Ah, Christmas! It’s a season bursting with traditions, each more nostalgic and heartwarming than the last. We hang stockings by the fireplace – real, electric, or imagined. We bake gingerbread men that never look as good as the ones in the picture. (Why is mine giving me the side-eye?) And we deck the halls with DIY garlands we found on Pinterest that you know will fall apart before New Year’s Eve. We’ve even succumbed to some traditions we wish we had never heard of – I’m looking at you, Elf on a Shelf.
But there’s one quirky tradition that, in all its bizarre, briny glory, still hasn’t found its way into every home—the Christmas pickle.
Whether you’ve never heard of it or you wouldn’t celebrate a Christmas without yours, keep reading. This fun tradition is way better than staying up late every night for twenty-four days because you need to figure out a new place to hide an elf.
In households across America, people are hanging pickles from their Christmas trees, nestled among glittering baubles and shimmering garlands just waiting to be found. And no, this isn’t some TikTok-fueled modern trend that you’ll forget about before you can say butter board; it’s a tradition that many claim stretches back to the 19th century. Although, no one seems to be certain when or where this one started.
But why a pickle?
Um, who looked at their Christmas tree and thought, “The ShinyBrite ornaments look great, hun, but ya know what this thing needs? A glass pickle. Yup, you got a glass pickle ornament in any of these boxes?”
Okay, I confess, that sounds exactly like something someone in my family would say. Completely sober, too.
Let’s dive into the crunchy history of the Christmas pickle and uncover its deliciously weird origins.
A “German” Tradition… That No One in Germany Has Heard Of
For a long time, the story went that this tradition hails from Germany. As the tale goes, the Christmas pickle or Weihnachtsgurke (which logically translates to Christmas Eve Cucumber) would be hidden deep within the tree’s branches on Christmas Eve by none other than Santa himself. On Christmas morning, the first child to find the pickle would receive an extra gift, while others claim they would get good fortune for the year. It’s a fun little hide-and-seek game that adds an extra layer of excitement to the usual holiday chaos.
However, there’s a slight hitch with this theory: Germans don’t seem to know anything about it!
Go ahead, ask a German about their family’s pickle ornament, and you’re likely to get a strange look. In fact, surveys in Germany have found that most people there are entirely unfamiliar with the concept.
While you’re at it, ask your German friends or family, and they can easily point out the flaws in this popular story. Let’s start with the fact that presents aren’t opened on Christmas morning in Germany, but rather on Christmas Eve. And if Santa is the one who supposedly puts the Christmas pickle on the tree, well, we got it wrong again. St. Nick (the German iteration of Santa) shows up on December 6th, not Christmas Eve.
It seems this “age-old German tradition” might be more of an American invention than a cherished European custom. Shocking, I know.
So, if the Germans didn’t start it, who did?
A Pickle Jar Full of Theories: The Pickle’s Origin Story
There are a few competing origin stories, each one adding to the mystery (and hilarity) of the Christmas pickle tradition.
1. The Civil War Prisoner
One legend suggests that the pickle’s roots can be traced back to the American Civil War. The story goes that a Bavarian-born Union soldier, John Lower, was captured and thrown into a Confederate prison. Starving and on the verge of death, he begged a guard for one last pickle.
(Really? A pickle? I know we’re trying to have a moment here, but what a strange last-meal request.)
Moved by the man’s desperation, the guard obliged. Miraculously, the pickle gave him the strength to survive, and after the war, he started the tradition of hanging a pickle on his Christmas tree as a symbol of hope and survival.
Huh. Okay, then. Moving on!
2. The Kidnapping Innkeeper & Saint Nicholas Story
Another version ties the tradition to Saint Nicholas himself. According to this tale, two boys were kidnapped by an innkeeper and stuffed into a pickle barrel, where they died.
Well, that got dark pretty quickly. Great Christmas story! Let’s hang a pickle on our tree so we remember it.
Apparently, Saint Nicholas came to their rescue, and he miraculously restored them to life.
At least with this weird explanation, you can kind of see the connection between the pickle barrel and the ornament. Surely, if you wanted to commemorate St. Nick’s miracle, hanging a pickle on your tree would be easier than hanging an entire pickle barrel. Regardless, way to go, St. Nick!
3. A Desperate Marketing Ploy
Perhaps the most practical and likely explanation is that the Christmas pickle was a clever marketing ploy. In the late 1800s, Woolworth’s department stores in the U.S. began importing blown-glass ornaments from Germany in the shape of food. Popular shapes were grapes, apples, walnuts, pears, and oranges.
Guess which food-shaped ornament wasn’t flying off the shelf.
It’s thought that to boost sales, the store may have fabricated the story of the “traditional German Christmas pickle,” thus encouraging people to buy them. It’s good marketing when you think of it. Who wants a boring old pickle ornament? But if it’s a boring old pickle ornament that’s part of an old-world tradition passed on from generation to generation, that’s another story. Creating FOMO is Marketing 101.
This marketing gimmick still works today. It worked on me only a few years ago. I’ve seen pickle ornaments in stores for years, but it wasn’t until Christmas with my sweety’s family that I was introduced to the tradition. I ran out that very year and bought a pickle ornament for our tree.
Why Do We Still Love It?
Well, mainly because most of us still don’t know that the whole German Christmas Pickle thing is bunk. But let’s get real, folks, when you start taking a closer look at most of our Christmas traditions and their origins, they’re all a little strange. What other holiday do we celebrate where we bring a whole tree into the house?
In its purest form, the Christmas pickle tradition offers a sense of whimsy and lighthearted fun.
In a season filled with high-stakes gift-giving, complex social plans, and sometimes overwhelming sentimentality, the pickle is refreshingly oddball. It’s a moment of fun and laughter and a wee bit of family competition as everyone races to find that elusive gherkin among the branches.
(My sweety finds it first. Every year. Sigh.)
Plus, the pickle is the great holiday equalizer. Unlike the giant present hidden under the tree or the fanciest ornament at the top, the pickle is available to everyone—kids, adults, and pickle aficionados alike. It’s a tiny reminder that the best moments of the season aren’t the grandest but the ones where we’re all grinning over something silly.
A Tradition with a Twist
The best thing about the Christmas pickle is that it doesn’t have to stick to one story, nor does it need a verified historical lineage. The pickle is a choose-your-own-adventure kind of tradition. Some families use it as a game for children, while others let adults join in on the fun. Some have even swapped out the pickle for other oddball ornaments like a banana or a taco—because why not?
You can make your own rules. In our house, there are no extra gifts; instead, whoever finds the pickle gets to be the first to open a present.
After looking up all these origin stories, I think this year, part of our tradition is going to be taking turns coming up with your own Christmas pickle origin story. Knowing my family, aliens and dinosaurs will be involved.
At the end of the day, the pickle is a little piece of holiday weirdness that reminds us not to take everything so seriously. Whether it’s a real tradition from the old world, a clever marketing invention, or just an excuse to sneak a pickle onto your Christmas tree, it’s become a beloved part of many people’s celebrations.
So, this Christmas, if you find yourself staring at your tree and thinking it could use a little something, make that something a pickle. (I have this one, and this one to make it harder on the adults.) After all, it’s the traditions we create for ourselves that end up being the most meaningful—and the most fun.
Interested in bringing more traditions to your family Christmas? Why not adopt one of these popular festive traditions from around the world?
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