The Country

The Federal Republic of Germany is a Central European nation sharing its borders with eight other countries and is fenced by the Baltic Sea on its north.

An elected Chancellor effectively heads this democratic republic of 82 million and an appointed President serves the role of head of state. The 691 strong Bundestag (Federal Diet) and Bundesrat (Federal Council) is the primary legislative body and is elected on a renewable four-year term.

Ethnic Germans constitute over 90% of the population and almost all the citizens speak the German language. Christianity is the predominant religion in the country, with almost equal representation between the Catholics and Protestants while Islam, with 5%, exhibits the fastest growth rate among religions in the country. It is worth noting that almost a third of the population profess to no religious affiliation.

Relationship With A German Woman

While there are no major cultural differences between the dating etiquette of Germans and couples from other Western countries, there are a few minor nuances in societal interaction that you should pay attention to, with the most obvious being common civility.

The Germans do not consider excessive friendliness, white lies or unsolicited assistance as virtues. They are conditioned to be respectful and truthful in their interaction which may at times comes across as discourteous. They put heavy weight on respect, and will show it by being straightforward (or blunt, some might say) in their opinions - if asked - and avoid banalities.
The Germans keeps their pulse on world affairs, so brushing up your knowledge on this will ensure you have something useful to contribute in a conversation, thus giving you a fighting chance to start a relationship with a German woman.

Marriage

German marriage traditions have considerably influenced Western wedding traditions. Among its many customs, the Heiratsvertrag (prenuptial agreement) is probably the most recognizable.

The concept of ‘best man’ also has Germanic roots. In olden times, where the groom is known to kidnap their brides from neighboring villages, he will request the assistance of his friend (the best man) to fend off the pursuing villagers.

Another famous aspect of the German wedding is the Junggesellenabschied, a raucous party held a few days before the wedding which exhibits the familiar features of music, crockery smashing, food and drinks – a very likely precursor to bachelor parties that we have come to appreciate so well.

But we’re getting ahead of ourselves. Your start of the wedding process by making a heiratsantrag, a marriage proposal to your German girlfriend. This will lead to a simple engagement party that will lead to the engagement ring exchange. The engagement rings used are normally just plain gold ones, minus the diamonds and emeralds. A mutually agreed period before the actual wedding will be set. In German custom, the birth of a baby girl into the family will lead to the planting of a tree in her honor. The tree will be cut down and sold to finance her marriage. While this is not a typical practice in present time, the hypothetical gap is observed in determining the wedding date.

Your wedding day starts with a visit to the Standesamt (Civil Registration Office) which will only be attended by immediate families and close friends. The trip will be in a convoy of cars accompanied by plenty of honking. Other cars normally honks back wishing the couple good fortune. This is sometimes followed with a visit to a local cathedral for a religious service. A wedding reception follows immediately after.

Arriving at the reception, the best man will promptly kidnap your bride and take her to a local watering hole. Once you find then, you will have to pick up the tab before he will release her to you. Upon returning to the reception, the father of the bride will make a wedding toast and invite you and your bride to the floor for the compulsory waltz. Both of your in laws will join in soon after and the rest of the guests not long after that.
As you and your bride exit the place after the reception concludes, guests will sprinkle rice on you both, blessing the both of you with an abundance of prosperity. Once you arrive safely home, do not let down your guard yet. Germans are famous for their notorious pranks on wedding night. Among the most popular tricks you should look out for is the bed falling apart and hidden alarm clocks (set to ring at the oddest hours).

Regulation

Marriage law for foreigners in Germany is rather straightforward, just like the people. Copies of your identification, travel and residency papers plus a locally issued health certificate, all translated to German and apostilled is required for the civil ceremony.
The civil ceremony is held in the Standesamt (civil registration office) during office hours and with proper documentation, you can breeze through with the registration on the same day itself. Ceremonies held in the Standesamt are devoid of any religious trappings as citizens of all religious affiliations regularly have their marriage conducted here.