{"id":9449,"date":"2017-12-25T10:00:25","date_gmt":"2017-12-25T10:00:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/german\/?p=9449"},"modified":"2020-12-24T14:52:39","modified_gmt":"2020-12-24T14:52:39","slug":"heiligabend-christmas-eve-in-germany","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/german\/heiligabend-christmas-eve-in-germany\/","title":{"rendered":"Heiligabend – Christmas Eve in Germany"},"content":{"rendered":"

It is Christmas morning! Frohe Weihnachten<\/em> (Merry Christmas)!\u00a0Today is the day that Jesus Christ was born. And it means waking up to presents, because Santa was there, too! But not so in Germany. Kids and adults wake up on December 25 without presents to unwrap. Do they not receive and give presents during Christmas? Oh, they do. So what is going on?<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Weihnachtsbaum<\/em> with Geschenke<\/em> (Image by Author)<\/p><\/div>\n

Well, in Germany, it is on\u00a0the\u00a0Heiliger Abend\u00a0<\/em>(literally “Holy Evening”, Christmas Eve), or more commonly,\u00a0Heiligabend\u00a0<\/em>or\u00a0Weihnachtsabend<\/em>, that\u00a0Geschenke<\/em>\u00a0(presents) are ausgepackt\u00a0<\/em>(unwrapped). So on December 24, not December 25!<\/p>\n

Sometimes, when the\u00a0Kinder\u00a0<\/em>(children) are not old enough yet, the\u00a0Bescherung<\/em>\u00a0– the handing out of the presents – takes place in the afternoon. However, before that, some Kaffee\u00a0<\/em>und Kuchen\u00a0<\/em>(coffee and cake)<\/a> are had. That is quite common throughout the year in Germany, a sort of afternoon tea.<\/a>\u00a0However, there are special cakes and cookies during\u00a0Weihnachten<\/em>. My\u00a0Mutter\u00a0<\/em>(mother) always makes these amazing Weihnachtspl\u00e4tzchen<\/em> (Christmas cookies)<\/a>. And a\u00a0Stollen\u00a0<\/em>(Christmas stollen) must be there, of course. Sometimes, the\u00a0Kaffee\u00a0<\/em>is also exchanged for\u00a0Gl\u00fchwein\u00a0<\/em>(mulled wine)<\/a>. After these\u00a0K\u00f6stlichkeiten<\/em>\u00a0(delicacies), the Auspacken <\/em>(unwrapping) begins.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

My mother’s Weihnachtspl\u00e4tzchen<\/em>! (Image by Author)<\/p><\/div>\n

However, when the children are old enough, all the Auspacken <\/em> happens right\u00a0after an excellent\u00a0Weihnachtsessen\u00a0<\/em>(Christmas Dinner). Together with some more\u00a0Gl\u00fchwein\u00a0<\/em>or some\u00a0Bier\u00a0<\/em>(beer) – a German staple you just cannot go around -, it is an evening on which families in Germany come together and celebrate being together, giving each other presents. For this reason, it is the\u00a0Lieblingszeit\u00a0<\/em>(favorite time) of the year for many people.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

My mother’s Stollen<\/em> (Image by Author)<\/p><\/div>\n

Presents are placed underneath the\u00a0Weihnachtsbaum\u00a0<\/em>(Christmas tree) in the\u00a0Morgen\u00a0<\/em>(morning) or\u00a0Nachmittag\u00a0<\/em>(afternoon) of the 24th. Of course, if there are\u00a0Kinder<\/em>, they are not supposed to see that it was not the\u00a0Weihnachtsmann<\/em> or the\u00a0Christkind<\/em>. The what?<\/p>\n

Das Christkind<\/em><\/strong><\/h2>\n
\"Vintage<\/a>

Vintage German postcard with the Christkind (Image by vintagehalloweencollector on Flickr.com under license CC BY ND 2.0)<\/p><\/div>\n

In some regions of Germany, it is not the\u00a0Weihnachtsmann\u00a0<\/em>(literally “Christmas Man”, Santa Claus) that brings the\u00a0Geschenke<\/em>, but the\u00a0Christkind<\/em><\/a> (literally “Christ Child”). It is a figure brought by Martin Luther to eliminate Saint Nicholas, so that people stop commemorating him. The procedure is quite similar to how it goes with the\u00a0Weihnachtsmann<\/em>. The\u00a0Kinder\u00a0<\/em>(Children) are not allowed to go look for the\u00a0Christkind<\/em>, or it won’t come! So kids, just sit still and let the\u00a0Christkind\u00a0<\/em>do its thing!<\/p>\n

Weihnachten<\/em><\/h2>\n

And today, it is\u00a0Weihnachten<\/em>, though because of all the festivities on the day before, many people already see\u00a0Heiligabend\u00a0<\/em>as Christmas.\u00a0The presents are unwrapped, and many people go to church. All shops are closed, because it is\u00a0erster Weihnachtstag\u00a0<\/em>(First Christmas Day). First? There is a second?<\/p>\n

Yes, because on the\u00a0zweite Weihnachtstag\u00a0<\/em>(Second Christmas Day), Saint Stephen is commemorated. It is an official holiday in many countries, including Germany.<\/p>\n

On both these days, many people visit friends and other family to give them Geschenke<\/em>, or to have some food together or some more\u00a0Kaffee und Kuchen<\/em>. Both days are official holidays, so mostly, it is just a day of relaxing!<\/p>\n

For a whole list of Christmas-related vocabulary, check out this excellent post<\/a> by Larissa!<\/p>\n

What do you celebrate at the end of December? If you celebrate Christmas, how do you do it? Let me know in the comments below!<\/b><\/h4>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\"\"

It is Christmas morning! Frohe Weihnachten (Merry Christmas)!\u00a0Today is the day that Jesus Christ was born. And it means waking up to presents, because Santa was there, too! But not so in Germany. Kids and adults wake up on December 25 without presents to unwrap. Do they not receive and give presents during Christmas? Oh…<\/p>\n

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