In a Yabla interview filmed at a Christmas market a few years back, one couple describes their ideal Christmas:
Gemütlich, mit gutem Essen, Spielen,
Comfortably, with good food, games...
unsere Kinder sind groß,
Our children are grown up,
die brauchen keine Riesenpakete mehr.
they don't need huge presents anymore.
Captions 16-17, Weihnachtsinterviews - Diane in Karlsruhe
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It's true that Christmas this year in Germany took a bit of getting used to. Due to the continuing social-distancing regulations prohibiting parties and big gatherings, people stayed indoors with their focus firmly set on increased Gemütlichkeit. The word gemütlich means "comfortable" or "cozy" as an adjective and "comfortably" as an adverb.
Ganz zum Schluss werde ich noch den Kerzenständer aufstellen,
At the very end, I'll also set up the candle holders
damit wir es gemütlich haben.
so that it's cozy for us.
Captions 13-14, Tisch decken - mit Eva
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Wie verbringen Sie Silvester? -Ganz gemütlich zu Hause.
How will you spend New Year's Eve? -Very comfortably at home.
Caption 7, Silvester - Vorsätze für das neue Jahr - Linkenheim
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The current restrictions in Germany will continue through New Year's, but many people are making the most of it and simply appreciating getting to spend time at home (zu Hause) with those closest to them.
Wir haben beide gedacht, dass wir zu Hause bleiben müssen.
We both thought that we would have to stay at home.
Caption 14, Konjugation - Das Verb „denken“
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Es war sehr, sehr spannend,
It was very, very exciting
aber jetzt möchte ich lieber zu Hause bleiben, hier bei euch.
but now I'd rather stay at home, here with you.
Captions 100-101, Märchen - Sagenhaft - Der kleine Däumling
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Since restaurants and bars will be closed on New Year's Eve, the festivities will be limited and more focused on coziness and quality time than seeing lots of people. To avoid feeling too cooped up, however, it's important to get outside a bit as well. A nice stroll or hike in the few hours of daylight is always a good idea:
Natürlich kann man auch einfach nur spazieren gehen.
Of course, one can also simply just go for a walk.
Caption 10, Berlin - Eva im Viktoriapark
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Further Learning
If you're spending extra time at home this week, use it as an opportunity to keep up your language skills with Yabla German! Take a look at our latest videos or catch up on recent lessons here.
Wir wünschen Euch einen guten Rutsch ins neue Jahr!
New Year's Eve is just around the corner! We at Yabla wish you einen guten Rutsch and hope to contribute to your festivities with some relevant vocabulary.
Eine kurze Frage: Wie feiern Sie Weihnachten? -Mit der Familie.
A quick question: How do you celebrate Christmas? -With the family.
Caption 10, Weihnachtsinterviews - Diane in Karlsruhe
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Wir werden wahrscheinlich mit ein paar Freunden feiern.
We will probably celebrate with a few friends.
Caption 5, Silvester - Vorsätze für das neue Jahr - Karlsruhe
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The noun die Feier is used for a party or celebration, although it's normal to hear die Party as well. You may remember from our recent newsletter that the preposition auf is used: Wir gehen auf eine Party for "We're going to a party," and Wir sind auf einer Party for "We're at a party."
Hauptsache sie haben Spaß. -Hauptsache: Party und schöne Stimmung!
The main thing is that they have fun. -The main thing: party and good vibes!
Caption 63, Fastnacht - Karneval - Karnevalisten
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Und natürlich drückt das auf die Partystimmung.
And, of course, that puts a damper on the party atmosphere.
Caption 60, Heute-Show - 30 Jahre Mauerfall: So feiern die Deutschen ihre Einheit
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Fun fact: die Stimmung can refer to instruments being in tune, but also means "mood" or "atmosphere."
And finally, a slang usage related to celebration is Lass es krachen!, which literally means "Make noise!"
Also, dann wünsch ich dir viel Spaß.
So, then I hope you have a lot of fun.
-Danke schön. -Und lass es krachen!
-Thank you. -And make some noise!
Caption 17, Fasching - mit Cettina
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Further Learning
For more about New Year's Eve in Germany, you can do a quick search for our related videos on Yabla German. You can also review our previous newsletters on the topic: Learn about the origins of the word Silvester and make a few New Year's resolutions in German!
For the last weeks, many Germans have been visiting Christmas markets, opening the windows of their advent calendars, and celebrating Nikolaus. Tomorrow night is Christmas Eve, which is called der Heiligabend or der Heilige Abend in German. Let's look at some vocabulary associated with Christmas Eve traditions.
Many families in Germany will have gotten a Christmas tree and decorated it in time for Christmas Eve. A Christmas tree can be referred to as der Tannenbaum (which is simply "the fir tree"), der Weihnachtsbaum, or der Christbaum.
Jetzt schmücken wir den Baum noch mit ein paar goldenen Kugeln.
Now we'll decorate the tree with a few golden balls.
