![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
scottishlassOn the sixth it's St. Nicholas Day here in Germany, the Netherlands and other Mid-European countries. While it is not an official holiday, this name day of St. Nikolaus Bishop of Myra is still celebrated for the children.
On the eve of St. Nicholas Day (5th Dec.) children put out their Nicholas boots, usually either boots or shoes polished to a shine and over night St. Nicholas fills them up with sweets and cookies. He is usually accompanied by Servant Ruprecht (Knecht Ruprecht in Germany, Zwarte Piet in the Netherlands) who will punish naughty children.
Usually all children get sweets.
St. Nicholas was a prominent figure in Byzantine times, he was a bishop of Graeco-Turkmen descent and he is reputed to have created a lot of miracles. He also loved children and he left sweets and sometimes money for children in their shoes or sandals outside the houses. Hence his name day celebrations.
Until Coca Cola came up with their red suited Santa Claus in the early 1900s, St. Nicholas and also the 'Weihnachtsmann' (Christmas Mann, Santa Claus, Sinterklaas and Father Frost) were shown to wear a bishop's robe and tiered hat in blue, yellow or green - never red!) but from 1910 onwards the red suited (still in bishop's robes mind you) St. Nicholas spread from England to mainland Europe. .
Unfortunately this tradition is more and more a thing of the past, Nowadays, we get visits of Santa Claus on Christmas Eve and not the 'Weihnachtsmann' or the 'Christkind' anymore. We celebrate Halloween but not St. Martin anymore. I really wait for the day when we idiots start celebrating Thanksgiving not in September/October when there IS a real harvest time and a time to give thanks, but in November with turkeys and American-Indians.
Can't the US keep at least their traditions to themselves? They are already the self-declared Earth police (sign the blasted Kyoto and follow treaty, for god's sake!!!!) or the self-declared financial moguls (Standard & Poor's where were you when the US was almost bankrupt??) but the American way of life is not something to cry home about. And no, you didn't bring Democracy to the world, that were the Ancient Greek.If democracy of the ppl means politicians getbribed 'prepped' by lobbyists to follow their interests ... sorry, that is not democracy as I see it.
Anyway, I wanted to write about German customs, not rant about the US of A.
On the eve of St. Nicholas Day (5th Dec.) children put out their Nicholas boots, usually either boots or shoes polished to a shine and over night St. Nicholas fills them up with sweets and cookies. He is usually accompanied by Servant Ruprecht (Knecht Ruprecht in Germany, Zwarte Piet in the Netherlands) who will punish naughty children.
Usually all children get sweets.
St. Nicholas was a prominent figure in Byzantine times, he was a bishop of Graeco-Turkmen descent and he is reputed to have created a lot of miracles. He also loved children and he left sweets and sometimes money for children in their shoes or sandals outside the houses. Hence his name day celebrations.
Until Coca Cola came up with their red suited Santa Claus in the early 1900s, St. Nicholas and also the 'Weihnachtsmann' (Christmas Mann, Santa Claus, Sinterklaas and Father Frost) were shown to wear a bishop's robe and tiered hat in blue, yellow or green - never red!) but from 1910 onwards the red suited (still in bishop's robes mind you) St. Nicholas spread from England to mainland Europe. .
Unfortunately this tradition is more and more a thing of the past, Nowadays, we get visits of Santa Claus on Christmas Eve and not the 'Weihnachtsmann' or the 'Christkind' anymore. We celebrate Halloween but not St. Martin anymore. I really wait for the day when we idiots start celebrating Thanksgiving not in September/October when there IS a real harvest time and a time to give thanks, but in November with turkeys and American-Indians.
Can't the US keep at least their traditions to themselves? They are already the self-declared Earth police (sign the blasted Kyoto and follow treaty, for god's sake!!!!) or the self-declared financial moguls (Standard & Poor's where were you when the US was almost bankrupt??) but the American way of life is not something to cry home about. And no, you didn't bring Democracy to the world, that were the Ancient Greek.If democracy of the ppl means politicians get
Anyway, I wanted to write about German customs, not rant about the US of A.
