Christmas Day is called 'Erster Feiertag' Unlike Christmas Day celebrations in England, the Germans know 25th December as 'Erster Feiertag', which means first celebration day.
In Germany, Christmas is called “Weihnachten” which is a compound of the verb “weihen” which means consecrate, and the noun “Nacht” which means night. As a consequence, the word “Weihnachten” means consecrated night. In Germany, it consists of three holidays.
Santa Claus - Der Weihnachtsmann
The term Weihnachtsmann is a very generic German term for Father Christmas, St. Nicholas, or Santa Claus. The German Weihnachtsmann is a fairly recent Christmas tradition having little if any religious or folkloric background.
Although it is the Christian festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, Christmas is also celebrated by Germans who do not profess any faith – by 78% in all. Celebrating Christmas is an important family tradition for most people. Roughly one in four Germans go to church at Christmas.
December 24th: Heiligabend, Christmas Eve
As is the case across most of Western Europe, Germany's main day of celebration for Christmas is the 24th, the so-called “Heiligabend”. In the morning of the 24th, the Christmas tree is put up and decorated, and in the evening, children get to open their presents.
Then when July finally rolls around, this is when Australians celebrate Christmas in the traditional sense since it's colder. Although we know it as Christmas in July, Australians call this second celebration Yuletide or Yulefest.
A German Christmas Eve
This culinary tradition continues today in many families, even if no church going is involved, with carp, salmon or hake often taking centre stage at the table, accompanied by fried potatoes or Kartoffelpuffer (potato fritters) and Sauerkraut.
German people celebrate Christmas on Christmas Eve - December 24th, and most stores are closed after 2 pm on this day. The following 2 days - 25th and 26th of December are national holidays. Unlike American kids, German kids open their gifts on December 24th (lucky them!).
In Germany it is known as 'Zweiter Feiertag' (which means 'second celebration') and also 'Zweiter Weihnachtsfeiertag'. The dating of Boxing Day can get rather complicated. Sometimes Boxing Day is described as 'the first weekday after Christmas'.
Oktoberfest – also known as Wiesn – is the most famous German tradition, but there are several lesser-known traditional occasions that are just as interesting as well as more original.
The Santa Claus emoji 🎅 portrays the face of Santa Claus, the legendary Christmas figure.
German immigrants brought Santa Claus figurines to Ohio in the 1800s and once like the blue Santa were made locally. The director of the American Toy Marvel Museum says the blue color was traditional for the German version of St. Nicholas.
A long time ago, Santa was known as Saint Nicholas by his peers because he was so kind to others and often gave gifts to those in need. Today, some still call Santa “Saint Nicholas” among his many nicknames.
Frohe Weihnachten is the classic for Merry Christmas in German. It is short, spot on and easy to learn — even for beginners. Frohe means joyful and Weihnachten of course translates to Christmas.
Boxing Day, in Great Britain and some Commonwealth countries, particularly Australia, Canada, and New Zealand, holiday (December 26) on which servants, tradespeople, and the poor traditionally were presented with gifts. By the 21st century it had become a day associated with shopping and sporting events.
On the 26th December many Germans celebrate the 2nd day of Christmas. They believe that the second day of Christmas is no longer about the birth of Jesus. It is rather a day of religious reflection on the incarnation of God.
Christmas holiday (Weihnachtsferien) - usually two weeks. Winter holiday (Winterferien) - between a few days and two weeks. Easter holiday (Osterferien) - two to three weeks.
In Germany, people use an Adventskranz, or advent wreath, with four candles on it to celebrate the four advents or the four Sundays before Christmas. On each of the four Sundays preceding Christmas Eve, a candle is lit. After lightning the first candle, the Christmas season officially begins.
The legend of Santa Claus can be traced back hundreds of years to a monk named St. Nicholas. It is believed that Nicholas was born sometime around A.D. 280 in Patara, near Myra in modern-day Turkey.
The homeland of Christmas markets is Germany. More than 600-year-old tradition makes the Christmas markets in Germany some of the most popular ones in the whole world. The oldest Christmas market in Germany dated in 1434 and was held in Dresden. The most beautiful Christmas market in Germany can be found in Erfurt.
The traditional Christmas meal features duck, goose, rabbit or a roast. This main dish is accompanied by German delicacies such as apple and sausage stuffing, red cabbage and potato dumplings. Dessert typically includes Christmas Stollen, considered one of the best Christmas pastries in the world!
Although they look nothing alike, the “Christmas rose” (Helleborus niger) is the Germanic equivalent of the poinsettia (Weihnachtsstern). In German the central European plant goes by the name Christrose, Schneerose, or Weihnachtsrose, and gets its name from the fact that it blooms in the winter from December to March.
The main meal of the day is das Mittagessen, or lunch. The tradition is to have a hot meal during lunch. Sauerbraten, snitzels, Frikadellen (German meatballs), potatoes (such as Kartoffelsalat), green beans, soups, and stews are frequently served for lunch.
The song, popular with school-aged kids, explains that Santa's reindeer get a rest while six white boomers (boomer is Aussie slang for a male kangaroo) lead Santa's sleigh through Australia! After all the toys are delivered, they even help a little joey (a baby kangaroo) find his mommy.