Christmas preparations often begin
on the eve of December 6th. People often set aside special evenings for baking
spiced cakes and cookies, and making gifts and decorations. Little dolls of
fruit are traditional Christmas toys.
Children leave letters on their windowsills for Christkind,
a winged figure dressed in white robes and a golden crown who distributes gifts.
Sometimes the letters are decorated with glue and sprinkled with sugar to make
them sparkle.
Germans make beautiful gingerbread houses and cookies. The
German Christmas tree pastry, Christbaumgeback, is a white dough that can
be molded into shapes and baked for tree decorations.
In parts of Germany, people believe that the Christ Child
sends a messenger in Christmas Eve. He appears as an angel in a white robe and
crown, bearing gifts. The angel is called Christkind. There is also a
Christmas Eve figure called Weihnachtsmann or Christmas Man, he
looks like Santa Claus and also brings gifts.
Some homes in Germany have several Christmas trees, and in all
towns across Germany, they can be seen glittering and glowing.
In Germany they hang up advent wreaths of Holly with four red
candles in the center. They light one candle each Sunday and last on Christmas
Eve. Children count the days until Christmas using an Advent calendar. They open
one window each day and find a Christmas picture inside.
In Germany the traditional visitor is the Christkindl
who is the Christ Child's messenger. She is a beautiful fair-haired girl with a
shining crown of candles who visits each house with a basket of presents.
In some homes a room is locked up before Christmas. On
Christmas Eve the children go to bed but are woken up at midnight by their
parents and taken down to the locked room. The door is opened and they see the
tree all lit up, with piles of parcels on little tables.
In Germany boys dress up as kings and carry a star round the
village, singing carols.
Submitted by Claudia Happel
The German Christmas traditions are not quite like that.
1. Christmas preparations start before Dec. 1st,
2. December 6 is Nikolaustag, St. Claus day, you leave out a shoe or boot
outside the door Dec.5 and the next morning you find presents (if you were a
good kid) or a rod (if you were bad)
3. The Adventskranz (advent wreath) is not hung up but placed on a table lying
flat, how could you light the candles otherwise...
4. catholic boys and girls dress up as kings for three kings day (jan. 6) they
sing carols and collect money for donations to different projects
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