"Safe, prosperous Germany just had a mad year, when a ground-breaking influx of over one million asylum seekers sparked sky-high hopes and rekindled deep-seated fears," writes AFP's Berlin-based correspondent Frank Zeller.

"The New Year, at the stroke of midnight, shaped up to be 2015 Reloaded, or worse. Will this be the year when German Angst makes an ugly comeback? 

"The entire country is asking the same question. And so far, the signs are mixed."