What is a Dutch “kermis”?
Een 11-jarige met zijn eigen kermisattractie
A2 Dutch listening practice · Dutch · Picked for people who know a little
Once a year, a kermis rolls into most Dutch towns. The traveling fairground sets up in the central square, a Ferris wheel rises over the rooftops for a long weekend, and the air fills with greasy oliebollen, sugared churros, and bumper-cars. Then the trucks pack everything overnight and move on. It’s one of the oldest civic rhythms in the Netherlands, dating to medieval saints' fairs (kerk-mis, “church mass”). Tilburg’s kermis is the largest in the Benelux.
In this NPO Zapp profile, an eleven-year-old has bought his own kermis attraction. He watches it on the road. “Best wel bijzonder dat je al op elfjarige leeftijd weet wat je wilt gaan doen de rest van je leven.”
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How common in written Dutch
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Harder words in this video
These words are harder than A2. Here is what they mean.
Source: wordfreq 3.1.1 (general) · SUBTLEX-NL 2014 (spoken). These numbers are close, not perfect.
- ▸In Dutch regional news during kermis week (Omroep Brabant for Tilburgse Kermis, Omroep West, RTV Noord)
- ▸In Dutch fair-and-carnival national coverage (NOS, De Telegraaf, AD)
- ▸On Dutch showmen’s-association sites (NKB Nederlandse Kermisbond, BOVAK)
- ▸In Dutch summer columns about local traditions (Het Parool, De Volkskrant zomer-editie, NRC)