Plan Your Year By Learning the 12 Months in German

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Getting familiar with the months in German is a great way to give context to your studies as you learn how to speak German. The good news is these German months of the year are often either identical to their English counterparts or only a few letters off from being spelled exactly the same. Move beyond the German days of the week to include the whole German calendar of Monate (months) into your vocabulary!

How to pronounce the German months of the year

Reading the names of the German months of the year out loud requires a solid understanding of the German alphabet and its pronunciation. Once you understand the letter each sound makes, you’ll find that most months in German are pronounced very similarly to their English counterparts.

Below is a pronunciation chart for the 12 months of the year in German:

Be careful of that tricky ä in the month of März (march)! An easy way to pronounce this unique German letter is to imagine it being sounded out as the letter “e” in “bed.”

Origins of the names of the months in German

Though it’s now considered a Germanic language, the German language owes many of its words to its Latin roots. The names of the months in German are no exception thanks to the calendar introduced by the Roman Empire where Latin was the predominant language.

• Januar (January) is derived from the Roman god of gates, Janus. This god is depicted with two faces symbolizing beginnings and ends, which is fitting for the first month of the year.
• Februar (February) comes from the Latin term “februaris,” referring to the festival of purification that took place in February.
• März (March) is named after Mars, the Roman god of war, and used to be the first month of the year.
• April (April) has origins a bit more clouded in history, but it might be related to “the month of Venus” from an Etruscan form of the Greek god “Aphrodite.”
•  Mai (May) is named for Maia, the goddess of spring.
• Juni (June) comes from the name of the goddess Juno, the patroness of marriage.
• Juli (July) owes its name to Julius Caesar, a powerful Roman emperor.
• August (August) is similarly named after a Roman emperor: Augustus Caesar.

The remaining months are related to their number as they appeared in order on the calendar back when March was the first month of the year, prior to Julius Caesar changing the new year to the middle of winter in January.

• September (September) comes from the Latin word “septem” meaning “seven” since September used to be the seventh month on the calendar.
• Oktober (October) continues the pattern from September, since “octo” is Latin for
  “eight.” October used to be the eighth month of the year.
• November (November) is from the Latin “novem,” meaning “nine,” as this used to be the ninth month of the year.
• Dezember (December) comes from the Latin word “decem” meaning “ten” and was considered an important month of fall and harvest time.

Tips for using German months in sentences

Once you’ve gotten comfortable remembering which month in German corresponds to which month in English, then you’re ready to start using them in sentences! The first thing to know is that every month of the year in German, from Januar (January) to Dezember (December) is considered to be a masculine German noun.

That means you’ll always use the German article der (the) for these words. Keep in mind that this article will change depending on the German case governing the month of the year in your sentence. Refer to the chart below to remind yourself of each masculine article for each case:

Here are a few sentence examples with these articles in action:

• Nominative case: Der Januar ist mein Lieblingsmonat. = January is my favorite month.
• Accusative case: Ich plane den Februar für meine Reise. = I am planning February for my trip.
• Dative case: Ich freue mich auf dem März. = I am looking forward to March.
• Genitive case: Die Tage des April sind oft regnerisch. = The days of April are often rainy.

Changing adjective endings for the months

These grammatically masculine months also affect adjective endings. For a handy reference as to how, see the chart below for the endings you’ll add to adjectives describing months in German:

See some examples of sentences with adjectives affected by German months of the year below:

• Nominative: Der kalte Januar ist oft schneereich. = The cold January is often snowy.
• Accusative: Ich liebe den warmen Juni. = I love the warm June.
• Dative: Ich gehe im frühen April spazieren. = I go for a walk in the early April.
• Genitive: Die Farben eines klaren Mays sind wunderschön. = The colors of a clear May are beautiful.

Learn the holidays that coincide with the months in German

In Germany, months of the year are often associated with a unique Urlaub (holiday) and traditions spanning back hundreds or even thousands of years. Learning the months associated with each holiday is a great way to immerse yourself in the culture of Germany as you study its language.

Below is a list of the popular holidays associated with months of the year in German:

• Neujahr (New Year’s Day) in Januar (January)
  • Neujahr is celebrated every year in Germany on January 1. Germans will stay up until midnight to celebrate the first moments of the new year with friends and family, often lighting fireworks.
• Karneval (Carnival) in Februar (February)
  • In cities like Cologne and Düsseldorf, Karneval is celebrated with parades, parties, and elaborate costumes before Lent. It’s a time to embrace the best parts of life before abstaining for religious reasons.
• Ostersonntag (Easter Sunday) in März (March) or April (April)
  • With deep cultural ties to Christianity, Ostersonntag is an important religious holiday in Germany. Members of various churches will worship on this day, and celebrants will enjoy festive meals with family and go on egg hunts together.
• Tag der Arbeit (Labor Day) in Mai (May)
  • Tag der Arbeit is a holiday celebrating the hard work of the German people and recognizing worker’s rights, similar to May Day in France. Most German occupations will have this day off to spend as they please, often accompanied by public parades.
• Oktoberfest (October festival) in Oktober (October)
  • You’ll find this famous German holiday celebrated not just in Germany, but also in many countries with Germanic populations like the United States. Oktoberfest in Munich begins in late September and ends in early October. Known for beer, food, and traditional Bavarian music, this is a cultural event clad in Lederhosen (leather pants) that attracts millions of visitors to Germany every year.
• Weihnachten (Christmas) in Dezember (December)
  • The nostalgic warmth of Glühwein (mulled wine) in your belly as you peruse the German Christmas markets is a comfort to many Germans (and tourists) celebrating Weihnachten. It’s a Christian holiday that celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ by giving gifts to friends, family, and loved ones and eating feasts of traditional German foods together.

Now that you know when each holiday takes place, consider spending your next favorite holiday in Germany!

Frequently asked questions about the 12 months in German

Here are the five most Häufig gestellte Fragen (frequently asked questions) about the 12 months in German:

Are the names of the months in German similar to English?

Yes, the names of the months in German are similar to their English counterparts since English is also a Germanic language with Latin origins. In fact, an English speaker would likely be able to tell which German month is which without any prior knowledge of the language. For example, April (April) and August (August) are the exact same in English and German!

Do the months in German have grammatical genders?

Yes, all months of the year in German are considered masculine for grammatical usage. This means you use the masculine article der (the) when the terms are used in their singular form, as in der April (the April). Depending on the case, they will affect adjectives describing them and case endings in the sentence as any other masculine noun would. You can get comfortable with the cases in German with Rosetta Stone’s Dynamic Immersion that helps you practice the same way you learned your native language!

How do you say “month” and “months” in German?

The German word for “month” is der Monat. If you have more than one month, you use the plural German article die (the) and add the suffix -e to the base word. This gives you die Monate or “the months.” Keep the -e anytime you refer to multiple months, not just after the plural article die. For example, you could say zwei Monate (two months) in German and be grammatically accurate.

Do Germans capitalize “months”?

Yes, the months in German are always capitalized because they are nouns. In the German language, all nouns are capitalized regardless of their position in a sentence or whether they’re common nouns or proper nouns. This helps make months in German like Dezember (December) and November (November) easy to spot in a sentence.