EASTER IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC

EASTER SUNDAY  Easter Sunday is a day of preparations for Easter Monday. Girls paint, color and decorate eggs and another Easter tradition is to bake a lamb – but real lamb is usually replaced with one made from gingerbread….

BRAIDEP WHIP  Boys prepare their Easter caroling. It´s a braided whip (called „pomlazka“- make younger) made from pussywillow twigs. These are thought to bring health and youth to anyone who is whipped with them.

CAROLING ON THE STREET  On Easter Moday go boys caroling. They start early in the morning, they gather in the streets and then visit each house.

EASTER WHIPPING Once they are invited in, they symbolically whip girls on the legs and bottoms. Traditional meaning is to chase away illness and bad spirits and to bring health and youth for the rest of the year. The girl would then reward the boy with a painted egg or candy and tie a ribbon around his braided whip. As the boys progress through the village, their bags fill up with eggs.

POURING BY WATHER Boys should go caroling till the noon. If they forget the time, they are supposed to be poured by girls with water.

EASTER FEAST In the afternoon girls and boys meet, whole families, at home and they have Easter feast together. Easter remains one of the most joyful holidays on the Czech calendar. HAPPY EASTER!

CZECH EASTER CAROL Czech: Hody, hody do provody, dejte vejce malovaný, nedáte-li malovaný, dejte aspoň bílý, slepička vám snese jiný. English: Generally asking for an egg or two, coloured or at least white, because hen´ll bring down another one

HERE WE ARE…