We often think that all our traditions are very old, especially when it comes to Christmas. We have been investigating and you will be surprised what we have found out about Christmas traditions.
Long before the birth of Christ, midwinter was celebrated on December 21, the longest night of the year. The festival was celebrated in many European cultures. They celebrated the birth of light in winter and this symbolism was used by Roman popes and emperors in the 4th century when they made Christianity the state religion. From then on, the birth of the sun god on December 25 was no longer remembered, but the birth of Jesus Christ. But anyone who now believes that pagan customs were simply reinterpreted is mistaken. The reason was a simple arithmetical example, the Annunciation of the angel Gabriel to Mary added up with nine months, ergo the birth date was December 25.
Since when do we actually put-up Christmas trees?
It was not until about the beginning of the 19th century that people put up Christmas trees in their living rooms. Before that they were decorated outdoors, similar to maypoles. It was mostly Protestants who put up their Christmas trees inside, for Catholics the nativity scene was the center of attention. The tree hung from the ceiling, there were no candles because wax was much too expensive. The substitutes stearin and kerosene wax were only invented in the middle of the 19th century and since then they have provided the atmospheric light at Christmas. Around 1531, Martin Luther, who did not believe in the veneration of saints, exchanged the angelic Christ Child for St. Nicholas as the bearer of the gifts.
And where does Santa Claus then come from; you may ask? He is not that old yet. He was first mentioned around 1835 by Hoffmann von Fallersleben and his well-known Christmas song “Morgen kommt der Weihnachtsmann”. In the United States, too, it is Santa Claus who brings the presents and not the Christ Child.
Christmas traditions: Advent wreath and calendar
The Advent wreath and the Advent season date back to the year 1839. At that time the educator Johann Hinrich Wichern from Hamburg built a wooden wreath with 23 candles to shorten the waiting time for Christmas for his pupils in the “Rough House”. Every morning until Christmas one candle was lit. Only much later, around 1900, four candles decorated the green wreath. A short time later, a Munich entrepreneur printed Advent calendars, on which children could stick 24 colorful pictures in the joyful expectation of the feast. Only many decades later the Advent calendar with chocolate as we know it today was created.
While today people celebrate Christmas with their families, in the Middle Ages the festivities were public with Christmas markets, parades and nativity plays. Since the 18th century the importance of the family has increased and Christmas has become an important celebration within it. And if the children were good, they were given presents.
Even though our blog is a little longer this time, we don’t want to withhold the wonderful Christmas story of Gut Nisdorf from you, which Sabine Stange, current owner of the Bio- und Familienhotel Gut Nisdorf, sent us.
Christmas traditions at Gut Nisdorf
We live and work in an old manor house. The history of this place goes back more than 700 years. From the last estate owners of the von Zansen-Osten-Rewoldt family there is a nice description of Christmas Eve. It has been written down by a member of the family as follows:
The magic of Christmas at the old manor
“When it was the first time and why, I don’t know, in any case, the Christmas scene was suddenly moved to Nisdorf. And over the years, they all came from north and south and west, belonging to the large family, to gather under the Nisdorf Christmas tree.
The festive table stretched from one end to the other (the hall is 80 square meters large) and Willi’s bow legs had to walk a lot (Willi is the servant Wilhelm). They never ran, but moved forward calmly, and yet – however large the number of guests was, he was ready to lay the table in time, he had the rooms comfortably warm. When the Clausdorfer (a village 10 km away) even stayed the night, the “hotel” was fully occupied and the chaiselongues and the bathroom served as sleeping quarters. Everyone enjoyed being together and yet – not in there, there is a discussion! How often one heard that moved back with respect. And there were tears and laughter. Irritability and excessive tenderness alternated in colorful sequences – but above all, the closest family ties! All gathered around the center – around “our Ömi”, as we all call her (Therese von Zansen-Osten Rewoldt). She sat at the table with bright blue eyes and gave the speech on New Year’s Eve, which made all other eyes wet.
It always seemed that the climax had been reached and then it became even more beautiful. Grandmother gave her best and the youth also gave their best in the most colorful cabaret performances, yes, with such talented grandchildren: Albrecht provided the music and humor, Elisabeth poetry, performance and dance, Kurt brought in the glamorous touch and accomplished dance, Joy’s pictorial talent designed the most beautiful stage sets. And so, every year a program was created that would have been seen in public, eagerly awaited by all the “old” and performed with great joy by the “young”. No one was safe from us – the stable maker least of all. He built backdrops, – he laid the “ramp lighting”, he stretched canvas and gave us young people expert advice. And Wilhelm always knew where to find the most unusual things, and the gardener brought his most beautiful foliage plants. Yes, it was a big family here as well.
When the first week of January carried off one guest after the other, grandmother knew that everyone took a lot home from the warmth and the magic of Christmas, which they still remembered for a long time…
I think it’s a nice description of what it was like in the Pomeranian province. Therese von Zansen-Osten-Rewoldt was landowner until 1931 and turned 90. She had 5 children, who had 3 or 4 children of their own. Just to make clear how many people were here.
The farmhands and maidservants were presented with the lady of the manor in a separate Christmas party. The children got nothing if they did not make a curtsy or diner over the year when Therese came by. But Therese von Zansen-Osten-Rewoldt was just and fair!
In the next part we will introduce you to the customs in Thuringia.
Read more: VACATION FOR YOUNG AND OLD – SUSTAINABLE OFFERS FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY
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