Easter traditions from around the world

Greek Easter traditions

Easter in Greece follows the Greek Orthodox calendar, so make sure you check your dates carefully if you’re planning a visit around this time. It’s the most important holy event in Greece, and is marked in many different ways.

On Holy Thursday, tsoureki (a sweet bread) and koulourakia (crunchy little biscuits) are baked ready for the weekend’s celebrations. Eggs are dyed red in preparation for the egg-cracking games that take place after church on Saturday.

On Good Friday, there is a sombre atmosphere as the church bells ring and the flags fly at half-mast. In some villages, a shrine representing the tomb of Jesus is carried through the streets, ending at church or occasionally at the sea to bless the waters. This melancholy mood is soon broken in true Greek style, with lots of eating and singing.

Late Saturday night, people head to the churches. At midnight, the church goes dark and the bells ring out to proclaim the resurrection and people start to cheer and let off fireworks. Greeks take Easter candles to church. The priest then lights a single candle, representing Jesus’ eternal flame, and everyone lights their own candle from this first one. They then carefully carry their candle home and mark a black cross on their house with the flame as a blessing.

There are celebrations unique to certain places, too. In Corfu, for example, thousands of locals and visitors gather in the centre of Corfu Town at noon on Holy Saturday, to witness the annual ritual of pot smashing. People decorate their windows with red flowers and badges. When the church bells ring, the people then throw huge clay pots filled with red ribbons out of their windows. This symbolises the earthquake that occurred following Christ’s resurrection from his tomb.

Easter in Spain

In Spain, Easter is known as Semana Santa, or Holy Week. Semana Santa is one of Spain’s most significant religious celebrations, and many cities hold large processions to mark the occasion, with ornate floats depicting scenes from the bible and hooded penitants and ladies in black mantilla (lace veils).

The Andalucian cities of Seville, Malaga and Granada host some of the biggest processions in the country, but you’ll find smaller celebrations throughout the rest of the country. In Verges, Catalonia, for example, church goers dress up as skeletons and perform a death dance as a reminder that death comes to all, no matter your standing.

Easter customs in Germany

When it comes to Easter eggs, Germans look to the Anglo-Saxon legend of the goddess Eostre, who found a wounded bird and transformed it into a hare, so that it could survive the winter. The hare found it could lay eggs. Each spring it would decorate the eggs and leave them as offering to the goddess.

Fast-forward to the 19^th century, and people began experimenting with the idea of chocolate Easter eggs, and developing the chocolatey treats we look forward to today. The Easter bunny doesn’t always do the work alone though – in parts of Germany, a fox helps deliver the eggs.

The story of Easter is often told in Passion Play performances, and the Bavarian town of Oberammergau holds one of the most famous Passion Plays in the world. Taking place every 10 years, the townspeople put on a series of performances over the summer, with all parts – on and off stage – going to those who live in the town. It’s a real labour of love, and well worth booking tickets for. The next series of Passion Plays in Oberammergau takes place in 2030.

Easter traditions in Norway

In Norway, as well as eating copious amounts of chocolate, people like to sit down in front of the TV for a week of family-friendly quizzes. Newspapers and magazines are also stuffed with quizzes, and pubs host quiz nights across the country.

The other Norwegian obsession is Easter crime literature, known as påskekrim. In the 1920s, two authors placed an advert in a newspaper with a realistic headline. Thinking the story was real, people bought their book to learn more. Since then, there’s nothing Norwegians like more than to head to their mountain cabins and settle down with the latest crime novel or TV series.

Easter in Italy

Being a Catholic country, Easter is a big celebration in Italy. Many celebrations revolve around the church, and processions and parades take place right across the country. Different regions have their own customs, too.

Sicilians traditionally make marzipan (called Martorana) at Easter. They shape it into lambs and offer small flocks as gifts. In Sardinia, a week of processions and rituals takes place – the cities of Alghero, Cagliari and Iglesias are most famous for these.

In Puglia, you might see witch puppets hanging from balconies – these will be holding an orange which has seven feathers in, to mark the seven weeks of Lent. One feather is removed each week until Easter Sunday, when the puppets are burnt to mark the resurrection.

In Florence, meanwhile, a float is pulled through the city by two white oxen. From the cart, a huge firework display explodes into life to honour Pazzino, who had been among the first to enter Jerusalem during the First Crusade. It’s a tradition that’s been going for 350 years.

Croatian Easter celebrations

Many countries bake a form of traditional Easter sweet bread. In Croatia it’s called pinca. Each family has their own recipe, flavoured with citrus zest, candied or dried fruit, rum or rosewater, and served on Easter morning.

Gifting beautifully painted eggs is common – the traditional technique of using beeswax and natural dyes is known as penganje. The preferred game on Easter morning is egg tapping. The participants tap their eggs against the opponent’s with the aim to crack it. The strongest egg is said to bring good luck for the whole year.

One of the best-known celebrations takes place on the island of Hvar, where villagers participate in a 22km procession known as ‘Following the Cross’. It starts on Holy Thursday and ends on Good Friday morning.

Whether you plan to bake sweet bread or a Simnel cake; hide your Easter eggs or send them tumbling down a hill; settle down with a crime novel or mark the occasion with fireworks; we wish you a happy Easter