In the United States, Easter brings to mind egg hunts, chocolate, jelly beans, and the Easter bunny. Of course, it's also a very important Christian holiday that celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
But how is Easter viewed and celebrated elsewhere around the world? In a surprising variety of ways, it turns out – with traditions like chocolate bilbies, wooden rattles, cod fish, and bonfires. BabyCenter's team of international editors tells us all about these fascinating festivities and more.
Secular Easter traditions
Easter egg hunts aren't limited to the United States. They also take place in Germany, Sweden, Switzerland, Canada, Malaysia, Australia, Brazil, India, and the Philippines, where parents hide eggs and sweets – usually outdoors – for their children to find. Ann Elisabeth Samson, editor of BabyCenter Canada, says, "There are usually community Easter egg hunts leading up to Easter. It's a fun way for neighborhoods to get together."
The Easter bonnet parade is a tradition shared by Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Australian kids go around school and up and down the streets wearing hats decorated with bunny ears, chicken designs, Easter eggs, and chocolate. British children often make wide-brimmed hats decorated with spring flowers, while "the bigger, the better" describes bonnets worn by American kids, says Linda Murray, BabyCenter U.S. editor-in-chief.
The Easter bunny (actually a hare in Sweden, Germany, Austria, and Switzerland as opposed to a rabbit in the United States, Canada, and Australia) is known for delivering sweet treats to young children, so it's no surprise that Easter baskets often feature a chocolate bunny. In France, however, it's not the Easter bunny that children have to thank. "It's the Easter bells, back from Rome, that are responsible for sending the chocolates everywhere," says Patricia Réveillaud, editor of BabyCenter France.
Rabbits are actually considered a pest in Australia for causing damage to the environment, explains Danielle Townsend, editor of BabyCenter Australia, "so there's a strong campaign to give Easter bilbies instead. The bilby is an Australian animal that's endangered, is very cute, and has long soft ears. People still give bunnies, but you see a lot of bilbies as well."
Religious Easter traditions
For Christians, Easter is the holiest and oldest of all traditions, and it's related to the even more ancient Jewish festival of Passover, which is described in the Old Testament. Both holidays are celebrated at the same time of year, often (but not always) in the same week. Passover takes place over one week in remembrance of the exodus of the Jews from Egypt. For Christians, Easter commemorates the resurrection of Christ after his crucifixion.
Christians throughout India celebrate Easter with special church services and prayers, says BabyCenter India editor Vidya Sen. "Most homes will have a special get-together with family and close friends. The celebration is mainly spiritual and not too elaborate." Also, Sen explains, families in India may keep a small box or earthen pot as a place to put money aside regularly as an offering. On Easter Day, some families donate this sum to the local church, an orphanage, or people in need.
In Austria, there's a unique twist to the religious observance of Easter. "Between Holy Thursday and Easter Sunday morning mass, you won't hear any church bells ringing, because according to religious lore, they all fly to Rome," says Ilse Eichinger, editor of BabyCenter Austria. "Instead, the 'Ratschenbuben' (altar boys with rattles) go to work, making a lot of noise with their 'Ratschen' (wooden rattles), saying prayers, and singing rhymes."
Pagan Easter traditions
Many things about Easter are neither Jewish nor Christian in origin. For example, the English name "Easter" and the German name "Ostern" are both derived from old Germanic roots. Also, the traditions of having an Easter eve bonfire or burning Easter wheels and then pushing them downhill come from Germanic and Celtic heliolatry, or sun worship. Even the popular colorful Easter egg has its origins in another pagan belief: It was considered a symbol of fertility in Egypt.
Today, eggs are nearly synonymous with Easter in many countries, including Germany, Austria, India, and Switzerland. At the end of Lent, hard-boiled eggs are colored, Easter trees or bouquets are decorated with little wooden figurines and hollowed-out painted eggs, and people buy or bake special sweet Easter breads, often bursting with raisins.
Wherever Easter is observed, just about the favorite celebratory food is chocolate. This is true in the United States, Brazil, Germany, Australia, the United Kingdom, Austria, Switzerland, Sweden, Spain, France, Canada, India, and even Malaysia. "In Malaysia, Easter isn't generally a big festival since it's a Muslim-majority country," says Mei Leng Wong, editor of BabyCenter Malaysia. Still, children there delight in all kinds of chocolate treats. In Spain, people celebrating Easter enjoy "beautiful chocolate sculptures that can come in the form of a princess castle or pirate boat, as they do in Catalunya, in northeastern Spain," says Isidra Mencos, editor of BabyCenter en Español.
But Easter isn't just about sweet treats. "In Brazil, many follow the tradition of not eating meat on Good Friday, even those who aren't very religious," says Fernanda Ravagnani, BabyCenter Brazil editor. "Having some kind of dish made of cod fish – the salted and cured version, Portuguese-style – is very popular, even though prices go through the roof, making it expensive for the average Brazilian family."
In strongly Catholic Mexico, celebrating with chocolates and the Easter bunny is mainly the realm of the upper class. Instead, says Norma Mora, BabyCenter Mexico editor, "most of the country observes the Semana Santa or 'Holy Week' holidays, which are Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Saturday of Glory, and Easter Sunday (or Resurrection Day)." This means the majority of families follow the ritual of abstaining from meat on Fridays between Ash Wednesday and Good Friday.
Spain, another Catholic country, is also steeped in many Easter food traditions – including one that could really hurt! Says Lourdes Alcaniz, BabyCenter Spain editor, "In the northeast, people bake a special pastry with a whole egg inside (shell and all), then break it on top of people's heads."
Baked Easter goods are popular all over the globe. In the United Kingdom and Australia, hot cross buns filled with dried fruits and spices with a cross on top, symbolizing the crucifixion, are eaten on Good Friday. In Ireland and the United Kingdom, the Simnel cake is the traditional Easter pastry; it's been around since the Middle Ages. Sasha Miller, BabyCenter UK editor, describes it as "a rich fruit cake with 11 marzipan balls on the top. These balls represent the 12 apostles minus Judas."
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