Central Europe and Scandinavia

1. Central Europe and Scandinavia Joseph Mendoza & Antonio Bennett Heidi Himler October 31st, 2012 Happy Halloween!

2. Central Europe

3. Central Europe: History • Until the fall of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806, Germany was a collection of wealthy free cities • Most powerful state to emerge in the 17th and 18th century was Prussia (Eastern Germany) • In 1866, Prussia’s military beat Austria, creating a unified Germany • Hapsburg came into power in 13th century (controlled parts of Germany, Poland, Italy, Slovenia, Russia and more)

4. Central Europe: History • Start of twentieth century, nationalistic movements grew within the Austro-Hungarian Empire • Led to World War I • 1918: Poland, Czechoslovakia and Hungary claim independence • 1933: Adolf Hitler become chancellor of Germany, leading to World War II • Hitler targeted to kill “undesirables”, killing an estimated 10 million people

5. Central Europe: History • Following World War II, West Germany become an independent democracy • East Germany remained under Soviet control • Germany became unified in the 1990s, after the Soviet Union released its hold on East Germany • After communism collapsed in Czechoslovakia in 1993, it split into Czech Republic and Slovakia

6. Central Europe: Immigration Germany Other Central Europeans Typically migrated for economic and political reasons Polish are migrating more recently because political unhappiness Russian peasants migrated to Alaska and the west coast, seeking better lives • First German settlement in the US was Germantown, PN in 1681 • 1820-1900: 5 million Germans migrate due to economic crisis in Europe • 1930s: Jews migrate due to World War II

7. Central Europe: In the US • Germans had to assimilate fast after anti-Germans feelings in the US because of WWI • Led to burning of German literature, banning of German music, and renaming German foods • Polish live right at or under middle class level; known to start and lead labor unions • Hungarians expected to have engineering jobs • Czechs hold industry jobs

8. Central Europe: Religion • Germans: Lutheran, including Amish (strict sect of Mennonites) • Austrians, Poles, Czechs, and Slovaks are mostly Catholic • Russians typically belong to the Orthodox Church, which inn the US has tried to hold onto Russian traditions, but they have been de-emphasized over time • Gypsies follow a more spiritual religion, adopted from Hinduism and Zoroastrianism • Although, American Gypsies have adopted Christianity

9. Central Europe: Family • Germans: Large families, everyone is expected to help support the family whether on the fields in Germany or in the business in America * • Poles: strong emphasis on patriarch of family, mother is homemaker, and if children worked, they worked closed to home or their father • Austrians: father controls finances, mother controls the home • Gypsies: extended families * • * Assimilation in the US, has resulted in broken nuclear families with mom, pop, and 2.5 kids, but with increasing divorce rates

10. Central Europe: Communication • Germans: good manners, formal manner, direct eye contact, greeting with a handshake, honest and direct • Poles: talk quieter than Americans, avoid politics, greet with a handshake • Russians: do not use first names when talking to acquaintances, greet with a handshake, or three kisses on the cheek • Gypsies: adaptive with communication to situation

11. Central Europe: Food • Traditional dishes include food that can be accessed in cold and damp climates: potatoes, beans, eggs, dairy, pork, beef, and fish • Pickling and fermenting food is used to preserve foods • Bread: not really wheat, more so rye and other grains that are easily available in this climate • Dumplings are common (stuffed with meats and fruits)

12. Central Europe: Food • Meat is important • Germans: Westphalian ham (slightly smoked, cut paper thin), Sauerbraten (marinated beef roast), and sausages • Poland is known for it’s smoked ham • Russia has a famous dish called Chicken Kiev, a fried chicken with herbed butter

13. Central Europe: German Sausage • Rohwurst – cured and smoked by butcher, eaten as is; similar to American liverwurst • Brawtwurst – sold raw, cooked on a grill or pan fried to be served • Bruhwurst – smoked and scalded by butcher, eaten as is or cooked • Knockwurst – a cold cut, fully cooked by butcher

14. Central Europe: Food • Dairy is apart of the Central European’s daily diet • Austrians and Germans make use of whipped cream in their daily diet • Sweets and Coffee are consumed daily • Russians prefer a strong tea over coffee

15. Central Europe: Alcohol • Germany, Austria, and Hungary produce a white wine, but prefer to drink a beer • Poles and Russians prefer to drink vodka • Russians drink an iced spiced vodka (lemon or black pepper to spice) • Poles drink vodka with gold flakes called goldwasser

16. Central Europe: Meals • Typically ate 5-6 large meals a day, if affordable • Poorer people ate fewer meals that were meatless • Breakfast – bread with butter and jam • Second Breakfast – coffee with a small sandwich • Lunch (main meal) – at at home, more recently at a café • Coffee break • Dinner – light, guests not usually invited • Gypsies at two meals, in the morning and in the late afternoon, social events • In Russia, there were 4 meals, dinner being the largest • In America, all are pretty Americanized

17. Central Europe: US Adaptions • Diet not too different from the American diet • Increased use of meat • Traditional dishes adapted to what ingredients were available • German “Scapple” – a pork cornmeal sausage flavored with herbs, served for breakfast with syrup • German sticky buns – sweet rolls • German Schnecken – one pot dish of boiled ham, dried apple slices and brown sugar

18. Scandinavia

19. Native Scandinavian history • During the fourteenth century, Margaret of Denmark united the governing forces of Denmark, Sweden, and Norway. During this time, Finland was under the rule of Sweden as was Iceland of Norway so they too were united under the area now known as Scandinavia. • Norway lost almost complete control to Danish rulers for the follow four centuries of Scandinavia’s existence. Sweden would not be controlled my Denmark however—King Gustavo’s I founded Swedish state in 1523 and became the dominate power of continental Europe in the 17th century. • Norway and Finland did not gain independence until the 20th century; Norway neither until 1905 and Finland in 1917.

