TheOktoberfest is a two-week festival held each year inMunich, Germany during late September and early October. It is attended by six million people each year and has inspired numerous similar events using the nameOktoberfest in Bavaria and around the world.
Outside of Germany, three Oktoberfest events claim to be the largest after Munich’s, with over 700,000 visitors annually: the one inBlumenau, Brazil;[1] the one inCincinnati, Ohio, United States (700,000-800,000+ visitors);[2] and the one inKitchener, Ontario (formerly Berlin) and surrounding cities inWaterloo Region, Canada.
Other larger Oktoberfests include the Denver OktoberfestDenver, Colorado, United States (450,000+ visitors).[3] In New York City, there is even an Oktoberfest held under a big tent along the city's East River.[4] However, the largest one mostly depends on specific year's numbers and varies with sources.[5] Currently Oktoberfest is spreading to new geographical locations; starting in September 2007,Montreal began hosting its own Oktoberfest. One can find Oktoberfest celebrations mixing German traditions, food and beer with local culture outside of Germany.[6]
TheNational Beer Festival (Fiesta Nacional de la Cerveza) isArgentina's version of the German Oktoberfest. It has taken place every October since 1963 inVilla General Belgrano, Córdoba. The party emerged by the hand of the first German immigrants. This festival attracts thousands of tourists for two consecutive weekends.
In Australia, theuniversities are notorious in their celebrations of Oktoberfest every year, and as students graduated and moved on, this rolled over into pubs and restaurants in the university areas. After the 2012 Oktoberfest Party theUniversity of New South Wales council banned the celebration of the festival on university campus grounds.[7]
Following the end of many of the university based events a private event company, Nokturnl Events, launched 'Oktoberfest in the Gardens'[8] in theSupreme Court Gardens, Perth on 7 October 2011. The event has since expanded to Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney. The event now attracts over 50,000 patrons annually making it the largest Oktoberfest celebration in Australia.
TheHarmonie German Club, Canberra, holds an Oktoberfest over a three-day period every year in October. The festival has been held for over 50 years, and attracts a large number of visitors from Canberra and surrounding regions.[11] In 2017 the event moved over the border toQueanbeyan in New South Wales and was held on 27 – 29 October.[12][13]
Brisbane celebrates its annualBrisbane Oktoberfest, which is considered Australia's largest German festival. It is held over the first two weekends in October and offers a variety of German beers, wines and food, beer hall music and dance and singing performances.
Since 1984, an annual Oktoberfest celebration has been held in the seaside village ofEmu Park on Queensland'sCapricorn Coast. The event is held in the town'sBell Park and is organised by the localLions Club.[14][15]
In Canada there is an annual nine-day celebration spread over 18 days inKitchener, Ontario. It attracts over 700,000 visitors annually.[16] While its most popular draws are thebeer-based celebrations, other cultural and entertainment attractions also fill the week. The most well-known is the parade held onThanksgiving Day. As the only major parade onCanadian Thanksgiving, it is televised nationally. Coincidentally, the closing day of the Bavarian Oktoberfest also falls on the German equivalent of Thanksgiving,Erntedankfest.
The twin cities and surrounding area have a long history of German roots. Kitchener wasformerly named Berlin. A significant portion of the population of Kitchener and surrounding areas identify themselves as being of German descent, and many still speakGerman. A common phrase at the celebrations isGemütlichkeit, German for congeniality, or warm friendliness.
Oktoberfest celebrations are also held annually inSherbrooke, Quebec at the beginning of October. The one night event is held byUniversité de Sherbrooke's Engineering Students' Association. It draws approximately 6,000 revellers each year.[17]
InAnting New Town, designed with German-style elements and architecture, Oktoberfest (and other German holidays) are celebrated as community events.[25]: 129
Hong Kong,Marco Polo German Bierfest has been held since 1992. The celebration takes place in mid October to early November at Marco Polo Hong Kong Hotel inHarbour City, Tsim Sha Tsui.[26] Other events also take place in other spots in Hong Kong:
In Colombia it is sponsored byBavaria Brewery. A series of concerts and events are held along different cities, with special emphasis in those with German background likeBucaramanga.
