willkommen-in-germany: Today is Tag der Deutschen Einheit (”Day of German Unity”) - Germ
willkommen-in-germany: Today is Tag der Deutschen Einheit (”Day of German Unity”) - Germany’s national public holiday, celebrated annually on October 3. It commemorates the anniversary of the German Reunification of East and West that happened in 1990, when the goal of a united Germany that originated in the 1800′s was fulfilled again. For this reason, the name addresses neither the re-union nor the union, but the unity of Germany. An alternative choice to commemorate the Reunification could have been the day the Berlin Wall came down: 9 Nov 1989, which coincided with the anniversary of the proclamation of the German Republic (1918) and the defeat of Hitler’s first coup (1923). However, 9 Nov was also the anniversary of the first large-scale Nazi pogroms against Jews in 1938 (Kristallnacht), so the day was considered inappropriate as a national holiday. Therefore, 3 Oct 1990, the day of the formal Reunification, was chosen instead and replaced the previous “Day of German Unity” (17 June), which had been the national holiday of West Germany since 1954. This year’s celebration centers around Dresden, state capital of Sachsen under the motto: „Brücken bauen“ - “Building bridges”. Next year it will be in Mainz. -- source link