Jump to the Advent Calendar.
First advent is almost upon us and what better way to celebrate than a virtual Advent Calendar? Ok, so a real one with Schokolade behind each little Türchen would be better. A lot better. In fact, teeny tiny pieces of Schokolade may have inspired the first commercial Adventskalender. Read on for a bit of history and a virtual Adventskalender at the end. The first Türchen will open December 1 and a new one will open each day, leading to short videos, pictures and recipes to enjoy a German Weihnachten.
Ein kleines bisschen History
When Gerhard Lang was just a boy, his mother wrapped the winzige Süßigkeiten in paper and let him unwrap one per day leading up to Christmas. It left an impression. Starting in 1904, he began producing Adventskalender with numbered Türchen. Behind each Türchen was a small picture illustrated by well-known authors of his day. He is also credited with the first Adventskalender with Schokolade behind the Türchen.
But he wasn’t really the very first person with the idea. Obviously, his mother inspired him. But there were other versions of Adventskalender and the tradition of counting down to Christmas dates back far earlier than the turn of the last century.
In 1851, Elise Averdieck wrote a children’s book in which the mother in the story added a little picture to the wallpaper each day leading up to Christmas and then told the children a story about the picture. When 24 were hanging on the wall, Weihnachten was there.
And of course there is the Adventsuhr. This isn’t a calendar, per se, but the function is definitely the same: building excitement for the highlight of the Christian calendar.
Today, you will even find the 24 windows of Schloss Hellbrunn in Salzburg, Österreich used as a giant Adventskalender during the Christkindlmarkt.
A (free) virtual Advent Calendar
Do you celebrate Weihnachten with Adventskalender? Enjoy this free virtual Adventskalender. Starting December 1, a new Türchen will open each day. You’ll find German Christmas carols, recipes, traditions and stories to make the season a little brighter…and a little more deutsch. Don’t forget to subscribe below if you would like to be notified of new posts!
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