Christmas pickles don’t actually come from Germany, and only 7% of Germans have ever heard of the “Weihnachtsgurke.”
In last week’s post, I praised German Christmas traditions, my favorites being Advent wreaths and baking Weihnachtsplätzchen (Christmas cookies). Of course, Germans love their Christmas trees, and apparently the custom was brought here by German immigrants. Nevertheless, although nearly 50 million Americans claim German ancestry, they didn’t import the Christmas pickle to the United States.
What the heck is a Christmas pickle?
Let me explain to my German readers.
Imagine you’re shopping for some new Christmas ornaments when suddenly, between wonderful red and golden ball ornaments, here it is: a weird, crooked, shiny green pickle. No, not a dry vegetable pickle, forgotten by some hungry store associate, but a festive pickle ornament. What the heck! A pickle? Seriously?
When I spotted a Christmas pickle for the first time at Crate & Barrel (my favorite home decor store), I was perplexed. Since Americans have also non-traditional ornaments like an octopus or a sloth, why not a pickle? I quickly moved on in my shopping and forgot about it.
Years later, a friend with German ancestry asked me if I was familiar with Christmas pickles. At first, I thought she was talking about the small cucumbers marinated in vinegar. I wondered if Americans grew winter-resistant pickles and eat them for Christmas. She laughed wholeheartedly at my genuine remarks, then explained to me this American tradition.
Once the Christmas tree is set up and decorated with ornaments, lights, and stars, an ornamental pickle is hidden somewhere between the branches.
American Christmas trees are more decorated than German ones, so finding the pickle can be a challenge. On Christmas morning, the first person, usually a child, to find the pickle receives an extra gift from Santa. It is also said that finding the pickle brings a year of good fortune!
The point of my friend’s question was that she believed Christmas pickles came from Germany and were called Weihnachtsgurke, which is definitely the appropriate translation for Christmas pickle.
Christmas pickles don’t come from Germany
Inspiration for today’s post comes from Dagmar, a formidable German lady, whose engagement at the German International School of DC has moved mountains over the years. She shared my last post on Facebook with the following words
“Finally, a wonderful report about a truly German Christmas that explores what the Christmas pickle is all about”.
So, no, Christmas pickles are not German. They never were, and nobody in Germany knows about them.
This article from the German Way has completely demystified the legend of “The German pickle tradition: myth or reality.”
If Christmas pickles are unknown in Germany, where did this holiday myth begin?
According to a 2011 Tampa Magazine article, a German immigrant named John Lower became ill after being captured during the Civil War. “He fortunately recovered after convincing a guard to give him just one pickle before he died. ” When he returned home, he celebrated his luck by hiding a pickle in his family’s Christmas tree, as the story supposedly happened on Christmas Eve.
Since the Civil War ended 1865, and Woolworth didn’t import glass ornaments until 1890, I believe it’s right to assume that the Lower family hid a real pickle for years before getting a glass ornament. Suffice it to say that you weren’t completely wrong with your assumption of a real vegetable pickle in a Christmas tree! 😉
Not all Americans are familiar with Christmas pickles
Trying to figure out if all my American friends put a pickle in their Christmas tree, I asked my friend Heather whose grandparents are German if they kept this tradition. Her response couldn’t be clearer: “No, but I’m dying to know what Christmas pickles are!!”
Author of the blog SoYummy shared in this last November article that “It’s typically celebrated in families with multiple siblings.” There’s no way for me to verify this information, but let’s assume that there is some truth to it.
While finishing this post, Lee from Destroy Pest Control was checking the mouse traps he set two weeks ago (unfortunately, I have some nightly visitors in my new house!). I asked him about Christmas pickles in his family, and that’s how I learned about another ornament: the musical Christmas pickle! I had to check for myself, and yes Amazon sells them.
Lee was not aware of any German origin to the tradition. For him and his family, the Christmas pickle is just another decorative part of a beautiful tree, with colors, lights, and music.
In the end, it’s all the same. Christmas is a magical time for Germans as well as Americans. With or without a Christmas pickle.
Thank you Catherine for this very interesting post. I wish you and your kids a wonderful Christmas and hope to see you all in 2019.
Alles Gute to you too dear Toto.
Great and interesting article! Thanks Catherine, I always love to read about other countries’ traditions :). I actually saw these pickle ornaments in the US stores, too. However, I always thought that it has to do with a Mexican tradition. Never thought that it could be a European tradition behind all this ;).
Thank you Evelyne and happy Holidays!