Easter Traditions In The Netherlands

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Video: Easter Traditions In The Netherlands

Video: Easter Traditions In The Netherlands
Video: Dutch tradition every Easter sunday.. 2024, November
Easter Traditions In The Netherlands
Easter Traditions In The Netherlands
Anonim

Easter, the Christian holiday that celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ three days after his crucifixion, is one of the most important holidays for believers around the world.

It is celebrated in the Netherlands in the same way as in other Christian countries, but there are also many Easter traditions that are unique to it. Dutch Easter usually includes Easter Sunday and Easter Monday.

Dutch Easter dishes

Dutch children spend Easter mornings decorating hard-boiled eggs with brightly colored paint and hunting for hidden chocolate eggs. The general explanation for the symbolism of Easter eggs is that they are a symbol of rebirth and fertility, but eggs can also be seen as a "part for the whole" or a replacement for the ritual sacrifice of chickens, a legacy of prehistoric religions in the region.

Combining wheat, the end result of the harvest, with eggs in baked goods, such as fortified breads and pastries, was once a symbolic proposal to appease the so-called "vegetation demon." Traditionally, the Dutch breakfast table contains a variety of light wheat-based breads and wicker breads, breads and cookies, some of which are a gift given to the godparents by the godparents for Easter.

Dutch Easter breakfast
Dutch Easter breakfast

One of the most popular breads still made today is Paasstol, a rich fruit bread with a center of soft almond paste. On the table you will also find butter in the form of a chicken, a bunny or a lamb. Other breakfast foods include smoked fish such as salmon and eel, fruit-filled pies, yellow cakes and treats, including an egg-rich liqueur, egg cupcakes and a kind of buttery Dutch pastry.

Dutch Easter table decoration

The Dutch Easter table it is usually decorated with baskets of freshly colored Easter eggs, candles and spring flowers such as daffodils, tulips and hyacinths. The central element is often a vase with decorated willow branches. Hanging from this "Easter tree" are chocolate eggs and paper ornaments such as bunnies, butterflies, flowers, lambs and other spring symbols, symbolizing fertility, the rebirth of nature and perhaps even ritual sacrifice.

Dutch Easter bread
Dutch Easter bread

Easter Monday

Easter Monday is also a holiday in the Netherlands. Weather permitting, Dutch families often spend the day in family activities, Easter markets, festivals and fairs, cycling in the countryside or in an amusement park.

In the eastern part of the Netherlands, bonfires are lit, traditional Easter songs are sung, dances and merry processions are part of the fun. These Easter bonfires are an ancient tradition that predates Christianity. In general, and there, as in the whole Christian world, Easter is a bright family holiday.

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