O Tannenbaum O Tannenbaum "" (; "O fir tree", English: "O Christmas Tree") is a German Christmas song. Based on a traditional folk song, it became associated with the traditional Christmas tree by the early 20th century and sung as a Christmas carol. The modern lyrics were written in 1824, by the Leipzig organist, teacher and composer Ernst Anschütz. A "Tannenbaum" is a fir tree. The lyrics do not actually refer to Christmas, or describe a decorated Christmas tree. Instead, they refer to the fir's evergreen quality as a symbol of constancy and faithfulness. Anschütz based his text on a 16th-century Silesian
Elhanan Tannenbaum Elhanan Tannenbaum Elhanan Tannenbaum, (, born 12 August 1946) is a former reserve colonel in the Israel Defense Forces and businessman, who was kidnapped in 2000 and held for more than three years by the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. Elhanan Tannenbaum was born in Poland, the son of Holocaust survivors. Most of his relatives had been killed in the Holocaust. In 1949, Tannenbaum and his parents and sister immigrated to Israel and moved to Holon, where Tannenbaum grew up and attended high school. He was also active in the local scouts movement. At the age of 18, Tannenbaum enrolled in