March 24, 2016
5 Unique Easter Traditions from around the World
Easter is just around the corner! This coming week, millions of children will frantically search for colored eggs hidden by a mythical bunny. And if you’re from the United States you won’t think twice about it - because it’s tradition! Do you ever wonder how other countries around the world celebrate the same holiday? Here are some of our favorite Easter traditions:
Norway
Easter is a time when just about everyone in Norway reads crime novels. Nearly every TV and radio station produces a crime series and publishers release special “Easter Thrillers” called Paaskekrimmen. The tradition is believed to have started in 1923 as a marketing stunt. Advertisements that appeared to be legitimate news stories were posted on the front page of newspapers and fooled many people who failed to realize it was a publicity ploy. The tradition also gained popularity since restaurants and movie theaters were closed during Easter so reading crime novels was one of the few forms of entertainment.
Verges, Spain
This one sounds more like a spooky Halloween tradition than an Easter one! On Holy Thursday in Verges, Spain, the traditional “dansa de la mort” or “death dance” is performed. Dressed in skeleton costumes, participants parade through the streets until the early morning to symbolize the final judgement when it is decided where the soul will go after death.
Hungary
“Sprinkling,” a popular Hungarian Easter tradition. Boys playfully sprinkle perfume or perfumed water on girls and ask for a kiss. People used to believe that water had a cleansing and healing effect and symbolized fertility.
Haux, France
Every year in Haux, France, a gigantic omelet is served up in the town’s main square. The omelet uses more than 4,500 eggs and is big enough to feed about a thousand people. The story goes, Napoleon and his army stopped in this small town and ate omelets. Napoleon apparently liked his so much that the next day he ordered the townspeople to compile their eggs and make a giant omelet for his army.
Seville, Spain
Holy Week, or Semana Santa is a week long Easter celebration in Seville, Spain. There are over fifty processions throughout the week organized by Catholic brotherhoods. The members of the Catholic brotherhoods carry elaborate painted wooden sculptures called pasos depicting the last days of Jesus Christ’s life on Earth.
Members of the brotherhood wear matching nazarenos and walk synchronously to the rhythm of a beating drum. A nazareno is a garment that consists of a tunic, a hood with capirote, or cone tip that hides their faces and sometimes a cloak. The colors of the robes depend on the particular procession.