20. History of Scandinavia in the U.S • Norsemen are the ancient seafarers and explorers of Scandinavia that are to believed to have first discovered North America colonizing as far as Minnesota in the 13th and 14th century. • Documentation of Scandinavian presence in America dates back to the 17th century. • Jonas Bronck, A Dane, bought a piece of land from the Native Americans in 1629 that later became known as the Bronx in New York City. • The majority of Scandinavians arrived in the United States in the 1800s. The main reason for immigration into the states was overpopulation. For Swedes it came to be severe famine. • For Norwegian’s there was an enticing offer at the chance for emancipation from the peasant class. Post WW1 Finland dropped America as an option and chose other countries for emigration. Ethnic identity for the Finns waned significantly.

21. Scandinavian Religions • The typical religious views of the Scandinavians who immigrated to the United States were Lutheran—each nationality had its own branch of the church. • Sweden had been the dominate Lutheran power of continental Europe since 17th century. Common among all immigration groups, the churches helped immigrants adjust and provide ethnic companionship to the recent arrivals. • Here in the 21st century, most Scandinavian and German Lutheran churches joined together to create the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA).

22. Scandinavian food cultures • Scandinavian food habits are simple and hearty with an abundance of foods from the sea and making the most of the limited foods harvested on the land. To sum up the methods of most meals in Scandinavia it was to use preservation. • Fish was salted, smoked, pickled, and dried to preserve it. Milk was fermented or allowed to sour before being served. They prefer their food salty. Fish is the main source of protein, rye is used rather than wheat, preserved vegetables, Marzipan (sweetened almond paste) are used in many sweets, and butter is often used in Scandinavian areas. Common foods include all selections of meat and seafood, poultry and small birds, eggs, coffee, hot chocolate, vodka, butter, lard, sugar (brown and white), honey, and molasses. • Staples for the Scandinavian areas include fish and shell fish (Salmon, sardines, and shrimp). Fermentation proved advantageous to Scandinavians for without it they wouldn’t have been able to store the produce in the spring and summer. Among milk, cream, and butter, fermented dairy products such as sour cream, cheese, and buttermilk were produced. Common fruits and vegetables included apples, potatoes, cabbage, onion, and beets. The Swedes are known for their tasty meat-balls.

23. Scandinavians in America • Scandinavian-Americas more meat is eaten than fish, more wheat is used rather than other grains, and a greater variety of fruits and vegetables are obtainable in the United States.

24. Scandinavian Food habits • The Scandinavians eat three meals a day with coffee breaks mid-morning, late in the afternoon, and after the evening meal. Breakfast is light which may consist of bread or oatmeal porridge, eggs, pastries, cheese, bread, fruit, potatoes, or herring. Fruit soups may be served in the winter topped with a think whipped creams. • Lunch in Denmark is frequently smorrebrod which translates to “buttered bread”, an open faced sandwich eaten with a knife and fork. The bread is topped with things like smoked salmon to sliced boiled potatoes with bacon, small sausages, and tomato slices. These are also served as late as afternoon to a bedtime snack. • A buffet meal in Sweden is the smorgasbord (a large variety of cold and hot dishes served with aquavit). The Swedes start with herring followed by other fish dishes. Next are meats and salads. The final course before dessert is served is hot dishes such as meatballs and mushroom omelets.

25. Scandinavian Food habits (con’t)… • The Christmas season lasts from Advent (4 weeks before Christmas) until January 13th, Saint Canute’s Day. December being the darkest month of the year for Scandinavia, the largest, richest, and most lavish meal of the year is eaten on Christmas Eve. • Traditional Christmas cuisine includes Rice porridge sprinkled with sugar and cinnamon; and lutefisk served with white sauce, melted butter, green peas, boiled potatoes, and mustard. Buried in the rice porridge is one blanches almond; the person who receives it will have good fortune in the coming year. Another common food served for Christmas is pork or ham often accompanied by red cabbage.

26. Scandinavian Food Habits (con’t)… • Midsummer’s Day (June 24th) is a popular Scandinavian holiday that features maypoles, bonfires, and feasting. In Sweden, fish accompanied by new potatoes and wild strawberries are eaten; in Norway, a cream pudding sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar rommegrot.

27. Recipes • http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/swedish_meatballs/ • http://allrecipes.com/recipe/finnish-cookie-sticks/ • http://polishplate.com/recipes/polish-apple-cake-szarlotka,5.html • http://polishplate.com/recipes/crepes-nalesniki,18.html • http://www.cooks.com/rec/view/0,1950,148188-246198,00.html