' (pronounced ) or ' ( Swiss and Bavarian spelling, elsewhere used for dialectal ) is the German word describing the amount of beer in a regulation mug, in modern times exactly . is also a common abbreviation for ', the handled drinking vessel containing it, ubiquitous in Bavarian

beer garden A beer garden (German: ''Biergarten'') is an outdoor area in which beer and food are served, typically at shared tables shaded by trees. Beer gardens originated in Bavaria, of which Munich is the capital city, in the 19th century, and remain co ...

s and

beer hall A beer hall or beer palace () refers to a type of establishment that gained significant popularity in the 19th century, particularly across Central Europe. These venues were pivotal to the social and cultural life of cities renowned for their bre ...

s, and a staple of

Oktoberfest Oktoberfest (; ) is the world's largest , featuring a beer festival and a travelling carnival, and is held annually in Munich, Bavaria, from mid- or late-September to the first Sunday in October. The annual event attracts more than seven milli ...

. This vessel is often referred to as a beer mug by English speakers, and can be correctly called a beer stein only if it is made of stoneware and capable of holding a regulation of beer.

Linguistics

The word "" can be of either neuter or female grammatical gender. In its neuter form, , it is the German word for "measure". Its feminine version, "", is used in southern Germany and Austria to refer to a one-liter glass beer mug or its contents. It is spelled "" or "" (both spellings are permissible) in Germany and Austria, and "" in Switzerland. The plural is also '. A stoneware mug is a form of beer stein, another type of vessel which may only be referred to as a if capable of holding a regulation quantity of beer.

Measurement

In the Southern German areas (

Austro-Bavarian Bavarian (; ), alternately Austro-Bavarian, is a group of Upper German varieties spoken in the south-east of the German language area, including the German state of Bavaria, most of Austria, and South Tyrol in Italy. Prior to 1945, Bavaria ...

), the originally measured . Other German-speaking areas had different measures; in Switzerland between 1838 and 1877, and in

Baden Baden (; ) is a historical territory in southern Germany. In earlier times it was considered to be on both sides of the Upper Rhine, but since the Napoleonic Wars, it has been considered only East of the Rhine. History The margraves of Ba ...

until 1871, the was 1.5 liters. The modern is slightly larger than 1 liter, with a fill line denoting the level to which the beer must be filled; the area above the line denotes space for the

head A head is the part of an organism which usually includes the ears, brain, forehead, cheeks, chin, eyes, nose, and mouth, each of which aid in various sensory functions such as sight, hearing, smell, and taste. Some very simple ani ...

to expand. Selling beer in mugs with a fraudulent or missing calibration mark is also prosecuted as fraud. An "Association Against Fraudulent Pouring f Beer (''"Verein gegen betrügerisches Einschenken"'') in

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

fights for the customer rights of beer drinkers, and is mostly active on

. In the more northerly parts of Germany, the has mostly fallen out of use, except for Bavarian-themed events, since beer for immediate consumption there is usually sold in smaller amounts, from ,

Other

Mugs are frequently decorated with a print of the logo of the brewery. Some beer gardens and restaurants rent space out to patrons to store their mugs, which often have personalized engravings on their lids. For a small monthly fee, the establishment will also wash one's mug. According to physicist Erich Schuller of the Institute for Forensic Medicine at the

Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich The Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (simply University of Munich, LMU or LMU Munich; ) is a public university, public research university in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. Originally established as the University of Ingolstadt in 1472 by Duke ...

, a is an "effective percussion tool" in which each strike is potentially life-threatening. An empty weighs and can produce a force of in a violent blow, far surpassing the required to break a human's skullcap. Some cases have occurred, though, in which the yielded. Presumably, these mugs had reduced strength due to wear.

''Maßkrugstemmen''/''Masskrugstemmen''/steinholding

The endurance sport of ''Maßkrugstemmen'' involves holding a filled at arm's length. The world record is 45minutes and 2seconds. While the sport is believed to have originated in Bavaria, Germany, competitions are now seen worldwide. A governing body has been created in the United States a
the U.S. Steinholding Association

References

External links