In Germany, Christmas isn't one day but a whole season. It starts with the first candle on the Advent wreath, brings chocolate in a boot on 6 December, and peaks on the evening of the 24th, when presents are opened. Then come two public holidays of visiting family and eating too much.
These are the words for every stage of it, from the calendar on the wall to the tree on the street in January.
The Christmas Season
Christmas
Weihnachten
Advent
der Advent
Advent wreath
der Adventskranz
Advent calendar
der Adventskalender
the first Sunday of Advent
der erste Advent
St Nicholas' Day, 6 December
der Nikolaustag
Christmas Eve
der Heiligabend
Christmas Day
der erste Weihnachtsfeiertag
Boxing Day
der zweite Weihnachtsfeiertag
the giving of presents
die Bescherung
New Year's Eve
Silvester
Practice these words
Weihnachten
Adventskranz: a wreath of fir branches with four candles. One more is lit each Sunday of Advent, so by the fourth Sunday all four are burning. Count backwards from 25 December and you'll always find the first Sunday of Advent between 27 November and 3 December.
Bescherung: German children open their presents on the evening of 24 December, usually after dinner or church, not on the morning of the 25th.
Who Brings the Presents?
| Who | When | Where |
|---|---|---|
der Nikolaus | the night of 5 to 6 December | everywhere: children put a cleaned boot outside the door and find sweets, nuts and a mandarin in it |
das Christkind | Christmas Eve | mostly the south and west, and in Catholic families |
der Weihnachtsmann | Christmas Eve | mostly the north and east |
Knecht Ruprecht | with Nikolaus | the Nikolaus's dark companion, traditionally with a rod for naughty children |
der Krampus | early December | Bavaria and Austria: a horned figure in fur, out in parades on the streets |
Christkind or Weihnachtsmann? It's one of the clearest regional divides in Germany. The Christkind is never seen: it brings the presents while the children are out of the room, and a little bell rings when it's gone. The Weihnachtsmann, in red with a white beard, may knock on the door himself, often played by a neighbour or an uncle.
Decorations
Christmas tree
der Weihnachtsbaum / der Tannenbaum
Christmas tree, in the south
der Christbaum
bauble
die Christbaumkugel
fairy lights
die Lichterkette
candle
die Kerze
star
der Stern
tinsel
das Lametta
nativity scene
die Krippe
candle arch
der Schwibbogen
incense smoker
das Räuchermännchen
nutcracker
der Nussknacker
Practice these words
der Weihnachtsbaum / der Tannenbaum
Schwibbogen and Räuchermännchen come from the Erzgebirge, the mountains on the Saxon–Czech border. A Schwibbogen is a wooden arch with candles, often lit in windows. A Räuchermännchen is a carved figure with a tiny incense cone inside, and the smoke comes out of its mouth.
When the tree goes up: in many families, only on 24 December itself or a few days before. It usually stays until 6 January, Heilige Drei Könige, a public holiday in Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg and Saxony-Anhalt.
Christmas Baking and Food
Christmas biscuits
die Plätzchen
gingerbread
der Lebkuchen
Christmas stollen
der Christstollen
spiced shortcrust biscuit
der Spekulatius
cinnamon star
der Zimtstern
vanilla crescent
das Vanillekipferl
roast goose
die Weihnachtsgans
potato salad with sausages
Kartoffelsalat mit Würstchen
Practice these words
die Plätzchen
Plätzchen backen is a family event in December: several kinds baked over several weekends and kept in tins. In Bavaria they're also called Platzerl, and in Swabia Bredle.
Christmas Eve dinner is often simple: Kartoffelsalat mit Würstchen is one of the most common answers when Germans are asked what they eat on the 24th. The big meal, often goose or duck with red cabbage and dumplings, comes on the 25th.
Christmas Wishes
Merry Christmas!
Frohe Weihnachten!
Merry Christmas, a bit more traditional
Fröhliche Weihnachten!
Happy holidays!
Schöne Feiertage!
Have a happy and peaceful Christmas!
Frohe und besinnliche Weihnachten!
Merry Christmas and a happy New Year!
Frohe Weihnachten und einen guten Rutsch!
Same to you!
Dir auch! / Ihnen auch!
Practice these words
Frohe Weihnachten!
Besinnlich means calm and reflective, and it appears on almost every German Christmas card. Guten Rutsch is for the New Year, literally "a good slide" into it, and people start saying it from mid-December.
Practical Christmas in Germany
- 24 December isn't a public holiday, but when it falls on a Monday to Saturday, shops close at 2 pm at the latest. Offices often close for the day.
- 25 and 26 December are both public holidays. Shops, banks and most offices are closed.
- Between Christmas and New Year, the days zwischen den Jahren, "between the years", many offices run on a skeleton staff, and replies to emails wait until January.
- The tree afterwards: most towns collect old Christmas trees in January on set dates, the Christbaumsammlung or Weihnachtsbaumabholung. Take off every bauble and every strand of tinsel first.