Zuckertute

It started in the larger cities but spread quickly to small towns and villages, soon becoming an institution all over Germany.

In the early days of the concept of the Zuckertüte, before it spread to other parts of Germany, the usual routine was not to hand over the Tüte to the children personally.

Marked with the students' names, the Zuckertüten were taken to the school by grandparents or godparents and in a ritual reminiscent of the Mexican piñata, they were hung on a metal Zuckertüten-Baum from which each child had to pick his or her cone, without breaking it.

[citation needed] The only custom that changed in the latter half of the 20th century is that fewer sweets seem to appear in the Zuckertüte, with more practical gifts such as crayons and pencils, small toys, CDs, books, and even articles of clothing replacing the traditional chocolates and candies/sweets.

Christiane Cantauw, a German folklore expert at the Volkskundliche Kommission für Westfalen (Folkloristic Commission of Westphalia, based in the city of Münster), has researched the Zuckertüte tradition.