Christmas in
Germany
Celebrated: December 24 (Heiligabend) through December 26
Signature traditions
- 1.Christmas markets (Weihnachtsmärkte) that fill town squares from late November through Christmas Eve
- 2.Advent calendars with 24 numbered doors, opened one per day in December
- 3.Lighting one Advent wreath candle per Sunday for the four Sundays before Christmas
- 4.St. Nicholas Day on December 6 — children leave shoes out for small gifts and treats
- 5.Christmas Eve gift exchange (German children open presents on the 24th, not the 25th)
What's on the table
Stollen, lebkuchen, and Christmas goose
Stollen (a dense bread with marzipan, dried fruit, and powdered sugar) and lebkuchen (gingerbread) are baked weeks ahead. Christmas dinner is often roast goose with red cabbage and dumplings.
The iconic decoration
The Christmas pyramid and glass ornaments
The Weihnachtspyramide is a wooden carousel powered by candle heat that spins nativity figures. Hand-blown glass ornaments from the Erzgebirge region became the global standard.
How gifts are given
Christkind (Christ Child) brings gifts on Christmas Eve in southern Germany; Weihnachtsmann (Father Christmas) handles delivery in the north. Either way, gifts appear under the tree on the 24th.
Did you know?
Germany invented the modern Christmas tree tradition. The first decorated trees appeared in the 16th century in Strasbourg, and the custom spread globally after Queen Victoria's German-born husband Prince Albert popularized it in England.