What defines German culture?
Germany is home to 82.2 million people including Germans and minorities of other nationalities that respect each other and together make Germany a country of values, unique celebrations, and customs. Germany boasts of a diverse array of religions, customs, and traditions that make up the rich national psyche. Considered to be a country of thinkers, poets, Germany considers High German, or Hochdeutsch, to be the most ‘official version of the language and Nationalhymne is their National Anthem.
Let's study a little about Germans, their way of life, their beliefs, their faith culture and traditions they follow!
Germans lay a lot of value and importance to time. They are strictly punctual, sincere, serious, straightforward (direct not rude) and genuine by nature. German culture influences people to be orderly, thrifty, sensible, respectful towards each other’s privacy, and respectful and compliant with the order and structure and follow rules and laws of society to an above-average degree. German culture radiates reason and logic, encourages honesty, openness, and sincerity when communicating with one another and that avoids polite superficiality.
Thus it’s quite natural to understand why Germans value time a lot; not just for work but for social events as well, and follow rules that are in place; for the greater good of everybody who lives there! In fact, German trains have earned the credibility to run perfectly on time!
Germans ingrain the qualities of being conscientious and hard-working, in their children from their childhood, as a result, the country can boast impressive economic development and one of the best education systems in the world.
Germans themselves call it Deutschland. Germany is known as the country of poets and thinkers.
German culture has been shaped over thousands of years, one that has put it at the forefront of European thought, politics, and art for over 1,000 years. It was originally a pagan country, and then an important centre during the Holy Roman Empire. It was also the birthplace of the Protestant reformation. Today, Christians, Catholics, and Muslims coexist happily in Germany. Germany also shares a lot of culture and traditions with the neighbouring countries, especially the Germanic-speaking Austria and Switzerland.
Traditionally, they hold high and deeply respect the doctrine and ideology of family and community of great importance. Germans are believers of the fact that if everyone in a community follows the set rules and does things the right way, it will make the place nice, comfortable and livable.
German history has shaped a culture that entrusts Germans to balance traditional Christian principles and values with progressive, liberal, and inclusive mindset and attitude, at a sub conscientious level and with literature, art, philosophy, logic, reason at a much higher global level.
Germans continue to be conscious flag bearers of their traditions and strong family values. It is not uncommon to find several generations of a family all living in or around the same town or city – even in the larger or more transient cities like Berlin – who meet up often and celebrate or go on vacation together. Generally, they are also quite neighborly, and most will invest in their neighbours by getting to know them and creating a sense of community – again, not just in the smaller towns.
About two-thirds of Germans believe in God, while one third have no religious beliefs. Germany guarantees religious freedom – everyone can make their own decision for or against a faith. That said, Germany has a percentage of 65 to 70% of people who recognize themselves as Christians, 29% of which as Catholics. There is also a Muslim minority of 4.4%. A number as high as 36% do not identify themselves as having any religion or belong to another than Christianity or Muslim.
German Culture is also known for good beer (and Oktoberfest), delicious sausage, hiking, traditional ‘Oom-Pah’ folk music, and holiday-making make-up a key part of the country’s identity. At closer inspection, there is a larger array of food, drink, history, and leisure activities that are also important aspects of their culture.
Germany can be considered a modern and advanced society in lots of ways. The nation has some of the most progressive policies regarding gender equality, LGBT rights, and immigration. In recent years policies to allow more immigrants to enter the country have come about as more German people have begun to value the benefits of a diverse multicultural society.
75% of Germany’s population are urban dwellers, and it is in these urban areas where you will find the most liberal attitudes towards homosexuality, gender equality, and refugees.
For decades, Germany has shown its commitment to renewable energy and protecting the environment and Germany has grown to become a large and stable economy that contributes to global development and peace. It has long been at the forefront of pioneering new technology to help in the war against fossil fuels, CO2 emissions, and pollution, and its dedicated garbage recycling system is one of the most thorough in the world. Thus, Germans practice and preach rules, like religion when it comes to correct recycling, late-night noise etcetera, for generations to follow. The first thing most people are required to check out when they arrive in their new home in Germany is the garbage bins by default! It helps them understand how to separate the garbage, study the colours of communal bins and know which bin is to be left out to ensure that everything can be recycled properly!