Oktoberfest celebrations have become very popular with Indian hotels, restaurants and malls. Numerous such events happen in Indian metros in October. The most significant one is held since 2009 by theIndo-German Chamber of Commerce inPune, traditionally a large hub of German companies in India.[28][29]
Oktoberfest has been celebrated inPenang andKuala Lumpur since the 1970s. Celebrations are said to be the liveliest in Penang, with annual festivities organised by the Malaysian German Society.[31] Since 2017, the Oktoberfest celebrations in Penang have included non-alcoholic beverages alongside beer.[32]
Oktoberfest beer and music festival celebrations held usually from September up to December. It is organized bySan Miguel Brewery, which is the makers ofSan Miguel Beer and other alcoholic beverages. The 2015 edition of their Oktoberfest, was coincided with the 125th anniversary of San Miguel Beer Pale Pilsen.[34]
German-Americans are the largest self-reported ancestral group in the United States, and despite many German-Americans not having Bavarian ancestry, Oktoberfest is observed as a "typically German" celebration. There are hundreds of large and small Oktoberfest celebrations held annually throughout the country, the largest beingOktoberfest Zinzinnati inCincinnati, Ohio.
Known for its large German immigrant population, the Commonwealth ofPennsylvania and its historicPennsylvania Dutch (Pennsylvania Deutsch) population are well known to have many Oktoberfest celebrations during the months of September and October. These celebrations became increasingly popular among the general Commonwealth population in the later half of the 20th century with the rise of microbreweries, and with the opening of authentic German brew houses such as Hofbräuhaus in Pittsburgh, PA.
Other major celebrations across the United States include those at:
Nashville, Tennessee's oldest-running festival is the Nashville Oktoberfest,[36] in the downtown Germantown neighborhood. In 2015, more than 140,000 people attended.[37] In 2016, official attendance was estimated as over 215,000 people, making the Nashville Oktoberfest the second largest in the USA.[38]
New Ulm, Minnesota (In 2002 the Census Bureau released a report showing 65.85% of population with German ancestry, the greatest proportion among US cities).
Oktoberfest celebrations are co-organized annually by the German Business Association inHanoi andHo Chi Minh City.[49] In 2012, Oktoberfest Vietnam in Ho Chi Minh City celebrated its 20th year with a seven-day event.[50]
InVenezuela, specifically inColonia Tovar,[51] it is held annually since 1970. Sometimes music groups have been invited from Germany to interpret typical music. The Historic center of Colonia Tovar has a population of about 10,000 inhabitants and it is estimated that during the days of the event the town receives twice that in visitors. InGreater Caracas, it's celebrated in the suburb ofEl Hatillo,[52][53] it's sponsored by the embassy of Germany and Poland, and the German-speaking Catholic Community.
Oktoberfest is celebrated annually inZambia around 10 October at Fringilla,Chisamba, Central Province and many other various locations inLusaka.[citation needed]
Note that traditionalfairs in Bavaria, calledDult,Volksfest (popular festival) etc., are similar to the Oktoberfest in nature (not in size), but not called Oktoberfest as they did not arise in imitation of it. Of these, theGäubodenvolksfest ofStraubing enjoys particular fame.
TheHanover Oktoberfest is a fair that takes place every year at the end of September or at the beginning of October.[54] It usually lasts 17 days and features 140 rides and booths, two large beer tents seating more than a thousand people each, and numerous stands, beer gardens and five small beer tents offering food and refreshments. The program consists of adirndl competition, threefireworks, two family days, ahand lantern parade for kids and a backstage tour. You can get a special festival-beer from the local breweryHerrenhäuser Brewery, theLüttje Lage [de] (an alcoholic speciality of Hannover) and many foods from Lower Saxony and Bavaria. With around one million visitors each year, it is the second-largest Oktoberfest in Germany.
Oktoberfest in Berlin continues to grow. Several large areas, including Alexanderplatz and Zentraler Festplatz, are turned into Bavarian-like beer and food tents. Live brass Bavarian bands play at venues around town and people can be seen in traditional Bavarian dress around the city. Many places also serve the official Oktoberfest beers that are made in Munich. These events last from mid-September to early-mid October, and are the largest Oktoberfest events outside of Munich.[55]
