Christmas to Crescent

English Word or Phrase	German Translation
Christmas	das Weihnachten, das Weihnachtsfest
Christmas bread/cake, fruit cake	der Stollen, der Christstollen, der Striezel
Christmas card(s)	Weihnachtskarte
Christmas Eve	Heiligabend

Germany is credited with starting the Christmas tree tradition as we now know it in the 16th century when devout Christians brought decorated trees into their homes. Some built Christmas pyramids of wood and decorated them with evergreens and candles if wood was scarce.

Some scholars think that he was born between 6 B.C. and 4 B.C., based partly on the biblical story of Herod the Great.

As in many other Christian countries, Christmas is the most special time of the year in Germany. Though the most important ingredients of Christmas across the world are the same – festive cheer, family time and delicious food – each country has its own special way of celebrating this magical festival.

Kris Kringle is a corruption of Christkindl (“Christ Child” — It is the Christkindl who brings gifts on Christmas Eve in parts of Germany, not Santa! Elsewhere the German Santa is known as the Weihnachtsmann, “Father Christmas.”) And it was the German-American political cartoonist Thomas Nast (1840-1902) who gave us …

German pyramids or Christmas pyramids are wooden handicrafts that are made by skilled artisans in the Erzgebirge mountain region of Germany. Over time, the trees were turned back around and the traditional Christmas tree was born.

All year long, Traditional German Pyramids bring joy and cheer to your home decor. In a German Candle Carousel Pyramid, you can visit a German Village scene spinning by the candle power, or sing with the orchestra angels as they turn.

The pyramid works when rising warm air from the candles goes past the blades. A breeze will blow the warm air away before it has a chance to make the pyramid spin. Lastly, remember to be patient. It takes a few seconds for enough heat to be generated by the candles to get the pyramid to spin.

Blow gently near the blades (Like you are blowing on a hot coffee or cup of tea). The blades and display should spin freely.

Place your pyramid in a cool, draught-free spot If it is too hot, the fans will not spin very fast. If it is too breezy, the heat from your candles will disperse rather than rise.

What if my Pyramid isn’t turning? First: Make sure the center rod is sitting centered on the glass cup (bearing). Many times it looks like it is sitting centered, but it may be off centered between the glass cup and the wood around it, making turning difficult.

Germany

The bountiful region surrounding the Rhine river is the birthplace of the name Brubaker. Originally denoting the proprietorship of a village or estate, the German preposition von, which means from or of, used with local names, was taken as a mark of aristocracy.

70 markets

Most Christmas Markets start in the last week of November and run through to Christmas Eve or a day or two before. They are usually open every day from 10am to about 8 or 9 pm.

As of May 2021, very few German Christmas markets have been officially cancelled.

But it’s not the only one — other major markets, including the Cologne Christmas market, Phantastischer Lichter Weihnachtsmarkt in Dortmund, Frankfurt Christmas market, Dresden Christmas market, and Weihnachtsmarkt am Gendarmenmarkt in Berlin, were canceled for 2020.

These are the best German Christmas markets you need to visit

• Christkindlesmarkt, Nuremberg.
• Munich Christmas Market.
• Striezelmarkt, Dresden.
• Leipzig Christmas Market.
• Frankfurt Christmas Market.
• Cathedral Christmas Market, Cologne.
• Reiterlesmarkt, Rothenburg ob der Tauber.
• Berlin Christmas Markets.

Germany is well known for its Christmas Markets where all sorts of Christmas foods and decorations are sold. Perhaps the most famous German decorations are glass ornaments. The glass ornaments were originally hand blown glass and were imported in the USA in 1880s by the Woolworth stores.

Frohe Weihnachten! Germany’s top 10 Christmas markets

• Weihnachtsmarkt Am Kölner Dom, Cologne.
• Dresden Striezelmarkt, Dresden.
• Berlin’s Christmas markets, Berlin.
• Stuttgarter Weihnachtsmarkt, Stuttgart.
• Leipziger Weihnachtsmarkt, Leipzig.

Best Christmas Markets in Europe

• Tallinn. Estonia. This year thousands of you from all over the world have awarded Tallinn the title of Best Christmas Market in Europe.
• Budapest. Hungary.
• Strasbourg. France.
• Vienna. Austria.
• Erfurt. Germany.
• Poznan. Poland.
• Brussels. Belgium.
• Aachen. Germany.

To help you have yourself a merry little Christmas, here are the 12 most Christmassy places in the world.

• Lapland, Finland.
• Bethlehem, Palestine.
• Quebec City, Canada.
• Copenhagen, Denmark.
• North Pole, Alaska, USA.
• Vienna, Austria.
• San Miguel de Allende, Mexico.
• Tokyo, Japan.

17 of the best Christmas markets in the world

• Stockholm, Sweden – Stortorget julmarknad.
• Helsinki, Finland – Helsinki Christmas Market.
• Sibiu, Romania – Piața Mare.
• Strasbourg, France – Christkindelsmärik.
• Toronto, ON, Canada – Toronto Christmas Market.
• Dresden, Germany – Dresdner Striezelmarkt.

Prague

Vienna is hugely popular for a Christmas trip.

Basel, Switzerland has been chosen as the Best 2021 European Christmas Destination 2021. Forget 2020. Although, Covid or not, Christmas is here, the fun of fairs and markets is not with us this year and it’s impossible to ignore that, along with pine trees aromas, there’s coronavirus in the air.

From 12th November 2021 to 5th January 2022 World-renowned Edinburgh’s Christmas celebrations spread the festive cheer across the Scottish capital between 14 November 2021 and 2nd January 2022.

It is expected that celebrations will kick off in the New Town from 21 November 2020 until 3 January 2021. Events will kick off slightly later and conclude slightly earlier in the Old Town, running from 28 November until 24 December. Will there be Christmas markets?

From 6th November to 23rd December 2021. Glasgow is the perfect place to visit this Christmas – stylish shopping, superb eating and drinking and a jam-packed events programme against a city centre backdrop of glittering festive lights. Shop for Christmas gifts and decorations in Glasgow’s fabulously festive Style Mile!

East Princes Street Gardens