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 Understanding Germany’s Food Culture

Food might not be the first thing you think of while planning your trip to Germany, but it has just as
much of a food culture as anywhere in Europe. The cuisine is tasty, unique and varies from one region
to another. Each region has its own version of certain staples, and some dishes are unique to one area.
This should help you understand a little more about eating in Germany and bit about the food culture.

Bread, Bakeries and a word about Pretzels

So the real food of Germany is bread. Bakeries are more common than just about anything else. They
are often allowed open on Sundays when the rest of the stores are closed. They will have a dazzling
array of bread in all manner of shapes, sizes, flavors and grains. Pastries as well are in abundance. This
is wonderful to remember as a traveler when the hotels want to charge you 7 euros for breakfast. Say no
and hunt out a chocolate croissant or nut swirl. Every German train station of any size will have a
bakery as well for your pre-train breakfast.
Beyond the simple loafs of bread, the most common object in a bakery is the Brötchen. Brötchen is a
generic term for a roll, literally “small bread”. The “common” Brötchen is a bread roll about the size of
a fist with a fairly crusty outside and soft white inside. As with everything in Germany, there are
regional variations, but the standard breadroll of some sort is universal. Bakeries will usually have
sandwiches called “Belegte Brötchen,” but even then expect only a single slice of salami or cheese and
probably butter. The bread is the thing with the rest as an accent.

So where do Pretzels come in, you might ask. The “oh so German” bread is really just native to the
southern German provinces. In Munich you can see them the size of a basketball hoop being carried by
women like a purse, but the “standard” pretzel or (Bretzeln) is about the size of your hand. They have
spread across Germany, so it is not unusual to find them in the north as well, but the south will have the
most variety. The pretzel is actually the shape, while the bread is called Laugen and comes in a bunch
of shapes, and it is common in both Baden and Bavaria to find Butter Pretzels with the pretzel cut open
and layered with butter.

German Sausage
Almost everything begins with bread in Germany, but there are a lot of wonderful things to put on it.
Sausage is definitely well associated with Germany and for good reason. Each region, and even each
city, will have a particular type of Wurst that is “theirs” though the regional variations can be found all
over. Head to the farmer’s market for a sausage on a Brötchen for a couple of euros.

Sausage appears in several other forms in Germany. Salami, which is really a big dried sausage thinly
sliced, is very common, especially on pizza and on Brötchen. Currywurst is another favorite. This is a
sausage cut into bits and drenched in curry ketchup. You get a little fork to eat it with. It is usually quite
mild, but can be spicy depending on the place. This is not like an Indian or Thai curry, it is something
else entirely.

Schnitzel
Going into a restaurant, Schnitzel is probably the most common meat in Germany. Schnitzel literally
means “cutlet” and will be a piece of meat pounded thin, breaded and pan fried. It’s usually pork,
sometimes turkey, and the closer to Vienna you get the more likely it is veal. Try to eye out the other
people in the place who have ordered it. You might consider sharing if you aren’t starving as Schnitzels
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can be enormous. Beyond the basic meat on a plate, there will almost always be some form of potatoes
next to it. As for sauces, it really depends. This can range from a simple lemon wedge to a mushroom
cream sauce (making the dish a Jaegerschnitzel) and beyond depending on the region.

Pommes
Pommes (pronounced Pom-ess) is the German word for fries. The meat and potatoes cultural
expectation is beginning to round out, you see? There is nothing particularly special about fries in
Germany compared to anywhere else you might have traveled (except for Belgium, but that is another
post). You will likely get asked if you mayo or ketchup with them though.

Breakfast
A common German breakfast involves a Brötchen cut open and spread with whatever. This “whatever”
ranges from Nutella to honey, jam and butter on the sweet side to sliced salami and cheese on the
savory side. Pretty much everything in between is possible as well. They even have spreadable sausage
paste. Soft-boiled eggs are common as well, so the yolks will most likely still be runny. Coffee and tea
are common to drink.

Coffee
Germans have a cultural affinity to coffee. It is available in every bakery and at every restaurant. If you
like the stuff, you will find it aplenty here. All of the variations like Cappuccino, Cafe Latte and such
exist in many places as well. And don’t picture a glass coffee pot with plastic orange handle, even the
corner bakery is likely to have a big shiny whirring machine to produce freshly ground coffee by the
cup.

