Overview
- New coverage highlights widespread uptake of Wichtel in German families, with some households substituting the practice for Advent calendars and others using it alongside them.
- Parents are drawn to the routine for its manageable, daily surprises and shared activities, avoiding the need to prepare 24 calendar gifts at once.
- Publishers provide free downloads for mini Wichtel letters, blank stationery and a PDF with 24 prank ideas to help families run the monthlong ritual.
- Pastors Barbara Benoit and Henriette Crüwell praise the custom for fostering kindness and participation, saying it can counter a narrow focus on gifts.
- The tradition traces to Scandinavian house spirits known as Nisse or Tomte, popularized in modern imagery by Jenny Nyström and children’s literature cited in the reports, and its spread accelerated via social media in the early 2020s.