Easter: a springtime festival that’s marked all over the world. But how is Easter celebrated in different countries? In this piece, we explore what Easter celebrations take place around the globe – and the meaning behind them.
You're probably familiar with local Easter celebrations – maybe that includes Easter egg hunts or eating as many hot cross buns as possible (and yes, that includes the ones that ditch dried fruit for chocolate and salted caramel).
But how is Easter marked around the world? In this piece, we explore the unique ways that Easter is celebrated around the globe ...
Easter and eggs: they go together like bread and butter, right?
Well, in a small town in the south of France, this is definitely the case. Except we aren’t talking about chocolate eggs. Here, people gather together on Easter Monday to cook and share a giant omelette. And this is an omelette of epic proportions.
Believe it or not, a whopping 15,000 eggs are used as part of this tradition, enough to feed thousands of people.
But how did this annual omelette-making festival start?
Legend has it that the French Emperor, Napoléon Bonaparte, enjoyed an omelette he’d eaten in a small town nearby so much that he wanted a huge one made for him and his army – and the rest is history.
In the Caribbean country of Bermuda, a special festival is held on Good Friday, where people fly kites.
It’s said to represent Jesus rising to heaven, as depicted in the Bible, which is said to have taken place 40 days after his resurrection in the Easter story.
Love a good water fight? You need to head to Poland for Easter.
On Easter Monday, people throw water over each other – the day is now known as ‘Wet Monday’ in Poland, and similar traditions are held in several other countries, including Ukraine, the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
But how did this tradition come about? It’s said to be connected to the baptism of a Polish prince hundreds of years ago.
If the idea of baptism is new to you, it’s a Christian ceremony that’s inspired by Jesus’ own baptism in the Jordan River, as written about in three of the books in the New Testament.
Today, Christian denominations baptise people at different ages, with some offering infant baptism and others inviting people to choose when they wish to be baptised. Water is a key component either way, acting as a symbol to show they’re entering afresh a relationship with God. This explains how water fits into Poland's Easter celebrations!
If you’re ever lucky enough to find yourself on the Greek island of Corfu on Easter Sunday, you’d better take care whilst wandering its beautiful streets. Why? Because old pots are thrown out of the windows, directly onto the streets below, every Holy Saturday morning.
It's thought that this tradition has developed from a similar event in Venice, Italy, where people throw out their possessions.
Easter celebrations in Finland and Sweden look surprisingly close to Halloween. An old folk ritual sees children paint their faces and wear headscarves to dress up as Easter witches. They knock on neighbours’ doors, swapping decorated twigs and drawings for chocolate!
Do you have any Easter traditions in place? Are these celebrated where you live? Maybe you always pop a pack of hot cross buns in your trolley at this time of year, or you have memories of Easter celebrations held when you were in school, like Easter bonnet parades?
If you’re wondering how some of these traditions have taken shape and why we’ve come to mark them around the springtime holiday of Easter, explore more about them with Easter Reborn: From the Rites of Spring to the Rising of Jesus.
Easter Reborn: From the Rites of Spring to the Rising of Jesus
Chocolate eggs. The Easter Bunny. Does Easter have ancient pagan roots? How did it become associated with Jesus? Discover the true origins of Easter.
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