Symbols close to the heart!
The German symbols have changed through different phases in history alongside the events that have shaped its culture and traditions. The eagle was part of the Holy Roman Empire, which after Prussia’s victory over Austria in 1886 has been shared by two different states. Martin Luther and luminaries as Immanuel Kant, Johann Gottfried von Herder and Johann Wolfgang Goethe are also important figures and very contentious symbols. Today the most well-known symbol of the country is its black, red and gold flag and the flag of the European Union.
Then there are obvious other symbols such as the crucifix and indirect symbols such as the shape of a pretzel (said to represent the Holy Trinity), the Moon and Star from Islamic culture including other symbols that happen to be famous names from the arts, politics, and philosophy such as Goethe, Beethoven, Klee, Kant and Marx and David Hasselhoff.
Work culture
The average working week in Germany is around 35-40 hours, one of the lowest in Europe. Productivity, however, is high, and whilst at work, most Germans take pride in doing a good job. And when not at work, they partake in a range of leisure activities and pastimes.
Games
At home:
Germany is one of the world’s biggest producers of board games, responsible for the invention of many of the biggest names in the realm of so-called Eurogames (strategy-based board games), apart from Carcassonne, The Settlers of Catan, and Ticket to Ride. Games have been a way in German households to engage with friends of all ages!
In Field
Sports has been an integral element of the German society, both in terms of playing and watching. Around 27,000,000, that’s a 1/3rds
of all German residents belong to one or the other sports club or an organization, with an additional 12,000,000 pursue such an activity individually and hundreds of thousands watching football, soccer, futebol, ice hockey, and handball games every week. The German National Football Team remains one of the strongest football teams in the world, having won a total of four World Cups (1954, 1974, 1990, 2014) so far. During the periods of championships, whether it is FIFA World Cup or the UEFA Champions League, huge screens are set in city squares, bar cafes and restaurants, where children and grandmas and anyone else in between, gather to watch the matches while drinking beer and eating sausages.
Travel
Germany is blessed to share nine land borders with other countries, thus making it easy to take a European trip from Germany. No wonder, Germans are passionate travellers, and taking foreign holidays is an important part of the lifestyle. It is interesting to know that Germans spend more per capita on international travel than any other country in Europe with Italy, Spain, and Austria being their choicest holiday destinations.
Environment friendly
With three-quarters of all Germans living in cities, urban gardening has become very popular and even those who live in high-rise apartments will find a way to add greenery to their apartment. Many Germans have their own plot in a communal garden (similar to an English allotment), known in Germany as a Schrebergarten, that city dwellers travel to during the holidays or weekends.
Music
Nowadays, Germany is home to many music festivals, starting from electronic music to hip-hop and rock & roll. The largest music festival in Germany, which is also one of the largest in the world, is the Rock am Ring festival which gathers artists and performers, as well as music fans from all over the world. Germany also has many opera houses, which also serve as a tourist attraction for foreign visitors.
Food
Traditionally Germans eat meat with most meals, along with bread and potatoes. German cooking includes national dishes such as Rouladen, German noodles (Spätzle) and Schnitzel. Germans drink a lot of beer, eat sausages and make bread of different taste. Wurst, or sausages in German, could be made of pork, beef or veal and flavoured differently. As for bread, there is a long tradition of bread-baking of which Germans take pride in. There are bread with different shapes, black and white, with different tastes and names, sweet, soft, plain with all types of seeds you could think of.
It is estimated that the average German consumes around 140 litres of beer per year followed by wine, schnapps, and brandy. Only in 2012 alone, Germans drank 2.25 gallons of beer, which is actually the lowest level since the fall of the Berlin wall in 1990. They are the second-largest beer consumers in Europe, after the Czech. A cooked breakfast, a cooked lunch, and a dinner of bread, ham, cheese, and pickle make up the typical traditional ‘food day’. Dining out is popular, and cities and towns are all home to a range of fast food stops, bakeries (namely German or Turkish), deli outlets, and German and international gourmet restaurants as well as (increasingly in the bigger cities) food markets, pop-ups, and street food. German cuisine is rich with different types of delicious traditional foods, that include vegetarian and vegan foods. Even if you are a picky eater, you will be able to find something to suit yourself and have a lot of choices on what to eat and drink.