Fizzy Water and the Apfel Schorle

The water in Germany is perfectly drinkable and clean from the tap. And yet it is nearly universally
avoided by the population. Fizzy water is the “standard” water in Germany. If you order it at a
restaurant, be prepared to ask for “Still” if you don’t want bubbles. This fizzy water is so common in
fact, that they mix it will other things to make new drinks. The term for that is Schorle.

The most common Schorle of them all is the Apfel Schorle, or fizzy apple juice. You will find this on
any menu and there are even bottled versions in the grocery store. Wine-schorle exists and so does Beer
Schorle, though that is usually called a Radler.

Beer in Germany
So we come to that most quintessential German drink, beer. Beer is both ubiquitous and cheap in
Germany. A half liter mug in a restaurant should be 3-4 euros, with half-liter bottles in the grocery store
running about a euro (with deposit). Beer is also quite regional. Certain brands are available
everywhere, but each town will have one or two “local” breweries that will supply just that region. If
beer really truly isn’t your thing, Germany is also home to plenty of good wines.

The two most common types of beer are the Pils and the Hefeweizen. Pils are lighter in color and often
slightly more bitter. These are the traditional style of beer made of Barley, Hops, Yeast and Water as
per the Rheinheitsgebot. This is what you will get if you just order “bier.” Hefeweizen are wheat beers.

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They are cloudy and sweeter than the pils. A weizen is served in a tall curvy glass. Beyond these two
classifications there is a world of variations. There are darker beers and smoother beers. You need to
experiment and try a few to find what you like.

Though most people don’t go to Germany for the food, there are delicious dishes to be eaten here.
Before you order at a restaurant, ask what’s local so you can try the regional dishes. Knowing these
things about eating in Germany will go a long way in helping you to explore Germany’s food culture
and enjoy your visit to this country.

Traditional German Clothing

PREV NEXT

It's pretty easy to recognize traditional German dress.

POLKA DOT IMAGES/POLKA DOT/THINKSTOCK

Food is one thing, but we've just begun to scratch the surface of the eccentricities
German culture has to offer. If you've been to Oktoberfest, which are celebrated all
over the world, you're familiar with lederhosen and dirndls. Lederhosen, which
means "leather trousers" in German, are the short, leather pants worn by men.
These are usually knee-length and are the historically worn by working-class
German men. The dirndl is a ruffled apron dress worn by German women that
consists of a bodice, or blouse, and a skirt. In the 19th century, the dirndl was the
standard uniform of servant girls, but today it is mostly worn in Bavaria and Austria,
and like lederhosen, usually for celebration. Each of these garments is a type
of tracht, which historically was used to help identify people as members of a
certain status (social, political or otherwise).

How in the world would one accessorize such things? Let's start with shoes. For the
ladies, a soft, felt shoe with clunky heels and decorative buckles would typically
accompany the dirndl. While not exactly clogs, these shoes would work just fine for
an evening of dancing. Men would usually opt for the haferlshoe, a thick leather or
rubber sole invented in Bavaria for farming. Shoemaker Franz Schratt based the
design on that of animal hooves, and the word heferl, roughly translated, means
"half a shoe." These were also easy on the feet, and men took great pride in the
care that went into handcrafting their haferl.

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The people, language, and traditions are what make the German culture unique.
It has had a key role in the history of Europe, and not only. English speakers
call it Germany, Germans themselves call it Deutschland. Germany is known
as the country of poets and thinkers.

German culture has been influenced and shaped throughout Germany‘s rich
history once as an important part of The Holy Roman Empire, and later on as
one of the most stable economies in the world.

Whereas today, Germany is home to 82.2 million people including Germans and
minorities of other nationalities that respect each other, and together make
Germany a country of values, unique celebrations, and customs.

In this article, we have given some facts about the German culture, which has its
roots at the beginning of the first millennium, though through time it has lost and
gained different traits from the historical events that have shaped not only
Germany but the whole old continent of Europe.

Firstly, here are some facts about today’s Germany. Though English-speaking
countries call it Germany, Germans themself call it Deutschland. It is Germania in
Latin, l’Allemagne in French and Almanya in Turkish.

Berlin is its capital, but Hamburg, Munich and Cologne are also among the main
cities of Germany. It is estimated that the average woman in Germany lives
around 83 years, while the average man lives 79 years. The main language is
German and main religion is Christianity.

