The Christkindlesmarkt of Nuremberg (

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

: ''Nürnberger Christkindlmarkt''; Bavarian: ''Niamberga Christkindlmarkt'') is a

Christmas market A Christmas market is a street market associated with the celebration of Christmas during the four weeks of Advent. These markets originated in Germany, but are now held in many countries. Some in the U.S. have Phono-semantic matching, adapted ...

that is held annually in

Nuremberg Nuremberg (, ; ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the Franconia#Towns and cities, largest city in Franconia, the List of cities in Bavaria by population, second-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Bav ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. It takes place during

Advent Advent is a season observed in most Christian denominations as a time of waiting and preparation for both the celebration of Jesus's birth at Christmas and the return of Christ at the Second Coming. It begins on the fourth Sunday before Chri ...

in the Hauptmarkt, the central square in Nuremberg’s old town, and in adjoining squares and streets. With about two million visitors a year the Nürnberger Christkindlesmarkt is one of the largest Christmas markets in Germany and one of the most famous in the world. Every year the Christmas market begins on the Friday preceding the first Sunday in Advent and ends on

Christmas Eve Christmas Eve is the evening or entire day before Christmas, the festival commemorating nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus. Christmas Day is observance of Christmas by country, observed around the world, and Christma ...

unless that day is a Sunday.

History

Despite intense investigations carried out by several historians and people interested in local history, the origins of the Nürnberger Christkindlesmarkt are unknown. The oldest piece of evidence relating to it is a box made of coniferous wood in the possession of the Germanic National Museum in Nuremberg. On the bottom can be found the inscription: ''Regina Susanna Harßdörfferin von der Jungfrau Susanna Eleonora Erbsin (oder Elbsin) zum Kindles-Marck überschickt 1628'' ("Regina Susanna Harßdörfferin from the virgin Susanna Eleonora Erbsin (or Elbsin) sent to the ''Kindles-Marck'' in 1628"). In official documents, the words ''Kindleinbescheren'' ("handing out Christmas presents to children") or ''Weihnachtszeit'' (Christmas tide) are used from 1610 onwards. It is not clear, however, whether these words have anything to do with the Christkindlesmarkt. Historians assume that the market has its origins in traditional sales at the weekly market between 1610 and 1639 and that it gradually evolved into an independent market. Originally, the market opened on the Feast of

Saint Barbara Saint Barbara (; ; ; ), known in the Eastern Orthodox Church as the Great Martyr Barbara, was an Early Christianity, early Christian Greek saint and martyr. There is no reference to her in the authentic early Christian writings nor in the origin ...

(4 December). Due to the large number of visitors, the opening was brought forward to the Friday before the First Sunday of Advent in 1973 and has remained so ever since. There were no markets between 1939 and 1948.

Location

The original location of the Christkindlesmarkt was the Nuremberg Hauptmarkt. It was, however, relocated to other places such as the Fleischbrücke or the island Schütt between 1898 and 1933. In 1933, the market returned to its original venue in front of the Frauenkirche.

''Christkind''

Christkindlesmarkt could be translated literally as "Christ Child Market". The Nuremberg '' Christkind'', or Christ Child, a young woman dressed in white and gold, with curly blond hair, a tall golden crown and angel-wing-like long golden sleeves, is an important part of the market. Initially impersonated by an actress, since 1969 the ''Christkind'' has been elected every second year among local girls between 16 and 19 years of age. A large number of competitors enter via the Internet, finally, a jury chooses the next ''Christkind'' out of several finalists who have to be at least 1,60m tall and free from giddiness as the Christkind has to make her speech from the church balcony, secured with a rope, possibly in inclement winter weather. Besides the opening speech on every Friday evening, the Christkind appears in schools, hospitals etc. In 2015 Barbara Otto succeeded Teresa Treuheit.

Prologue

The Christkindlesmarket is opened with a prologue speech by the ''Christkind'' from the balcony of the Frauenkirche church. This solemn event attracts thousands of people to the Hauptmarkt. The prologue, written by Friedrich Bröger for the first post-war market in 1948, was modified several times since as the largely destroyed city was rebuilt and the hungry population became prosperous again. It begins, and ends, with an invitation to "the ladies and gentlemen who have been children once" and to "the little ones at the beginning of the journey of life", and compares short-term events like the temporary market "little city made of wood and cloth" to timeless values, memories and traditions.

Sister city market

In Rathausplatz the sister city market has taken place since 1998. The sister cities provide booths with local specialties. These cities are:

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(Ukraine),

Gera Gera () is a city in the German state of Thuringia. With around 93,000 inhabitants, it is the third-largest city in Thuringia after Erfurt and Jena as well as the easternmost city of the ''Thüringer Städtekette'', an almost straight string of ...

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(Czech Republic), San Carlos (Nicaragua),

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(Italy) and

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(France). Moreover, there are friend cities like Bar (Montenegro), Kalkudah (Sri Lanka),

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(Italy) present at the market.

References

External links

Official website

Video: Christkindlesmarkt

/nowiki>] {{Authority control Christmas markets in Germany, Nuremberg, Christkindlesmarkt Nuremberg Tourist attractions in Nuremberg