Osterfeuer

March 18, 2009 By Leave a Comment

An Osterfeuer is a bonfire that is lit on the evening of Easter Saturday, usually in connection with a Church service.

Different parts of Germany associate the fire with different traditions.  In Bavaria it is also called the Judasfeuer and a straw figure, similar to a guy, is burnt upon the fire representing Judas Iscariot.  In Westfalia it is said to banish the winter.

Some churches have a candle-light service on Saturday evening rather than a fire.

To hear a simple explanation and a short discussion in German, listen to the podcast:

(Press the “play” button to listen to the podcast)

Download a transcript

Download the MP3 file | Subscribe to the podcast

Filed Under: Church, Easter, German Words Explained, Podcasts Tagged With: , , , , ,

Osterhase

March 11, 2009 By 1 Comment

Osterhase is the name given in Germany to the Easter Bunny.

The tradition, which dates back to the 17th Century, says that the Osterhase decorates eggs at Easter and hides them in people’s gardens, although the practise became more common in the 20th Century.

Children go out into the garden on Easter Sunday and look for the eggs.

To hear a simple explanation and a short discussion in German, listen to the podcast:

(Press the “play” button to listen to the podcast)

Download a transcript

Download the MP3 file | Subscribe to the podcast

Filed Under: Easter, German Words Explained, Podcasts Tagged With: , , , ,

Newslinks

March 7, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Some links to interesting news stories in Germany today:

Gutachten wies auf Fehler beim U-Bahn-Bau hin
This week the city archive of Cologne collapsed.  An underground line being built in front of it is being discussed as one of the possible causes.  Now it appears that were warnings about the structure of the new line 5 years ago.

Zahlte Opel keine Steuern?
Opel would like the German state to help them out financially, but now a magazine is claiming that the company did not pay taxes in Germany and instead transferred profits to GM.

Patentstreit um Google-Handy in Deutschland
Google would like to sell their new mobile phone in Germany, but a Taiwanese phone manufacturer is claiming that they are infringing on existing patents.

Filed Under: Newslinks Tagged With: , , ,

Please click on ACCEPT to give us permission to set cookies [more information]

This website uses cookies to give you the best browsing experience possible. Cookies are small text files that are stored by the web browser on your computer. Most of the cookies that we use are so-called “Session cookies”. These are automatically deleted after your visit. The cookies do not damage your computer system or contain viruses. Please read our privacy information page for more details or to revoke permission.

Close