German Christmas Tradition - Nikolaus
Der Nikolaus
Let's enjoy the "Weihnachtszeit" and get into the right mood for Christmas!
These blog post will provide you with interesting information about some traditions that might be different from how you celebrate the jolly season in your country and hopefully help you to feel more comfortable with the German culture and to enjoy Christmas season in Germany even more!
What happens on the 6th of December in Germany?
A man who looks similar to Coca Cola’s Santa Clause, St. Nikolaus comes and visites children (and some adults ;) ) all over the country, but do you know who that is?
Who is St. Nikolaus?
St. Nicholas lived between 270 and 286 AD in what is now Turkey, he became the bishop of Myra and was canonized by the Vatican after his death. He is now the patron of pupils and students, because he especially cared for the children and poor people during his lifetime. He brought poor children and families sacks with clothes, gold, manderines, oranges, nuts, apples, chocolates, and toys.
In memory of him, nowadays St. Nikolaus and his "Begleiter" Knecht Ruprecht visit children on the night of the 5th or 6th of December. Therefore German children (small and grown-up ones) leave a cleaned “Stiefel” in front of their doorstep on the said evening, hoping to receive a small gift or treats from St. Nikolaus. Sometimes it is not a boot that is set out, but a plate or a “Säckchen” for him to fill. To all the well-behaved children, St. Nikolaus brings "kleine Gaben" like “Nüsse”, “Mandarinen”, “Schokolade”, and little “Geschenke”, but the kids who have been naughty will be put in Knecht Ruprecht’s "Sack" as punishment for their behaviour. If this EVER happend… ? I don’t know. 😉
Does St. Nikolaus (and Knecht Ruprecht) also come visit your country? Let us know in the comments!
Did this little culture lesson spark your interest to learn more about the German culture and advance with your language skills?
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Vocabulary:
die Weihnachtszeit - the Christmas time
die Begleitung - company
kleine Gaben - Sg. die Gabe - other word for “das Geschenk” - the gift
der Sack (Pl. die Säcke) - the sack/bag
das Säckchen (Pl. die Säckchen)- little sack/bag
der Stiefel (Pl. die Stiefel)- the boot
die Nuss (Pl. die Nüsse) - the nut
die Mandarine (Pl. die Mandarinen) - the manderine
die Schokolade - the chocolate
das Geschenk (Pl. die Geschenke) - the gift/present
die Adventszeit - time from the 1st till the 24th of December