St. Nicholas Festival (Freiburg im Üechtland)
The St. Nicholas Festival is one of the most popular folk festivals in the city of Freiburg . It is held annually on the 1st Saturday in December in honor of the city's patron saint , St. Nicholas of Myra . Originally only part of the festival was a parade in which St. Nicholas on a donkey and his servant Ruprecht (the story only speaks of a Ruprecht) through the streets of the old town. Today there is still a large Christmas market and a Santa Claus market. Nicholas is embodied by a student from the St. Michael College .
move
The move begins in the assembly hall (Kollegiumplatz) of the St. Michael Kollegium. For the time being, an official celebration will be held there, to which only invited guests have admission. The former actors of St. Nicholas are also invited. When it starts to get dark (around 5 p.m.), the move begins. This leads at a leisurely pace through the streets and alleys of the old town. Around 6:30 p.m., St. Nicholas and his companion arrive at St. Nicholas Cathedral . During the move, the Ruprechte (Schmutzli) and Nikolaus hand out gingerbread and other goodies. At the head of the parade, the student orchestra of the St. Michael College plays a few songs. Traditionally the songs are the same every year. Finally, St. Nicholas gives a speech from the balcony of the cathedral. He delivers his speech with satirical allusions to the events of the past year from the college and the city. At the end of the celebration there will be a service in the cathedral.
regional customs
Even in the late Middle Ages there was a celebration for St. Nicholas on December 6th. Around 1764, however, the St. Nicholas Festival was banned. This festival was rediscovered in 1906 by students of the St. Michael College, who organized a first parade through the city. Since then, the small move has turned into a big party with a huge success. This festival has been held every year since then. On December 3, 2005, the hundredth parade of St. Niklaus through Freiburg could be celebrated. On this occasion, at least 20,000 people filled the streets and alleys of the old town of Freiburg.
Web links
- German-language website for the 100th anniversary of the St. Niklaus Festival ( Memento from April 22, 2007 in the Internet Archive )
- Article about the festival (in French) ( Memento of September 28, 2007 in the Internet Archive )
swell
- ↑ Page no longer available , search in web archives: St. Nicholas' speech in 2005 ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. ( PDF document)
- ^ Page no longer available , search in web archives: Freiburger Nachrichten, December 2, 2005 - History of the St. Nicholas Festival
