The History and Culture of German Christmas Markets

If you have ever vis­it­ed Ger­many dur­ing the Advent sea­son, you have prob­a­bly expe­ri­enced the charm and joy of Ger­man Christ­mas mar­kets. These are out­door mar­kets that offer a vari­ety of goods, food, drinks, and enter­tain­ment relat­ed to Christ­mas and win­ter. They are usu­al­ly held in the main squares or streets of towns and cities, often near his­toric land­marks or church­es. They are dec­o­rat­ed with lights, gar­lands, wreaths, and oth­er fes­tive orna­ments. They are filled with peo­ple of all ages, who come to shop, eat, drink, social­ize, and celebrate.

But how did these mar­kets come to be? What is their his­to­ry and cul­ture? How have they changed over time? And what do they mean for Ger­many today? In this arti­cle, we will answer these ques­tions and more.

The Origins of German Christmas Markets

The ori­gins of Ger­man Christ­mas mar­kets can be traced back to the Mid­dle Ages, when Ger­many was not yet a uni­fied nation but a col­lec­tion of var­i­ous prin­ci­pal­i­ties, duchies, king­doms, and city-states. At that time, peo­ple lived in rur­al areas or small towns, where they depend­ed on agri­cul­ture and trade for their liveli­hoods. They also fol­lowed the Chris­t­ian cal­en­dar, which marked var­i­ous reli­gious feast days through­out the year.

One of these feast days was Decem­ber 6^th, the day of Saint Nicholas, who was the patron saint of chil­dren, mer­chants, sailors, and trav­el­ers. On this day, peo­ple would hon­or him by giv­ing gifts to chil­dren and donat­ing to the poor. They would also hold mar­kets in his name, where they would sell or exchange goods such as food, cloth­ing, tools, toys, can­dles, spices, and more. These mar­kets were also an oppor­tu­ni­ty for peo­ple to stock up on sup­plies for the win­ter months ahead.

Anoth­er impor­tant feast day was Decem­ber 25^th, the day of Christ­mas, which cel­e­brat­ed the birth of Jesus Christ. On this day, peo­ple would attend church ser­vices and exchange gifts with their fam­i­lies and friends. They would also dec­o­rate their homes with ever­green branch­es, mistle­toe, hol­ly, and can­dles. They would also pre­pare spe­cial meals such as roast goose or duck, breads, cakes, pies, and puddings.

As time went on, these two feast days became more close­ly linked togeth­er in peo­ple’s minds and prac­tices. The mar­kets that were held on Decem­ber 6^th grad­u­al­ly extend­ed to last until Decem­ber 24^th or even Jan­u­ary 6^th (the day of Epiphany). The goods that were sold at these mar­kets became more focused on Christ­mas-relat­ed items such as orna­ments, nativ­i­ty scenes, gin­ger­bread hous­es, nut­crack­ers, wood­en toys, and more. The food and drinks that were offered at these mar­kets also became more fes­tive and sea­son­al such as mulled wine (Glhwein), hot choco­late (Hei￟e Schoko­lade), roast­ed chest­nuts (Gebran­nte Man­deln), stollen (a fruit bread), lebkuchen (a gin­ger­bread cook­ie), marzi­pan (a sweet almond paste), and more.

These mar­kets became known as Christkindl­markt (Christ child mar­ket) or Wei­h­nachts­markt (Christ­mas mar­ket), depend­ing on the region or dialect. They became a pop­u­lar tra­di­tion that attract­ed peo­ple from near and far to enjoy the spir­it of Christ­mas and winter.

The Evolution of German Christmas Markets

Ger­man Christ­mas mar­kets have evolved over time to reflect the chang­ing polit­i­cal, social, eco­nom­ic, and cul­tur­al con­texts of Ger­many. Some of the major events that influ­enced their devel­op­ment include:

