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German Christmas Carols Trivia Quiz

I'm getting that Christmas feeling. Here are ten of my favorite German Christmas carols. Maybe you're familiar with some of them. Have fun! I am using capitalization rules from the German style for song titles.

A multiple-choice quiz by shvdotr. Estimated time: 6 mins.

Author
shvdotr

Time
6 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
378,332

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Tough

Avg Score
6 / 10

Plays
220

Awards
Top 35% Quiz

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. Perhaps the most famous German Christmas carol of all, at least in the USA, is this one that was first performed by Joseph Mohr, accompanied by guitar, at a small church in Oberndorf, Austria, on Christmas Eve in 1818. Name that tune! Hint

Es ist ein Ros' entsprungen

Ihr Kinderlein kommet

O Tannenbaum

Stille Nacht, heilige Nacht

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Question 2 of 10

2. Although the next carol includes the word "Christmas" in its English translation, the German does not. It does talk about a tree that stays green in the wintertime, however. Which is it? Hint

Leise rieselt der Schnee

O Tannenbaum

O du fr�hliche

Alle Jahre wieder

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Question 3 of 10

3. Christmas carols are never sung better than by one of the famous German or Austrian boys' or children's choirs. On their album, "Angel Voices," the Bad T�lz Boys' Choir (T�lzer Knabenchor) sings this song, one of my favorites, "Angels We Have Heard on High." What is it in German? Hint

Heidschi Bumbeidschi

Lieb Nachtigall wach auf

Macht hoch die T�r

H�rt der Engel helle Lieder

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Question 4 of 10

4. Well, we can't have a quiz on German Christmas songs without including one by Martin Luther. He wrote this song in 1534. A portion of the first verse was translated thus in 1855 by Catherine Winkworth: "...I come to bear good news to every home; glad tidings of great joy..." Which song is it? Hint

Der Heiland ist geboren

Morgen kommt der Weihnachtsmann

Sankt Niklas war ein Seemann

Vom Himmel hoch da komm' ich her

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Question 5 of 10

5. It's hard to top the Vienna Boys' Choir singing a carol that evokes the beauty of a winter night, and including, "...freue dich, Christkind kommt bald" ("rejoice, the Christ child is coming soon") makes this one of my favorites. Which of these is it? Hint

Leise rieselt der Schnee

In Dulchi Jubilo

Hirtenterzett

Herbei o ihr Gl�ubigen

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Question 6 of 10

6. I must admit that when I first heard Heintje sing this song, I did not realize it was a Christmas carol, but after having bought several German Christmas albums through the years, I see it from time to time. And when I found the lyrics, I see one verse even says, "...kannst Du in der Krippe das Christkind sehen." My internet sources say it is a traditional Bavarian song in dialect. Since I enjoy Heintje's version and others sing it at Christmastime, I'm putting it in this quiz. Can you name it? Hint

Heidschi Bumbeidschi

Lili Marleen

Wo die Zitronen bl�hn

Sah ein Knab ein R�slein stehn

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Question 7 of 10

7. While high-schoolers are not small children, I always enjoyed teaching them this carol. Then we would go caroling in the elementary school buildings and sing it to the small children there. With these clues, which carol of the following is most appropriately described? Hint

Joseph, Lieber Joseph mein

Wenn alle Br�nnlein flie�en

Ihr Kinderlein kommet

Kommet ihr Hirten

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Question 8 of 10

8. When does the Christ child come down to earth where we mortals are? This German Christmas carol answers that very question. Which is it? Hint

Schneefl�ckchen, Wei�r�ckchen

S��er die Glocken nie klingen

Am Weihnachtsbaume

Alle Jahre wieder

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Question 9 of 10

9. One of Germany's most traditional carols is next. Dating back to the 15th Century, it includes among its lyrics (translated into English) this: "...it came, a flower bright, amid the cold of winter..." What song is this that includes the aforementioned line in German as: "...und hat ein Bl�mlein bracht mitten im kalten Winter..."? Hint

