In the past, Easter in Lithuania used to be simpler but was celebrated for a longer period. Ethnologist Gražina Kadžytė explains how the country’s Easter traditions have changed over time.
According to the ethnologist, Lithuanians used to celebrate Easter for seven or even nine weeks. Later, the tradition of celebrating Easter for four days was established.
“A 20th-century Lithuanian folklore manuscript says that on Wednesday, the fourth day after Easter Sunday, people still shouldn’t do any major work because then they wouldn’t be able to harvest the crops. Of course, this tradition was applied to more agricultural land, but the tradition was taken up by the first and second generation of farmers’ children,” explains Kadžytė.
In the past, Easter was also the time to renew the relationship between godparents and godchildren. There was a tradition of godparents visiting their godchildren or vice versa during the week between Easter and the Second Sunday of Easter, and the godparents used to give their godchildren an Easter egg.
“Easter used to start on Good Friday. People used to say that there was no need to leave the house on this day because it was the Easter of the souls – the time for the souls to come out and see the world,” the ethnologist continues.
Easter is a celebration of resurrection, harvest, and blossoming, Kadžytė says. That is why the tradition of the Easter Vigil, when water and fire are blessed, has been preserved to this day. In the past, people used to bring holy water and sprinkle it on their land. They also used to clean the stove and light a new holy fire.
There was a custom where, after the Easter procession around the church, someone would jump on a horse and go to proclaim the message: “Hallelujah! Christ is risen!” This was a sign for people to come to the Easter table. According to the custom, the family that was first to sit down would also be first in all the work.
“Very few places – Samogitian parishes, Polish parishes in Vilnius region – have preserved the all-night Easter Vigil, when people gather and from Saturday evening, keep vigil all night, singing and praying at the tomb of Christ,” Kadžydė explains.
“In the past, the vigil was not only held in the church but also at home, where housewives would cook overnight on the holy fire, preparing enough food to last for several days,” she says.
Preserving strongest egg
On Christmas Eve, the grandfather or father is the first to break the Christmas wafer, and on Easter morning, the eldest woman in the family used to divide the first Easter egg, Kadžytė says.
“She peels and divides the Easter egg into as many pieces as there are family members sitting around the table, and they all share one piece. Like this, children were reminded of the importance of sharing,” the ethnologist explains.
The tradition of the strongest Easter egg has also changed over the years. Today, the winner of the strongest egg competition is said to have the healthiest year. In the past, however, people did not eat the strongest Easter egg but placed it in the kitchen to keep the whole family healthy.
The ethnologist points out that there used to be two types of Easter eggs: those decorated with wax or shaved that were given as gifts and those boiled in herbal decoctions that were meant to be eaten at the Easter table.
“The various elaborate dishes are a very modern tradition. In the past, people used to prepare simple but healthy Easter dishes,” she says.
According to Kadžytė, Easter is very different from Christmas. The latter celebration is about reflecting on the past year and is dominated by older people. During Easter, more attention is paid to children.
“The bunnies are cute characters, testifying to the fact that children are the most important recipients of Easter,” the ethnologist explains.
Newsletter
Every Friday morning.