• The Ref­or­ma­tion: In the 16^th cen­tu­ry, Ger­many was divid­ed by reli­gious con­flicts between Catholics and Protes­tants. The Protes­tants reject­ed some of the Catholic tra­di­tions such as ven­er­at­ing saints or cel­e­brat­ing feast days. They also intro­duced a new fig­ure to replace Saint Nicholas as the gift-giv­er: Christkind (Christ child), a rep­re­sen­ta­tion of Jesus as a child or an angel. The Christkind would vis­it chil­dren on Christ­mas Eve and leave presents under the tree or in their shoes. The Protes­tants also renamed the mar­kets as Christkindl­markt to empha­size their focus on Christ rather than Saint Nicholas.
• The Indus­tri­al Rev­o­lu­tion: In the 18^th and 19^th cen­turies, Ger­many under­went a rapid indus­tri­al­iza­tion and urban­iza­tion that trans­formed its econ­o­my and soci­ety. Many peo­ple moved from rur­al areas to cities, where they worked in fac­to­ries, mines, or rail­ways. They also faced new chal­lenges such as pover­ty, over­crowd­ing, pol­lu­tion, and social unrest. The Christ­mas mar­kets became a way for peo­ple to escape from the harsh real­i­ties of their lives and to recon­nect with their tra­di­tions and roots. They also became a source of income and pride for many arti­sans, crafts­men, and mer­chants who dis­played their skills and prod­ucts at the markets.
• The World Wars: In the 20^th cen­tu­ry, Ger­many was involved in two dev­as­tat­ing world wars that caused immense suf­fer­ing and destruc­tion. The Christ­mas mar­kets were severe­ly affect­ed by these wars, as many of them were closed, dam­aged, or destroyed by bomb­ings, fires, or loot­ing. Some of them were also used for pro­pa­gan­da pur­pos­es by the Nazi regime, which tried to reshape the mean­ing and image of Christ­mas to suit its ide­ol­o­gy and agen­da. After the wars, the Christ­mas mar­kets were grad­u­al­ly restored and reopened as a sym­bol of hope and recov­ery for the Ger­man people.
• The Reuni­fi­ca­tion: In 1989, the Berlin Wall fell and Ger­many was reuni­fied after being divid­ed into East and West for over 40 years. The Christ­mas mar­kets played a role in this his­toric event, as they served as a meet­ing point and a bridge between the two sides. They also helped to pre­serve and revive some of the region­al and local vari­a­tions and spe­cial­ties that had been lost or sup­pressed dur­ing the divi­sion. They also became more diverse and inclu­sive, as they wel­comed vis­i­tors and ven­dors from oth­er coun­tries and cultures.

The Significance of German Christmas Markets

Today, Ger­man Christ­mas mar­kets are one of the most beloved and pop­u­lar attrac­tions dur­ing the hol­i­day sea­son. They attract mil­lions of vis­i­tors every year, both from with­in Ger­many and from abroad. They are also a major source of rev­enue and employ­ment for many cities and towns.

But beyond their eco­nom­ic and touris­tic val­ue, Ger­man Christ­mas mar­kets have a deep­er cul­tur­al and social sig­nif­i­cance for Ger­many. They are a way of:

• Cel­e­brat­ing Ger­man cul­ture and her­itage: The Christ­mas mar­kets show­case some of the best aspects of Ger­man cul­ture and her­itage, such as its crafts­man­ship, cui­sine, music, art, lit­er­a­ture, folk­lore, and cus­toms. They also reflect some of the region­al and local diver­si­ty and iden­ti­ty of Ger­many, as each mar­ket has its own unique fea­tures and specialties.
• Shar­ing Ger­man cul­ture with oth­ers: The Christ­mas mar­kets are open and wel­com­ing to every­one, regard­less of their back­ground or beliefs. They are a way of shar­ing Ger­man cul­ture with oth­ers, espe­cial­ly with for­eign­ers who may not be famil­iar with it or who may have neg­a­tive stereo­types about it. They are also a way of learn­ing from oth­ers, as they expose Ger­man peo­ple to oth­er cul­tures and tra­di­tions that are rep­re­sent­ed at the markets.
• Cre­at­ing a sense of com­mu­ni­ty: The Christ­mas mar­kets cre­ate a sense of com­mu­ni­ty among the peo­ple who vis­it them or work at them. They are a place where peo­ple can meet, inter­act, social­ize, and have fun togeth­er. They are also a place where peo­ple can sup­port each oth­er, espe­cial­ly those who are in need or less for­tu­nate. Many Christ­mas mar­kets donate part of their pro­ceeds to char­i­ty or offer free or dis­count­ed goods or ser­vices to those who can­not afford them.
• Enjoy­ing the spir­it of Christ­mas: The Christ­mas mar­kets are a way of enjoy­ing the spir­it of Christ­mas, which is not only about reli­gion but also about val­ues such as peace, joy, love, gen­eros­i­ty, grat­i­tude, and hope. They are a way of cel­e­brat­ing the birth of Christ for those who believe in him, but also a way of cel­e­brat­ing life itself for those who do not. They are a way of express­ing grat­i­tude for what we have and giv­ing back to those who do not. They are a way of spread­ing joy and hap­pi­ness to our­selves and others.

We hope you enjoyed read­ing this arti­cle and we invite you to vis­it our Ger­man Events Web­site to learn more about our events and ser­vices relat­ed to Ger­man cul­ture in China.