Easter is a widely celebrated holiday in the United States, but did you know that it’s celebrated in many different ways all around the world? See how your Easter traditions compare…
Many countries around the world celebrate Easter, and each one has its own special traditions and customs associated with the holiday. We have listed eight of them below, but of course there are many, many more.
Easter Traditions Around the World
Easter Traditions | Easter Kite Flying (Bermuda)
Among the more unique traditions that Bermudians celebrate during the Easter holidays is the flying of homemade kites. This usually takes place on Good Friday, and is said to have begun when a local Sunday school teacher attempted to explain Christ’s ascension to Heaven to his class using a kite.
Bermuda Easter kites are typically made of colorful tissue paper, wood, stripped bamboo sticks, and string. Some are so large that several people are needed to hold them up.
Easter Traditions | Easter Crime Stories (Norway)
Norwegians have an interesting tradition known as “Easter Crime”, or Paaskekrim, during which time, for reasons unknown, Norwegians read mystery books or watch crime detective series on television.
Throughout the week leading up to Easter, every night on television there are horror movies and thrillers, and bookshops stock up on mystery novels.
Easter Traditions | Easter Fires (Netherlands)
In the Netherlands, large bonfires, or Easter Fires, are typically lit on either Easter Sunday or Monday. The Easter bonfire tradition is believed to have preceded Christianity and symbolizes the coming of spring and the victory of light over darkness.
The fires are very festive and bring people from the same town or village to celebrate together. Other Dutch Easter traditions are unique to one town or village, such as ‘paasstaakslepen’ (the chopping and burning of a tree) in Denekamp.
Easter Traditions | Easter Witches (Sweden)
One of the more unusual Easter traditions in Sweden is the dressing up of children as Easter witches. Wearing old clothes, young girls dress up as “Påskkarringar”, or Easter witches, and visit houses around their neighborhood trading paintings or drawings for sweets.
A tradition rooted in the persecution of witches in Sweden during the 16th century, Swedish folklore says that on the Thursday before Easter, the “Påskkarringar” fly on their broomsticks to gather for a special meeting.
Easter Pilgrimage (Haiti)
Holy Week, the week leading up to Easter, in Haiti is celebrated with colorful parades and traditional “rara” music. A mixture of two of the major religions in Haiti, Easter traditions are a composite of both Catholicism and Voodoo.
Every Easter, for over 200 years, hundreds of Voodoo devotees make a pilgrimage to the village of Souvenance to honor the spirits of the African slaves that were brought to the island from West Africa.
Easter Carpets (Guatemala)
In Guatemala, Easter preparations start early. Even before Holy Week, or Semana Santa, communities start to prepare carpets made of multicolored sawdust and flowers. These beautiful Easter carpets are very elaborate, and usually take several weeks to complete.
Despite the time and labor, they are usually up to a mile long! Once finished the carpets will be used for the Easter procession as residents in the community make their way to the local church for mass.
Giant Easter Omelette (France)
If you are passing through the Toulouse region in France on Easter Monday, be sure to make a stop at the village of Bessières. There you will find many chefs preparing a giant Easter omelette.
The custom is said to have started with a visit to the village from Napoleon who loved the omelette so much, that he asked the villagers to make another giant one for his soldiers. Since then, every Easter the village cooks a 1000-egg omelette (or more) in a giant frying pan!
Easter Bread (Poland)
In Poland, the master of the house is not permitted to participate in the making of Easter bread, because it is believed that if the dough falls on his mustache it will turn grey and the dough will fail to rise.
The making of Easter bread, or Paska bread, is part of a big tradition leading up to feasting after the Lent period in Poland.
What Are Your Easter Traditions or Unique Traditions From Around the World You Know About? Let Us Know In The Comments!
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