7 most interesting Easter traditions around the world

by Olga Kachmar

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For some people, Easter is something more than just numerous sweet cakes, painted eggs and chocolate bunnies.

Soon all Christians around the world will celebrate Easter that is considered to be one of the greatest religious holidays. There are so many reasons due to which most of us look forward to this special day. First of all, it is a wonderful time when we gather with our friends and relatives to enjoy festive and cheerful atmosphere in our homes. The main idea of this marvelous holiday is Jesus Christ’s resurrection and the beginning of new life. For some people, Easter is something more than just numerous sweet cakes, painted eggs and chocolate bunnies. In order to realize all the significance of this religious event they keep fasting that traditionally starts 40 days before Good Friday. When finally Easter comes, lots of people attend early church services and then they regale themselves with various tasty foods and have fun with their families. It seems that we know everything about Easter and its celebration, however there are some interesting and unusual Easter traditions from different countries that will certainly surprise you. Take a look at the list below to get more information about them.

1. Let Them Eat Egg

Eggs have become an indispensable part of our festive menu at Easter. Traditionally, we paint them and use to decorate our Easter table or other places of our home. Besides, chocolate eggs are extremely popular these days and they are generally served as a dessert on this day. Perhaps, you’ll be astonished to know that in some countries omelette is the dish number one cooked to celebrate this unique holiday. For example, this is one of the biggest Easter traditions that are observed across France. A lot of festivals are organized at the central squares of most towns where people cook a huge omelette using about 5000 eggs and as a result this dish is enough to feed almost 1,000 people.

2. Don’t Let Men Knead the Dough

The Easter bread is a traditional and the most popular food that represents the sacred meaning of the holiday. All the women are expected to bake this sweet and delicious cake for their family members. There is such a tradition in Poland according to which men are forbidden to make the Easter bread as it is believed that the dough will not rise when they knead it.

3. Lords of the Dance

If you go to a small town of Bacup that is situated in the North of England, you’ll have an incredible opportunity to discover another unusual Easter tradition. All the visitors can watch the Nutter’s Dance on Easter Saturday. In spite of the strange name this dance has, you will not see any mad people there. At first, this strange tradition appeared in the town in the 18th century. Here you will be fascinated with a fantastic folk dance performed by a group of men dressed in skirted black, white and red costumes with special garlands on their necks. Usually, there is the Whiffler in front of the dancers who cracks his whip. It is believed that in such way he will ward off evil spirits. This dance is considered to come from Moorish sailors who settled on that territory long time ago. But nobody can explain why this event happens on Easter Saturday.

4. Domestic Violence Is Good for You


If you are greatly concerned about your health and beauty, this funny Easter tradition is exactly for you. It is mostly popular with countries such as Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia. Easter Monday is the day when the men can pour water on girls and even spank them with a whip of willow. People of these countries are strongly convinced that this tradition will help them to become more beautiful and healthier. It should be mentioned that most countries where an Orthodox population prevails tend to keep this celebration. We just can notice slight differences on certain areas.

5. Beware Greeks Throwing Pots

Due to the fact that Easter is the most significant holiday in the Orthodox calendar, dozens of festivals are held in Greece during Easter time. If you are eager to see the most interesting and weird traditions of this country, you’d better go to Corfu where the citizens throw their pots and crockery out of the windows. You should be extremely careful while going near their houses as it can be dangerous to your health. You can witness this strange tradition on Easter Saturday. What is the origin of such an unusual behavior Greeks demonstrate every year? Unfortunately, you will not find any clear explanation of this odd tradition as there are several theories concerning it. For instance, some people claim that by throwing pots out of their homes they reject Judas, while others believe that this tradition will help them to get rid of evil. The rest of Greeks are sure this custom symbolizes the change of the season so they must be ready for spring and summer without old things in their houses.

6. Reading Detectives


I think this is the strangest Easter tradition I’ve ever heard about. Even if you are not much interested in Norway and its culture I advise you to get more information about this unusual custom. Do you know that in this country Easter is a bank holiday celebrated for 5 days? All the shops and state offices are closed at this time. Consequently, Norwegians stay at home with their families and they can’t find any other way to celebrate Easter but to read plenty of detective stories. You shouldn’t expect to see anything different on TV these days because crime thrillers are frequently broadcasted on every channel. And finally you’ll be surprised to see juice or milk cartons with printed mystery stories on their sides.

7. Egg Knocking


It is typical of most Christian countries to practice the lucky egg game on Easter. To my mind, this activity is worth trying in every family, especially if you have kids, as it will bring them joy and pleasure. For this you need to take hardboiled eggs and try to break them in all possible ways. If you have an unbroken egg at the end of this game, you will be lucky and happy throughout the next year. Every country performs this cheerful tradition in its own special way and this game has different names around the world. Though, egg knocking or egg tapping are the most widely used words for this activity.

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