ‘cheat sheet’ for those who are not used to attending services. The first piece of advice? ‘The church could get full: come early enough.’ 

And what about Germany’s beloved Christmas markets? Check out our story on the history of markets to find out the history of this tradition.

Translated by Kate Brady. 

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GERMAN TRADITIONS

‘Tag der Arbeit’: What to do on May 1st in Germany

The first day of May in Germany is a public holiday, and is often celebrated as a day for dancing, or protesting, depending on your preference. Here’s what is closed for the holiday, and what’s happening.

Published: 26 April 2024 13:46 CEST
Updated: 1 May 2024 06:24 CEST
'Tag der Arbeit': What to do on May 1st in Germany

May 1st is Labour Day in Germany, a nationwide public holiday that dates back over 130 years.

In German its commonly called Tag der Arbeit, and English it is also called May Day.

Not to be confused with Labour Day as it is celebrated the US or Australia (where the holiday comes in September or October respectively, and simply serves as a day off work to relax), Germany’s Labour Day is part of a the broader International Workers’ Day tradition, and is linked to a history of labour struggles and protests.

Interestingly, Germany’s Tag der Arbeit tradition can actually be traced back to a protest in Chicago in 1886, which sparked the beginning of calls to limit work days to eight-hours.

READ ALSO: EXPLAINED – Why is May 1st significant in Germany?

Since then however, the US has largely forgotten about May Day as a day for labour organisation (with the exception of a few communities), whereas the tradition remains alive and well in Germany and at least 65 other countries around the world.

What’s closed for the holiday?

As an official public holiday in Germany, banks and post offices are closed on May 1st, which falls on a Wednesday in 2024.

It wouldn’t really make sense to make people work on a day set aside for the celebration of workers’ rights. So you should expect that supermarkets and most other businesses will also remain shut for the day. 

Cafes, beer gardens, restaurants and other hospitality businesses hoping to cash in on the day of leisure, however, may be open. 

For spätis or kiosks in busy neighbourhoods, for example, the number of people going out to parks and walking around the streets ensures that May 1st is one of the more profitable days of the year.

What’s happening for the holiday?

Labour Day coincides with a German folk tradition to ‘dance into May’ (Tanz in den Mai). 

This involves festivities which start on the evening of April 30th, so that celebrators can spring into May on their feet by dancing through midnight into the morning of the 1st.

But more practically, this means that there are plenty of dance parties scheduled for the evening of April 30th, as well as day time events on May 1st.

For example, readers in Berlin might consider the “Dancing instead of working on May 1st” event at Mariannenplatz, which kicks off at 10 am and is free to the public. Also in the neighbourhood will be a free open air at Bolzplatz Falckensteinstraße Xberg, and not too far away a handful of clubs are offering free-entrance day time events, including Renate and Ritter Butzke.

In Cologne, Maydance “the big queer party” starts on April 30th from 10 pm at Quater1. In Düsseldorf, there are dancing events at the Brauhaus Alter Bahnhof as well as an open air event at the SC Unterbach football team’s clubhouse.

In Bavaria, dancing into May is a big part of the regions early spring celebrations, but traditionally this takes place at folk festivals in different villages and cities across the South-eastern ‘Free State’. One of the bigger May Day celebrations in Munich happens at the Viktualienmarkt, where you can see local bands, see the ‘Maypole’ and drink seasonal Maibock beer.

But Munich also has a number of options for dancing into May at modern clubs including a disco at Villa Flora or a party at La Rumba Latin Club. Or if food and drink sound more appealing, the Backstage Beergarten is opening on May 1st, and will be serving €5 Augustiner Maß krugs (giant beers).

Traditionally, April 30th is also Walpurgisnacht – a ‘night of witches’ – where many people celebrate in towns and villages around the Harz Mountains.

Where will there be protests?

smoke and protest

Masked protestors at an unregistered “Revolutionary May Day Demonstration” walk through smoke from pyrotechnics. Photo: picture alliance / Michael Kappeler/dpa | Michael Kappeler

No German city outdoes the capital when it comes to Labour Day protests, with Berlin’s Kreuzberg neighbourhood historically hosting some of the nation’s largest May Day demonstrations.

That tradition lives on to this day, with Berlin’s infamous central neighbourhood arguably still the epicentre of May 1st activities.

Historically, some May Day protests have left a fair amount of property damage in their wake, including burned cars. So police warnings about “Revolutionary May Day Demos” in Kreuzberg and Neukölln have become a Berlin tradition, and this year is no different. 

The majority of protests are intended to be peaceful, but when thousands of protestors are confronted by police armed with riot control gear, there are sure to be outbreaks of violence at flash points.

This year’s main rally begins at Südstern at 6pm, and will move through Hermannplatz and along Sonnenallee before looping back to the start point.

But no matter where you live in Germany, you probably don’t have to go too far to find a labour rally on May 1st.

Beside the “revolutionary” demos are nationwide rallies organised by The German Trade Union Confederation (DGB) and related partners that tend to have a significantly less confrontational tone. 

This year, the DGB’s main Labour Day event will take place in Hanover with a rally at Goseriedeplatz, and will be followed by a family friendly May Festival with a concert, according to the DGB’s website.

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