Caption 57, Frohe Weihnachten - der Christbaum
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In Germany, it is traditional to exchange gifts on Christmas Eve rather than the next morning. The exchange of gifts is known as die Bescherung.
Wie machen Sie das mit der Bescherung?
How do you do your gift exchange?
Caption 7, Weihnachtsinterviews - Diane in Karlsruhe
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Families may go to mass as part of their Christmas Eve tradition:
Meistens gehen wir auch vorher... vorher noch in die Kirche.
Usually we also still go beforehand... to church beforehand.
Caption 37, Weihnachtsinterviews - Cettina in Linkenheim
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A traditional Christmas Eve meal in Germany is rather simple, consisting of either fish, or sausages with potato salad. The large Christmas feast is generally eaten on Christmas day. Throughout these days, there are also many sweets that are typically consumed. For more information on these, we would suggest watching the following video by Eva:
Nachdem ich euch ein typisches deutsches Weihnachtsessen gezeigt habe,
After I've shown you a typical German Christmas meal,
kommen wir nun zum Wichtigsten, nämlich den Weihnachtsnaschereien.
we now come to the most important [thing], namely, the Christmas goodies.
Captions 9-10, Weihnachtsessen - mit Eva
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Further Learning
For more holiday vocabulary, check out our recent blog post. There are a number of individual videos on Yabla German that will certainly get you into the Christmas spirit. Listen to a traditional Christmas song, see Krampus parade around at the Christmas market in Munich, and watch some Germans decorate a Christmas tree under water. Or watch one of our feature films, such as Ein Sack voll Gold or Weihnachtsmann gesucht, starring a young Christoph Waltz!
Zu Beginn der Mahlzeit sagen wir „guten Appetit“.
At the beginning of the meal we say "Enjoy your meal."
Caption 19, Tisch decken - mit Eva
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Die Mahlzeit is the German word for "meal." This week, we'll look at the details of the verbs and nouns used to indicate different meals, and a few relevant phrases.
You likely already know the nouns das Frühstück, das Mittagessen, and das Abendessen. Remember that frühstucken as a verb is not separable, whereas the verbs mittagessen and abendessen are.
Jetzt frühstücken wir erst mal.
Now, we'll eat breakfast first.
Und dann essen wir zusammen Mittag.
And then we'll eat lunch together.
Caption 21, Deutschkurs in Blaubeuren - Relativsätze mit Präpositionen
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Another important word to know is das Abendbrot, which is used quite often instead of das Abendessen, particularly when describing a light or cold supper:
Nach einer entspannten Fahrt steht das Abendessen an.
After a relaxing ride, dinner is next on the agenda.
Caption 26, Vollmondfahrt - Rhätische Bahn
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Er machte ein heißes Feuer im Ofen für den guten Fisch zum Abendbrot.
He made a hot fire in the oven for the good fish for dinner.
Caption 36, Janoschs Traumstunde - Post für den Tiger
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The phrase essen gehen is similar to ins Restaurant gehen.
Wird dann auch gemeinsam gekocht oder gehen Sie essen?
Do you then also cook together or go out to eat?
Caption 39, Weihnachtsinterviews - Diane in Karlsruhe
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If you are lucky enough to hear the phrase Ich lade dich ein, be happy. It is not just an invitation to go out to eat together, it means that someone wants to pay for your meal!
Ich hab' ihr ja schon hundertmal gesagt,
I told her already a hundred times
sie soll ihn endlich mal zum Eisessen einladen.
she should just invite him to eat an ice cream.
Caption 53, Die Pfefferkörner - Eigentor
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Further Learning
Scroll down on these webpages to take a look at these thorough lists of the conjugations of the verbs frühstücken, mittagessen, and abendessen from Duden.
It's Christmas time again and in the spirit of the season, Yabla has three new videos with a Yuletide theme. Let's take a quick look at some highlights and expand our holiday vocabulary.
The literal translation of the German version of "Christmas Eve" is "Holy Eve": der Heilige Abend or even der Heiligabend.
Gehen Sie da direkt am Heiligen Abend zu Ihrem Sohn?
Are you going to your son's house right on Christmas Eve?
Caption 31, Weihnachtsinterviews - Diane in Karlsruhe
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Another holiday eve with which you may be less familiar is Saint Nicholas' Eve: der Nikolausabend. You can read more about the European traditions associated with this holiday on Wikipedia.
Bald ist Nikolausabend da.
Soon Saint Nicholas' Eve will be here.
Caption 11, Weihnachtslieder - Lasst uns froh und munter sein
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The phrase "Bitte nehmen Sie Platz" is an invitation to sit down or literally "take a place." And although das Plätzchen is indeed the diminutive of der Platz, in this case we're not talking about sitting down at all — we're talking about baked goods!
Ich will ein Plätzchen nehmen.
I want to take a cookie.
Caption 28, Weihnachtslieder Detlev Jöcker - Heute wird gebacken
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Further Learning
Practice your German by singing a Christmas song or two for your family and friends, and find even more videos about Weihnachten on Yabla German.
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