How many candles are on a traditional Advent wreath? Four candles. They represent the four Sundays of Advent, with one candle normally lit on each Sunday as Christmas approaches.
The wreath is an evergreen circle, and its form developed among German Lutherans. In 1839, pastor Johann Hinrich Wichern created a large wooden-ring arrangement in Hamburg with 24 small candles for weekdays and Saturdays, plus four larger Sunday candles. That design eventually evolved into the compact four-candle wreath commonly used today.
Many churches assign meanings such as hope, peace, joy and love to the candles. Purple or blue candles are common, while the third, Gaudete Sunday candle is often rose-colored. Some wreaths add a fifth white “Christ candle” in the center, lit on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day; that extra candle does not change the traditional count of four Advent candles.