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The "Dampedei"

 Agathe Wende

I was born in Germany, in Karlsruhe/Baden-Württemberg. Each year, at December 6, Santa Claus was celebrated. My brother and my sister and of course I, too, got a "Dampedei". The "Dampedei" is a special bread you get at Christmas time. It is a bread in the form of a little man and well known in Baden-Württemberg and the Pfalz. My mother, a teacher, also gave a "Dampedei" to her pupils in Christmas time. Even today children in Karlsruhe get a "Dampedei" at the beginning of December.

History

The special attraction for me, as a child, was that my mother always stressed the fact that nobody knows where the name "Dampedei" comes from.
In the archives of the German "Brotmuseum" in Ulm there is the following record:
In Karlsruhe I am called "Dampedei". My name comes from an old German dialect. At the beginning I was called "Tambeda". Tambeda was a good ghost, who helped people. My form was built into the framework of old houses. It can still be seen in the oldest house of Baden-Württemberg, build in 1317 in Pfullendorf.
The bakery trade took the "Dampedei" as a sign fpr good fortune.