Das Auto
As a country credited for the invention of the modern motor car available to the world today and the birthplace of Audi, Volkswagen, Porsche, Mercedes-Benz, and BMW, it’s no wonder that Germans take great pride in their motor vehicles. Germans view driving as a relaxing pastime, more than a means to get to one destination from another; rather quickly, without a national speed limit on the Autobahn (motorway) and an excellent road network!
The BMW Welt & Museum in Munich, the Porsche or Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart, the Volkswagen’s Gläserne Manufaktur (Transparent Factory) in Dresden and many more distributed all over the country are a dream come true for a car buff and addict!
Customs and Traditions
There is a wide number of historic and traditional German customs, including those that have emerged in the modern postwar era. As a Christian country, there are many protestant and catholic traditions which are observed and celebrated throughout the year. The Carnivals have a long history in Catholicism, while today they are celebrated by street parades of people wearing costumes and masks. There are a variety of fascinating carnivals and joyous festivals celebrating all spheres of life.
German weddings are very special; with the bride carrying bread and salt with her as an omen for food harvest, and the groom carrying grain for good luck and wealth.
Contemporary German traditions include ‘Kaffee und Kuchen’, the equivalent of an English Afternoon tea whereby families and friends stop working to come together in the afternoon for coffee and cake. The annual Munich Beer Festival, known the world over as Oktoberfest, is also a key tradition.
Knowledge of these festivals and subsequent holidays helps you avoid unplanned situations for many practical reasons; so you are aware of when shops will be closed when you can expect days off work/school, and what your children will have to bring to school on certain days.
Funerals, on the other hand, last for 3 to 4 days after the death of the person with relatives and friends visiting the family members of the dead. Before the burial, the coffin is taken to the church where the priest says the requiem and sprinkles the coffin with Holy water. The priest and ministers, wearing black and violet robes take part in the first day of the funeral. Then the bells toll and the mourners take the coffin to the cemetery, where they place it on the grave. After the short speech and prayers by the priest, the loved ones of the dead say their last goodbye and cover the coffin with soil.
Clothing
Traditional clothing in Germany includes the world-famous Lederhosen, an outfit once worn by rural men, traditionally those undertaking farm work or manual labour. A knee-length set of breeches complete with braces, worn over a short-sleeve shirt, Lederhosen are traditionally associated with Bavarian and Tyrolean culture. And Dirndl, the traditional German clothes worn by a woman, that consists of a dress made from a bodice, pinafore and full skirt. The shirt underneath is usually low cut and made with short puffy sleeves. Today these clothes are no longer seen on farmworkers but on the staff and partygoers at beer festivals.
Finally,
German is an easy to learn the language of inventors and innovators that holds a lot of importance in academics with a big online presence. A gateway to world-class higher education, from one of the leading economic powerhouses of the world, Germany proudly treasures its companies that are global market leaders. German is the most widely spoken native language in Europe!
Here are few eye opening facts about Germans:
Most German’s neither live to work nor work to live!
Though the Germans are known as very bureaucratic people, they too know how to have fun and enjoy life.
It is believed that to greet your friends in German, you must knock at their table rather than wave at them. Knocking on wood also expresses the intention to seal the luck and it’s also believed that the devil isn’t able to touch the Holy wood (Even though only about 60 per cent of Germans believe in God).
One of the best traits of the German people and culture is that they like to take care of each other. For example, lost items are hung on trees. If you are at a park in Germany, or anywhere near a tree, and you see something hanging at its lowest branches, then know that this is a lost thing. Somebody has lost it, and the other one who found it took care to hang it on the tree. So when retracing their steps, the owner will have an easier time finding their belongings.
The rate of unemployment in Germany is very low.
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