Männertag/Herrentag

Today is special day in the Deutsche-speaking world. To zee Germans, today is “Männertag,” or Men’s day; while the Austrians, their slightly eccentric and more conservative cousins, call it “Herrentag,” or Gentleman’s Day. Historically, the holiday appears to be affiliated with Father’s Day (“vatertag”) or Ascension Day—a kind of “God our Father” transliteration. But that’s where the innocence ends. Mix in a little Teutonic nature worship, and of course booze, and you get something much more akin to what has marked the holiday since at least the nineteenth century (although, back then, at least they did their revelry in the woods). These days, men—invariably older and sporting potbellies—walk around town with a wheelbarrow/bike/anything-with-a-hollow-cavity-and-wheels filled to the brim with all manner of beer, wine, and schnapps; and if you and your vehicle are adorned with twigs, flowers, and leaves, all the better. Beginning early, and ideally drunk by, say, mid-morning, the revelers can be expected to be stumbling the streets, singing songs, recuperating in gutters, and no doubt by the beginning of the afternoon, filling the city’s ambulances and emergency rooms (municipal services maintain one of their highest levels of alert during the holiday).

Naturally, I have heard that women should remain scarce on Men’s Day, but my suspicions lead me to believe otherwise. The ladies in Germany like to booze it as much as the men, and more often than not, I’ve heard, are as liable to wind up sans shirt. There is, of course, an official Ladies’ Day or Mother’s Day or whatever, but I don’t think it gets the same sort of play around town. Who knows, though? From what I can gather so far, Germans love to drink beer everyday, at all times of the day, all the time. And being a logical people, if there’s a Ladies’ Day, the idea goes to create a Man’s Day; or vice versa. So here’s to it:

Prost zu Männertag!