There are a lot of stereotypes about Germans, as that they drink a lot of beer
(which is true), they are hardworking and punctual (which is also true), and that
the rate of unemployment in Germany is very low (true again).

Language

Over 95% of the residents of Germany speak the German language, whether it is
the standard German or any of its dialects. However, the German state has
recognized four minority languages, which are the Upper and Lower Sorbian,
Romani, Danish as well as North and Saterland Frisian.

Because of the high number of immigration, there are also languages spoken by a
sizable number of communities, as Turkish, Kurdish, Russian, Greek. Albanian,
Polish etc.
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Clothing

Today, the average German dress is typically western. Both men and women wear
dark simple suits and shirts in business context. However, each region of the
country have their own traditional costumes, which differ a bit from one another.
For example, in the state of Bavaria, the traditional costume for men is leather
trousers that end just above the knee, while for women it is a dress that
incorporates a bodice, blouse, full skirt and an apron. You can see people wearing
these costumes, especially during carnivals or festivals.

Religion

In Germany a percentage of 65 to 70 of people recognize themselves as

Christians, 29% of which as Catholics. There is also a Muslim minority of 4.4%. A
number as high as 36% do not identify themselves as having any religion or
belong to another than Christianity or Muslim.

Symbolism

The German symbols have changed through different phases in history alongside
the events that have shaped its culture and traditions. The eagle was part of the
Holy Roman Empire, which after Prussia’s victory over Austria in 1886 has been
shared by two different states. Martin Luther and luminaries as Immanuel Kant,
Johann Gottfried von Herder and Johann Wolfgang Goethe are also important
figures and very contentious symbols. Today the most known symbol of the
country is its black, red and gold flag

Literature

Germany is one of the leading nations when it comes to reading, too. The German
publishers, publish around 94 thousand new books each year, and the
International Frankfurt Book Fair, which is the most important book event in the
world, is held in Germany. Many don’t know, but the first known book was printed
in German, just as the first ever known magazine.

According to a research conducted by Allensbach Media Market Analysis, 44.6% of

the German population read a book at least once a week, while 58.3% of
Germans buy at least one book per year.

Philosophy

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Some of the most famous philosophers were born and lived in Germany, as
Immanuel Kant, who played a central role in the history of philosophy, and he was
inspired by German philosopher Schopenhauer and Nietzsche who spent their
whole lives in Germany. On the other hand the developers of the communist
theory Marx and Engels were also Germans.

Cuisine

Germans drink a lot of beer, eat sausages and make bread of different taste. That
is not only a stereotype, but a true fact. It is estimated that the average German
consumes around 140 liters of beer per year. Only in 2012 alone, Germans drank
2.25 gallons of beer, which is actually the lowest level since the fall of the Berlin
wall in 1990. They are the second largest beer consumers in Europe, after the
Czech.

Wurst, which means sausages in German, are an important part of the German
cuisine, which are made of pork, beef or veal and flavored differently. As for
bread, there is a long tradition of bread-baking of which Germans take pride in.
There are breads with different shapes, black and white, with different tastes and
names, sweet, soft, plain with all types of seeds you could think of.

The German cuisine is also rich with different types of delicious traditional foods,
as well as vegetarian and vegan. You may be a picky eater, but in Germany you
will always have a lot of choices on what to eat and drink.

Music

World’s most renowned classical composers, as Bach and Beethoven, who have
marked the transition of music between the classical and romantic to western
classical music, are Germans, who were born and died in Germany. Other famous
composers from Germany are Brahms, Schubert, Handel, Telemann, Orff etc.

Nowadays, Germany is home to many music festivals, starting from electronic

music to hip-hop and rock & roll. The largest music festival in Germany, which is
also one of the largest in the world, is the Rock am Ring festival which gathers
artists and performers, as well as music fans from all over the world.

Germany also has many opera houses, which also serve as a tourist attraction for
foreign visitors.

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Architecture

The country has gone through a tumultuous history, the signs of which are
evident in its rich and diverse architecture. Its palaces, castles, cathedrals and
monuments best tell the story of Germany. Amphitheaters, spas and roman
bridges are part of the ancient architecture and the civilization that bloomed in
the territory that today is Germany. Pre-Romanesque architecture consists of
churches as the Abbey Church of Saint Michael’s that dates back to the beginning
of the 10th century. Whereas, during the Romanesque period a lot of cathedrals
were built, which have survived through time till today.