Lieb Nachtigall wach auf

La�t uns froh und munter sein

Es ist ein Ros' entsprungen

Zu Bethlehem geboren

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Question 10 of 10

10. The source of our final offering takes us back to 1938 and a German music revue film. The revue was called, in English, "The Stars Shine," and the song bears the same name. I found it on an album released in October of 2015 called "Weihnachten im Alpenland." The song is sung by a group called the K�rntner Viergesang, or the Carinthian Quartet. Which of the following is it? Hint

Ein Stern, der deinen Namen tr�gt

Unter dem Weihnachtsstern

Stern von Bethlehem

Es leuchten die Sterne

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

Answer: Stille Nacht, heilige Nacht

Of course it's "Silent Night," as we say in English. In 2011 it was declared an intangible cultural heritage by the United Nations Educational, Social, and Cultural Organization. Mohr's beautiful lyrics were set to music by Franz Gruber.

2. Although the next carol includes the word "Christmas" in its English translation, the German does not. It does talk about a tree that stays green in the wintertime, however. Which is it?

Answer: O Tannenbaum

Based on a traditional folk song, "O Tannenbaum" has become a Christmas carol. In 1824, a set of lyrics was set forth in Leipzig by Ernst Ansch�tz, and they have become the modern song. The Tannenbaum is a fir tree and ties in well with old Germanic traditions of tree significance and the Christian use of the tree as a symbol of the cross.

Answer: H�rt der Engel helle Lieder

Strictly speaking, "Angels We Have Heard on High" is not a German carol, but rather of French origin.

The T�lzer Knabenchor was founded in Bad T�lz in 1956, but has been based in Munich since 1970.

Answer: Vom Himmel hoch da komm' ich her

Besides being a good singer, Luther also played the lute and the flute. Luther wrote 37 hymns, the best-known of which is "Ein' feste Burg ist unser Gott," or "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God," for which he wrote the words and composed the music. The hymn has been called the "Battle Hymn of the Reformation."

Answer: Leise rieselt der Schnee

"Softly falls the snow. Silent and still rests the lake. The forest glimmers like Christmas. Rejoice, the Christchild is coming." would be my translation of the song's first stanza: "Leise rieselt der Schnee. Still und starr ruht der See. Heimatlich gl�nzet der Wald. Freue dich, Christkind kommt bald."

"Herbei o ihr Gl�ubigen" is a translation into German of "Adeste Fidelis."

Answer: Heidschi Bumbeidschi

Various sources say "Heidschi Bumbeidschi" is a Bavarian song in dialect or an Austrian song in dialect, or both. Some of the sources also say it is a lullaby. None of the three incorrect choices are remotely related to Christmas carols, however.

Answer: Ihr Kinderlein kommet

Kinderlein are small children. "Ihr Kinderlein kommet, o kommet doch all..." would be, "O come, you small children, come one and all..." The melody for this song was composed by Johann Abraham Peter Schulz (ca. 1770), and the lyrics are by Christoph von Schmid (1768-1854).

The "Hirten" in "Kommet ihr Hirten" are the shepherds.
"Joseph, Lieber Joseph mein" was a traditional lullaby as sung by Mary to Joseph.
"Wenn alle Br�nnlein flie�en" is not a Christmas carol.

8. When does the Christ child come down to earth where we mortals are? This German Christmas carol answers that very question. Which is it?

Answer: Alle Jahre wieder

So the carol goes: "Alle Jahre wieder kommt das Christuskind, auf die Erde nieder, wo wir Menschen sind..." Which means, "Every year again comes the Christ child..." and so forth. My skill at translating is low, but I do understand the songs in German. Honestly.

Answer: Es ist ein Ros' entsprungen

"Es ist ein Ros entsprungen" dates back to the "Alte catholische geistliche Kirchenges�ng" from Cologne in 1599. Its writer is listed as anonymous.

Answer: Es leuchten die Sterne

Three of the songs are actually Weihnachtslieder. The exception is "Ein Stern, der deinen Namen tr�gt," which is a pop song recorded in 2007 by Austrians DJ �tzi and Nik P, who wrote the song and originally released it as a solo wight years earlier. But it did not become a bit hit until the pair reached Number One on the Austrian pop charts with it.

K�rnten is a federal state of Austria. 'Way back in 1969 I studied German at a small town there called Millstatt, which sat on a beautiful Alpine lake called the "Millst�tter See."

Source: Author shvdotr

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