Czech Easter

24.03.2024

Czech Easter traditions

https://english.radio.cz/czech-easter-traditions-explained-8133103

On Lent - Do you fast on Easter??

The Czech Republic is not really a religious country and if we compare it with other European countries it is definitely less spiritual. However, in the last few years more and more people are returning to the tradition of Lent and decide to abstain from something –it can be meat, it can be alcohol, it can be smoking, but it can also be getting rid of bad habits, some people decide they should be less angry, more patient with others and so on. They try it for 40 days and then the next year they do it again – it becomes a nice custom.

Easter lamb - Do you bake an easter lamb??

People baked a sweet lamb from dough. It is a tradition most families keep to this day. They have a baking mould for the lamb and put raisins for they eyes, cloves for the nose and tie a ribbon round its neck. As I child I loved it.

Painting Easter eggs - Do you paint easter eggs?? What decorating techniques do you use?

There are painted eggs available in the shops, but most people still paint eggs themselves. They either buy egg-colours in the shop or use natural dyes –like red cabbage, spinach, onion peels or saffron which creates a lovely yellow colour, but is a bit expensive. Different regions have different traditions in decorating eggs, and the art is handed down from generation to generation. In some regions they use wax to create rich decorations – it is like a work of art.

Christian and pagan traditions merge - What meals do you cook on easter?

In the Czech Republic pagan and Christian traditions go hand-in-hand. For instance the egg, a typically pagan element, a symbol of new life is placed next to the lamb on the dinner table.

Easter and consumerism - Do you go to Easter markets? What do you like buying there?

For the shops it is another occasion to boost sales. You can see all the Easter symbols placed in the supermarket. These things have a symbolic meaning – you should create them yourself, not buy them. You can buy chocolate eggs, you can go to the Easter markets in the city, they are kitschy, but any tradition is better than no tradition.

Easter brings families and the community together - How do you spend Eatser. How do you enjoy yourself on Easter?

Some people just see Easter as a chance to go on holiday, but there are many households where people spend the time together, paint eggs, "whip" their wives, daughters, aunties, grannies on Easter Monday. And especially in the Eastern part of the country the men really look forward to Easter Monday which is linked to alcohol and socializing. The men go from home to home in the villages to give the girls a symbolic whipping which will keep them young and healthy in the coming year and get a shot of brandy at each stop.

Easter as a celebration of spring

We are also expressing joy at the coming of spring, which is lovely. From the gastronomical point of view we eat things green, fresh and juicy. In the winter we eat heavier, less colourful food.

On how Easter was celebrated in the old days

There are two parts of Easter – one is the hungry one –Lent and then there is the rich one. The period of Lent continues until the Resurrection z mrtvých vstání . There are special foods eaten during Lent and then there is a big feast. So say on Wednesday ( we call it "ugly Wednesday" because it is the day on which Judas betrayed Jesus Christ ) people would bake traditional small cakes called Jidáše –or Judas cakes which are made from leavened kynutý dough and they have the shape of a knot or loop on which Judas hanged himself. Then you have Green Thursday –where the name itself indicates what people ate – it had to be green, spinach, nettles, they had newly-grown herbs in the house. Friday was the hungry day, a day when healthy people should not eat at all or they should have one light meal only. Definitely no meat, light food and not much of it because that is the day when we mourn the death of Jesus and we should keep our minds away from food and focus on the spiritual. It is interesting that even people who are not religious, today if they want to fast they tend to choose Friday, so I guess it is still under people's skin even if they are atheists. Saturday was also a light day food-wise, people would still be fasting, but they would be preparing food for the next day and for the night. At this point everything is building up to the big mass, the Vigil svatvečer, and the moment when the bells start pealing vyzvánět to celebrate the Resurrection.

Why do we celebrate Easter? Do you celebrate Easter?
Do you celebrate Easter in your country? How?
Do you have any special family traditions?
Did the original meaning of Easter get lost?
Do you consider it an important holiday? Why or why not?
Do you think it used to be more important than it is today? Why or why not?
What are the 40 days before Easter called? What special activities or events happen in those 40 days?
What is the Sunday before Easter called ? What is it remembering?
What is the Friday before Easter called? What is it remembering?
Do you think most people consider Easter time a religious celebration? Why or why not?
How do you think the Easter bunny and hiding colored eggs came to be part of the celebration of Easter?

Holy Week

Palm Sunday Květná neděle

Holy Monday Modré pondělí

Holy Tuesday Šedivé úterý

Holy Wednesday Škaredá středa

Maundy Thursday Zelený čtvrtek

Good Friday Velký pátek

Holy Saturday Bílá sobota

Easter Sunday Velikonoční neděle

Easter Monday Velikonoční pondělí