The Cologne Cathedral as well as many other cathedrals were built during the
Gothic era. The Renaissance, which bloomed between the 15th and 17th
centuries, is characterized by castles and palaces as the Heidelberg castle or the
ducal Landshut Residence.

Baroque architecture arrived in Germany in the 18th century, and a lot of building
as the Wurzburg Residence or the Augustusburg Castle have survived through
time until today, and are among the tourist attractions that gather a lot of
tourists.

Buildings like that of the Semper Opera in Dresden, the Schwerin Palace and the
Ulm Cathedral belong to the historicism architecture. As for the modern era, it
consists of buildings as the Einstein Tower, Berlin Modernism Housing Estates and
the Gliwice Radio Tower.

Art

The German art has played a crucial role in the development and shaping of the
Western art, especially of the Celtic art, Carolingian art and the Ottonian art.

Painting and sculptures in Gothic style were very famous in Europe, including
Germany. The highlight of the 15th century were the design of altarpieces.
Generations of German artists explored and showed their skills in Baroque and
Rococo style, as well as of Neoclassicism. Romanticism is also a very important
part of the German art.

Some of the most famous German paintings are: “The Sin” by Franz Stuck,
“Wanderer above the Sea of Fog” by Caspar David Friedrich, “Studio Wall” by
Adolf Menzel, “Heller Altarpiece” by Albrecht Dürer and Matthias Grünewald etc.

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Gjhjkugl
Germany has an extensive culture that spans among almost all of the nations that speak
German. Historically, the German culture has been influenced by great minds and intellectuals
that led to the nation earning the description of a nation full of poets and thinkers. Some of the
internationally recognized cultures from Germany include festivals like Oktoberfest and
Weihnachten. As a modern society, Germany has made leaps in things like gender equality,
same-sex marriage, and the promotion of rights for disabled people. The nation’s perspective
about immigrants has also changed considerably in the last decade. The government is
making more of an effort in recognizing immigrants.
The German Language
The official language of Germany is German, which is also among the 23 official languages
used by the European Union. In addition, German is one of the working languages of the
European Commission together with French and English. Other minor languages also spoken
in Germany include Danish, North Frisian, Sorbian, and Saterland Frisian. All of these minor
languages are under the umbrella of the European Charter for Regional or Minority
Languages (ECRML).
Close relatives of the standard German include English, Frisian languages, and Dutch. The
language is also related to a smaller degree to North and the now extinct East Germanic
languages. Standard German is easily distinguishable from the various dialects, which are
mostly local languages. This distinguishability comes from the fact that the dialects use
different syntax, lexicon, and phonology.
In total, about 100 million people around the world can speak German natively with about 80
million speaking it as a second language. Within the EU countries, about 18% of the
population (around 90 million people) can speak German.
Religion in Germany
The dominant religion in Germany is Christianity. Data shows that about 59.4% of the
population practices Christianity. Of this percentage of Christians, 30% are Roman Catholics
while Protestants account for a slightly lesser percentage of 29%. Geographically, Protestants
dominate the northern and eastern regions of Germany while the Roman Catholics are
dominant in the southern and western regions. In recent times, however, there has been a
growing number of non-religious groups in parts such as Hamburg. At some point, however,
there was a time that the whole of Germany was almost wholly under the Holy Empire of the
Roman Catholic Church.
Religion has heavily influenced German culture and traditions with Weihnachten (Christmas)
being the largest holiday. Several events lead to the Weihnachten celebrations. On the fourth
Sunday before Christmas, an Advent wreath adorned with four candles is hung up. Each
Sunday, one of the candles is lit while Christmas carols are sung. An Advent calendar is given
to children with 24 little door, each filled with a small treat, to count down the days to
Christmas. Nikolaustag, another Christmas tradition, takes place on December 6th. On the
eve of Nikolaustag, a boot is placed at the front door to be filled with treats by Nikolaus.
Almost every town has a Weihnachtsmarkt (Christmas market) leading up to the holiday. On
Heiligabend (Christmas Eve) a Weihnachtsbaum (Christmas tree) is either bought or cut down
and brought into the house to be decorated. The family attends a church service, which
usually contains a Krippenspiel (nativity play) and afterwards returns home to open the
presents placed under the tree.
German Cuisine
German food varies in the various regions of the state. For example, the southern regions of
Swabia and Bavaria are known for similar foods with nations like Austria and Switzerland. The
main types of meat eaten in the larger Germany include pork, poultry, and beef although the
most popular one is pork. The meat is not usually eaten directly but mostly in the form of a

