December 4 is the Feast Day of Saint Barbara or Barbaratag. Especially in the more Catholic regions of Germany and Austria, you will find people cutting off branches of a cherry tree and putting them into water inside the house.
If you are wondering why, you are not alone. So, let me tell you a bit about her.
Saint Barbara
Die Heilige Barbara or Barbara of Nicomedia lived in the 3rd century AD in Asia Minor (now Turkey) and died a martyr in 306. Her story doesn’t appear until the late 7th century, and the customs associated with her don’t start until the 17th century.
And we actually don’t know for sure that she existed which is why in 1969 the Roman Catholic Church took her feast day off the church calendar. She does remain a saint though, for miners, artillerymen, and others who work with explosives, and is one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers (Nothelfer).
Many associations of miners and geologists have Barbarafeiern or Barbarafeste (Barbara celebrations) on or around December 4th in honor of their patron.
Take all the following stories and “facts” with a big grain of salt. And of course, as with nearly all myths, there are different versions of the stories.
The Myths and Stories surrounding St. Barbara
Barbara was very pretty which is why her father, the emperor or merchant Dioscorus, locked her in a tower whenever he was away.
Barbara was interested in Christianity (which was still a very young and novel religion at the time, and many Christians were persecuted) and was baptized.
She had a third window added to “her” tower to represent the Holy Trinity, and told her father about her conversion to Christianity.
Her father sent her to prison for being a Christian. On the way to the prison, she escaped through a rock crevice but a shepherd betrayed her and turned her in.
Also on the way to prison, a cherry tree branch caught on her dress. She took the branch with her and watered it in her prison cell with some of her drinking water. The branch bloomed on the day she was executed, or there were blooms before keeping her spirits up.
Before her execution she was tortured with fire to renounce Christ.
Her father was struck by lightning after he beheaded her. (In other stories he was killed by lightning after he decided to have her tortured and killed.)
Depictions of Saint Barbara
You’ll find many different depictions of Saint Barbara, often in church art. Often you will see her with the following symbols:
a tower – where she was held captive and where she had a third window installed
a canon – for everybody who might face sudden and/or violent death
a chalice – for her wish to receive the sacrament
a palm (leaf) – as a sign for martyrdom
a peacock feather – for immortality
a crown – early Christian symbol of immortality and martyrdom
Customs today
We cut a cherry tree branch (Barbarazweig) and put it in water on December 4th. When it blooms by Christmas and/or on Christmas Day, we will have good luck in the next year!
Young women used the branches to tell who was going to be their husband. They had multiple branches and gave each of them the name of one of their suitors. Whichever branch/suitor sprouted first was the man they would marry.
I really like how a Christian saint and her story turned into fortune telling.
