AllThingsGerman.net » Public holidays

Fronleichnam

Graham — Wed, 28 May 2008 21:07:36 +0000

Fronleichnam is the name given to Corpus Christi – a date in the Catholic Church calendar that is celebrated 60 days after Easter.

It is only a public holiday in some parts of Germany.

The day generally starts with a Church service – often held in the open air. This is then followed by a procession through the town, often stopping at decorated altars en route.

Often the parish will hold their annual fête after the procession, giving an opportunity for families to spend the afternoon together and hopefully enjoy the fine weather.

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Public Holidays 1

Maifeiertag

Graham — Wed, 07 May 2008 21:20:45 +0000

Maifeiertag is the name given to the first (1st) day of May, known in English as May Day. It is also known in Germany as the Tag der Arbeit.

It is a public holiday, but unlike in some other countries it always falls on the 1st and is not moved to accommodate weekends.

The day was first celebrated in Germany during the time of the Weimar Republic in 1919, but it was not until 1933 that the bank holiday status was confirmed as being an annual event.

Traditionally Maibäume as erected for this day. Some of these are highly decorated, others resemble maypoles with coloured ribbons.

In the cities, however, the day is more political with demonstrations for workers’ rights.

Most people spend the day with their families.

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Public Holidays 1

Allerheiligen

Graham — Wed, 07 Nov 2007 00:17:05 +0000

Allerheiligen is celebrated on 1st November each year. It is a public holiday in a number of western Bundesländer, and has been celebrated in the Roman Catholic Church since the 9th Century.

The next day is Allerseelen (2nd November), and it is on these days that people visit and tend to the graves of their deceased relatives.

It is not a public holiday in Hessen and as such many people from the neighbouring Bundesländer come here to go shopping!

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Der Reformationstag

Graham — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 23:57:03 +0000

The Reformationstag is celebrated on 31st October each year. It is the day on which in 1517 Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses to the church door in Wittenberg, critising certain aspects of the Catholic Church and thus starting the Reformation in Germany.

It is a bank holiday mainly in the eastern part of the country.

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Tag der Deutschen Einheit

Graham — Tue, 02 Oct 2007 23:20:36 +0000

The Tag der Deutschen Einheit (“Day of German Unity”) is celebrated each year as a public holiday on 3rd October. In 1990 it replaced the previous holidays of 17th June in West Germany and 7th October in East Germany.

The main celebrations are held in the capital city of a different state each year.

The date was chosen arbitrarily and celebrates the day in 1990 when re-unification took place. Celebrating the day the Berlin Wall fell was felt inappropriate, as by co-incidence it is also the anniversary of the Reichspogromnacht in 1938.

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http://www.tag-der-deutschen-einheit.de/