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Halloween, a German tradition made in the USA
Today is Halloween! A holiday unknown to Germans or at least not being celebrated in Germany until the 1990s. But this has changed!
Today it’s “Süsses oder Saures!” all over Germany – the phrase we know here in California as “Trick or Treat!”
In 2009 the holiday Halloween helped to drive sales up to almost 30 million Euros in Germany and in 2011 it’s believed to have generated sales already of 200 million Euros! Quite some increase, but still not comparable to the USA.
October 31 has actually been an important protestant church holiday in Germany, “Reformations-Tag”, remembering Martin Luther; but this day of contemplation and reflection, even thought still on the church calendar, had to make way for the ‘funner’ Halloween celebrations.
A specialized section within the toy industry, “”Fachgruppe Karneval im Deutschen Verband der Spielwarenindustrie (DVSI)” claims to have brought the tradition to Germany way back then in the 90’s. Since then it’s become an economic factor. What a clever act if you think that the official start for Carnival or “Fasching” is just around the corner, November 11, at 11:11 a.m.!
It seems that celebrating Halloween in Germany has moved that date to October 31 and that “Narrenzeit” is starting today! Should I say, “Helau”…!?
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Further Reads:
http://www.umwelt-im-unterricht.de/medien/bilder/halloween-in-zahlen-und-fakten-gssek/
http://www.n-tv.de/wirtschaft/Handel-liebt-Halloween-article7591461.html
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Image: Wikipedia
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