For people all around the world, the easter holidays signify something different. For some it’s about Jesus Christ’s Sacrifice, for others it’s just a holiday. No matter the case, different countries celebrate Easter in their own way and have a variety traditions. So, let’s have a look at some of them. 

Egg Painting and Egg Fights

In many Easter European Countries, on Maundy Thursday, also known as Holy Thursday, almost every household will either paint eggs or buy painted eggs. The eggs used to be painted red, to represent the blood of Jesus Christ, but nowadays, any colour can be used. Kids will usually paint the eggs either with their grandmothers or their mothers, as it is a great and fun past time for them. They can paint them any colours they want, draw on them and decorate them with stickers. After midnight on Holy Saturday and throughout the easter week, kids and adults alike will compete to see whose egg is stronger. They bump the eggs together and the egg which doesn’t crack is the winner. All eggs are eaten of course, but it makes for a fun activity and a great tradition.

Easter Brunch & Egg Rolling

A more British traditions is the Rolling of Eggs down a hill and the Easter Sunday Brunch. On Easter Sunday, families gather together and have a big Brunch. Another fun activity is the rolling of the eggs. Kids take boil eggs and decorate them with different stickers and paint and go on top of a hill. They roll their eggs down the hill and the egg which will reach the bottom of the hill faster, is the winner.

Easter Egg Hunt

A more American tradition, that takes place in the UK as well, is an easter egg hunt. Whether they are hard boiled decorated eggs or chocolate eggs, the parents will hide them around different places and the kids will set off to find them. The eggs can be hidden around the house, backyards or even the whole neighbourhood. Depending on family traditions, a “gold” egg may be included in the hunt as well. The person who finds the more eggs is the winner. In some families, the person to retrieve the golden egg also gets money.

Holly Week Parade

In the last week of Lent, the week before Easter, a big parade happens in Spain. Specifically, in the south of Spain. Towns like Seville and Granada, in the region of Andalusia, have the Holly Week Parades. The participants wear traditional robes and carry floats with sculptures. The sculptures represent different events described in the Gospels, mainly focusing on the Passion of Christ or the Sorrows of Virgin Mary.

Candle Decorating

Another Eastern European Tradition is the decoration of candles. In many countries, people will decorate easter candles, which are thought to bring good luck and health. In other countries, kids will decorate candles with different accessories and toys and will use those candles as their Holly Light Carrier candles on Holly Saturday. Moreover, the Easter Candles are meant to be lit with the Holly Light and are meant to be kept lit for 40 days, signalling the 40 days mourning period after Jesus Christ’s Sacrifice. Those candles are also meant to bring good luck and health to the owners of the house and their families. 

Wet Monday

An extremely fun tradition is that of Wet Monday. Smingus-dyngus, as Polish people call it, is the Monday after Easter Sunday. The tradition originated in Poland, where boys would spray the girls they liked. Those would be the girls that would get married that year. Nowadays, the tradition is more for fun, than it is for marital purposes. People will try to wake up as early as they can and they will go about the rest of the house, spraying their family and friends with water. It is wise to have a water dispenser next to you, so that you’re able to defend yourself. Depending on every family’s traditions, buckets full of water can also be used. Every member of the household must be at least a tad wet by the end of the day.

These are a few of the many fun traditions people all around the word get to do every easter. There are some traditions here that I follow personally and a few that I’d love to try. So, grab your eggs and water dispensers and go make some new fun traditions with your family and friends.

Written by student journalist Penny