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sausage. In fact, there are more than a whopping 1,500 varieties of sausages that come from
Germany.
Breakfast is usually a serious affair since it includes an assortment of bread, honey, boiled
eggs, cheese, and other foods. Unlike other European cultures, the consumption of cereal is
not widespread. Bread is more popular with at least 300 varieties.
The population of immigrants has also been able to integrate their cuisines into the culture as
well. For example, Italians have been able to introduce pasta and pizza while the Turkish and
the Arabs introduced foods like falafel and doner kebabs. The national drink in Germany is
beer despite the growing popularity of wine in recent years. In fact, the nation has one of the
highest figures of beer consumption per individual. Data shows that, among drinkers, one
person drinks a whopping 30 gallons of beer every year. Oktoberfest is the world's largest
beer festival. It is held annually in Munich from late September to early October. The festival
has inspired similar festivities around the world.
German Philosophy
Germany has produced some great philosophers including Albertus Magnus from the Middle
Ages, Leibniz in the 17th century, and the famous Immanuel Kant. In the 21st century,
Germany has been key in developing analytic philosophy in Europe together with nations such
as France, Scandinavian states, Switzerland, and Austria. These great minds from Germany
have come up with interesting questions such as the relationships between faith and other
ways of viewing the world. In addition, there have been great minds of sociology such as
Marcuse, Adorno, Weber, and others.

Every country has its traditional dances – or at least they should – complete with quirky outfits,

high socks, ribbons, and bows. Germany, for instance, is responsible for some of the many

dance routines we know today. These coordinated moves are not really the kind of flow you

want to bring into a Berlin club, for instance, but if ballroom or even stage dancing is your

thing, then German folk dance is absolutely something you should dip into.

Some of these traditional dances date as far back as the neolithic era before Germany was
even Germany. Many of the traditional dances we know today began as simple peasant
dances to uplift their daily lives and were later adapted to high snob-ciety. What’s even harder
to imagine is that many of these modest dance routines were scorned upon by neighboring
countries who thought a two-time dance routine between a man and a woman was an
abomination to the innocent gentlewoman that English society wanted her to be. Let’s have a
look into what you may still find every May Day in Bavaria and other festive parts of the
country.

Zwiefacher

This dance is for the most part famous in Bavaria. The translation oddly enough has nothing
to do with the dance itself. Zwiefacher means twice or double the times. You might want to

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assume it has something to do with the melody or the rhythm of the dance, but actually it
doesn’t at all considering the dance alternates between a 3/4 and 2/4 meter. Some speculate
that the name has something to do with the fact that the dance is between two dancers
dancing closely together, which was a rare affair at the time.

Expressionist Dance

Expressionist dance became most famous in Germany during the Weimar period. Mary
Wigman was the leading pioneer of this movement along with Rudolf von Laban. They
understood dance as a metaphysical experience. Wigman was a student of Laban, and she
transformed his ideas into an existential human experience. She most famously performed
“Dance of the Witches,” and the “Dance of Death,” which are some of the most well-known
dances from this time. Wigman toured in the USA and marked Expressionist dance as a
German dance, which influenced modern dance in the US. However, due to the fact that this
movement was linked to Germany, by the late ’30s, the movement and its dancers were
forced into exile and became illegal and seen as anti-nationalistic.

Schuhplattler

If you’ve ever seen a dance where male dancers in a line or circle are repeatedly hitting the
soles of their shoes, their thighs, and their knees, this is Schuhplattler. This dance is one of
the oldest dance routines in the world and is said to date back as early as 3000 BC, but it first
appeared in recordings around the year 1030 by a monk in Bavaria. This dance was mostly
performed in the Bavarian and Tyrolean Alps by farmers, hunters, and woodsmen. The male
dancers wear lederhosen and suspenders with grey, green, or white knee-length socks, and
the women wear dirndls.

Schuhplattler © Harald Bischoff/wiki

Der Deutsche

Here, couples dance in circles to a 3/4 or 3/8 meter. It is said that the Der Deutsche dance
evolved in the mid-18th century and is the mother of the waltz.

