In Germany, there are 7-10 Holidays commonly celebrated in October depending on the region. Surprisingly this doesn’t include the drunken and wild world of Oktoberfest. 5 of the holidays are observances whereas only 2 are observed holidays. The difference being that on observed holidays one typically gets the day off of work and school. On observances, people celebrate a remembrance, an awareness or for plain old fun. What are these holidays and how do they relate to American holidays? Are they similar, unique, or the same? Scroll down to learn more.

1.) Day of German Unity: The German Unity Day (German: Tag der Deutschen Einheit) is the national day of Germany, celebrated on 3 October as a public holiday.

It commemorates the anniversary of German reunification in 1990 when the Federal Republic of Germany and the German Democratic Republic were unified so that for the first time since 1945 there existed a single German state. The German Unity Day on 3 October has been the German National Holiday since 1990, when the reunification was formally completed.

To learn more visit the link below: https://www.timeanddate.com/holidays/germany/german-unity-day

2.) Harvest Festival: Harvest Festival is not a public holiday. It falls on Sunday, October 6, 2019 and most businesses follow regular Sunday opening hours in Germany.

The Harvest Festival is an annual celebration that occurs around the time of the main harvest of a given region. Given the differences in climate and crops around the world, harvest festivals can be found at various times at different places. Harvest festivals typically feature feasting, both family and public, with foods that are drawn from crops that come to maturity around the time of the festival.

3.) Grandparents’ Day: Grandparents’ Day is not a public holiday. It falls on Sunday, October 13, 2019 and most businesses follow regular Sunday opening hours in Germany.

Grandparents’ Day is a day where small children show their appreciation towards their respected elders. They usually give no actual patronage as they tend to have little to no money. It tends to be a day spent in parks or the movies where the small children give little homemade presents to their grandparents. It is important to know that few people actually celebrate this occasion and it mostly goes under the radar. The United States had a proposition made to the Senate floor to institute Grandparents Day, but it died in Senate.

4.)Day of the Libraries: Day of the Libraries is not a public holiday. Businesses have normal opening hours. It takes place yearly on Oct. 24

Take a day to remember the importance that libraries have in the community. The impact they have had in the past and the impact they have today. They represent the knowledge of the people and hold the culture of society. The Day of the Libraries is a day of events, and support of your local library.

5.) World Thrift Day: World Thrift Day is not a public holiday. Businesses have normal opening hours. World Thrift day typically takes place on the final days of October. Whatever the last business day in October is. Normally on the 30th, but has been known to happen several days earlier.

It was decided that ‘World Thrift Day’ should be a day devoted to the promotion of savings all over the World. In their efforts to promote thrift, the savings banks worked with the support of the schools, the clergy, as well as cultural, sports, professional, and women’s associations. Thrift Day is used to teach children and adults to save their funds in the hope of helping their economy and secure their futures. It is a very practical holiday that teaches the importance of frugality. Some say that the Thrift day was just a marketing scheme put in place by the banks to trick people into giving them their money. More money for the banks means they can invest it and gain a higher interest rate on it. In any case Thrift day represents the idea of saving ones money for later consumption all over the world.

6.) Reformation Day: Germany on October 31 each year to remember the religious Reformation in Europe. It commemorates when German monk and theologian Martin Luther’s proposals were nailed on the doors of a church in 1517. This event was the start of religious and social changes in Europe.

Reformation Day began on 31 October 1517 was the day German monk Martin Luther nailed his Ninety-five Theses on the door of the All Saints’ Church in Wittenberg, Electorate of Saxony in the Holy Roman Empire. This represents the beginning of the protestant reformation in the Holy Roman Empire. This lead to the separation of church and state for many of the peoples in the 1600s. As Calvinism, Lutheranism, and Protestantism began to take form the Catholic church began to lose control of much of their lands.

Learn more in the link below:

https://www.themaparchive.com/the-protestant-reformation-and-the-holy-roman-empire-1560-72.html

7.) Halloween: Although Halloween is not a public holiday, businesses and schools may be closed because it falls on the same date as Reformation Day in 2019, which is a public holiday in 9 states.

Many people around the world celebrate Halloween, which occurs annually on October 31. It is the day before All Saints’ Day and is also sometimes called All Hallows’ Eve and Hallowmas Eve. Costume parties are held and many children go trick-or-treating around this time of the year. Germany is relatively new to the Halloween scene and only a few places celebrate Halloween to the extent of the U.S.A. Reformation day is a much more popular and well known holiday that happens to take place on the 31st.