Easter – Holidays of the spring

  This important Christian holiday, which is related to the arrival of spring, is depicted also in national customs and traditions. The Church introduced the Palm Sunday (last Sunday before Easter) already in 7th century.
  The arrival of spring was welcomed by our predecessors also by the drowning of Moraine. A straw figure of Moraine was taken by girls behind the village and thrown to the creek.
  In Slovakia on Palm Sunday a small tree with hanging ribbons and blown eggs was carried throughout villages.

Last days before Easter:
• OnGreen Thursday young nettle and dandelions were cooked and eaten. Bad ghosts were expelled by the trumpeting of shepherds’’ trumpets.
• Good Friday was a day of the main religious fast of the year. On this day the soil could not be „touched“, i.e. people did not work on their fields and gardens.
• White Saturday - after a 40 day long religious fast Jesus had risen, and to celebrate this event the festive dinner followed traditional church services.
• Easter Sunday - one of the main Christian holidays
• Easter Monday - generally celebrated feast to welcome spring.
  On this day boys lashed girls with strings from willow birches and poured water over them. Girls fixed on the strings colorful ribbons. In spite of the cold spring weather, boys did not spare water on girls.
  Up to now it is a custom to decorate households with birches of blossoming willows during Easter. They are supposed to represent a new life. Easter bunny is the symbol of Easter.

  Easter eggs are painted eggs, given to boys by girls on Easter Monday. Easter eggs were dipped or boiled in water containing the tree crust, or onion coating. They were frequently decorated by bee-wax; ornaments scraped out by knives, or decorated by the straw. Elsewhere eggs were decorated by wires.