The Ländler

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This hopping and stomping dance routine sometimes accompanies yodeling, and was also
said to have influenced the birth of the waltz. The Ländler had such a strong influence over
the German music and dance scene that composers like Beethoven and Schubert were said
to have included it in their compositions, and had influenced many other well-known
composers. This traditional dance involves couples turning under each other’s arms, dancing
back to back, and a whole lot of spinning. The music is set to a 3/4 time that was once a
dance for peasants, but then found its way into high society.

The Waltz

The waltz comes from the German verb walzen, which means to roll, turn or glide. The waltz is
known to have come from Austria and Bavaria, which began as a peasant dance and quickly
worked its way up into high society. Many criticized the dance because they found it improper
to dance so closely, and religious leaders called the dance vulgar and sinful. Here’s an
amusing quote from The Times in London after they first viewed the waltz on their home turf:
“We remarked with pain that the indecent foreign dance called the Waltz was introduced (we
believe for the first time) at the English court on Friday last … it is quite sufficient to cast one’s
eyes on the voluptuous intertwining of the limbs and close compressure on the bodies in their
dance, to see that it is indeed far removed from the modest reserve which has hitherto been
considered distinctive of English females … we feel it a duty to warn every parent against
exposing his daughter to so fatal a contagion.” (Source: The Times of London, July 16, 1816)

The Waltz © Prayitno / Thank you for (12 millions +) view/flickr

Maypole dances

The maypole dance is not strictly set to a dance and rhythm, but rather a whole ensemble of
particular activities and festivities. Many believe the roots to this pole stem from Germanic
paganism, which seems more likely than not. In Bavaria on May Day (May 1), villagers erect a
decorated tree trunk, and a dance is performed around the pole.

Beer Festivals in Germany

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Germany’s popular cultural and lifestyle drink, beer, can be certainly considered
something worth travelling for. Although there are other countries known and
recognised for their beer, Germany tops the list when it comes to grand celebrations
and revelry surrounding this alcoholic beverage.

Germany is well known across the world for its beer, among a number of other things. It is a country
that is also known for its grand and hearty festivals that feature beer as the hero. Though stereotypes of
the average German being serious and overtly conscious of rules exist in the minds of many, this gets
broken once you enter the typical volksfest, which is an event combining beer festivals and carnivals.
The famous beer and beer festivals from the Bavarian region in south of Germany as well as some of
the other celebrations in the northern part of the country make for fun-filled events, some of which
originated from folk festivals. Some of these festivals date back centuries while some are relatively new
or decades old, and growing in popularity.

Thousands of people get together in traditional attire, armed with litres of beer and snacks, such as
pretzels and sausages, to enjoy the festivals, which can last a few days or sometimes extend up to
weeks. These volksfests, which originated from local traditions, now see attendance from people across
the world, many of whom see it as a pilgrimage of sorts and an activity to tick off from their bucket
lists. Whether the large Oktoberfest or to the mushrooming alternative smaller festivals, Germany’s
beer festivals make for fun destinations.

The people of Gujarat are divided into three major groups in terms of religion - the Hindus, Jains and the Muslims, with
the size of the communities divided in that order.

HINDUISM
The major population of Gujarat comprises of Hindus. From earlier times, 'Vedic Dharma' was popular and from the
remains found from the Indus Valley Civilization, it is believed that worship of goddesses, Sun and Shiva was followed.
The temple of Somnath, one of the twelve 'jyotirlingas' of Shiva; the eleventh-century Sun-Temple, at Modhera; and the
oldest temple of Dwarkadhish are some of the places sacred to the Hindus.

JAINISM
Jainism is widely followed in Gujarat for years. The oldest temple is believed to be of Shankheshwar Parshvanath in
North Gujarat. Taranga temples were built during the Solanki period and they are better preserved than the temples of
Mount Abu, Girnar and Shatrunjay. Palitana, is India's principal Jain pilgrimage site housing temples antedating 5th
century.

ISLAM
Through the sea-route, which was open for trade, the people from Iran and Arabic countries started coming to Gujarat.
The trade system was established and the Indo-Islamic culture flourished. The famous mosques are built during
Mughal times. These include Sidi Sayyid's mosque, Jami Masjid, of Ahmedabad , Alif Khan's Mosque in Dholka, Jama
Masjid of Bharuch, etc.

BUDDHISM
Buddhism also became popular about the same time as Jainism. There were Buddhist temples also and the remains of
the same are found all over Gujarat. Ashokan Buddhist edicts engraved on a rock, dating back to 3rd century BC, are
near Junagadh.

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