The Most Unique Easter Traditions Around the World

For many, celebrating Easter usually involves Easter egg decorating and hunting. Painting Easter eggs is such a fun activity as the eggs are painted with many vibrant colors as well as pastels to reflect the spring season. Colorful eggs are hidden in yards; some nestled in between Easter lilies and tulips as children eagerly search for them.

Many others also go to a Sunday morning Easter service wearing their best suits and dresses. After that, some will even have an Easter dinner, typically involving a ham. 

These are the traditions that will likely come to mind when you think of Easter. However, there are a few unique and unusual Easter traditions around the world you might not have heard of. 

Dressing Up as Witches

Sweden, Finland

Easter in Sweden and parts of Finland is almost like a second Halloween. 

Children paint their faces and dress up as witches by wearing long skirts and traditional headscarves and carry broomsticks. Similar to Halloween, they'll go door to door singing songs and giving gifts of drawings in exchange for candy.

This tradition began based on the superstition that witches flew on broomsticks on the day before Good Friday to Blåkulla, a German mountain, to talk to the devil himself only to return on the day before Easter.

For protection from the witches as they made their journey on broomsticks, people would paint crosses on their front doors, light bonfires, or even shoot firearms into the sky to scare the witches away.

Celebrating Easter with Crime

Norway

In Norway, they celebrate their Easter a little differently.

With crime! 😉

To celebrate Easter, Norway has a 100-year-old tradition of reading stories or watch movies or shows involving crime.

They call this unique tradition Påskekrim which translates to “Easter crime”.

It’s a time to get together and enjoy a favorite crime show or relax and get lost in a thrilling crime novel.

Easter is actually a week-long event in Norway, so there’s plenty of time for watching crime shows or to relax and read a crime novel.

Certain TV stations in Norway will even show murder mystery specials during the Easter holiday.

Clay pottery throwing

Greece

On the Greek island of Corfu, there is a long-standing and wild Easter tradition of throwing large vases of pottery filled with water over balconies and into the streets below.

Thousands of spectators gather within safe distances to watch this event.

The tradition of throwing pottery is said to bring good luck and offer protection from evil spirits as the shattering of pottery crashing to the ground below is guaranteed to scare away any evil spirits.

Some spectators will even take a piece of broken pottery home for good luck.

This custom also symbolizes the start of a new beginning. Out with the old, and in with the new.

A Massive Egg Omelette

France

Celebrating Easter in the French town of Bessières is a community event. If you happen to find yourself there on Easter, make sure you come extra hungry because it's a tradition to make a massive omelette and serve it to the community free of charge.

This gigantic omelette involves 15,000 eggs which are cracked, scrambled, and cooked in a giant pan and be fed the thousands of people who attend this multi day omelette festival.

This Easter tradition has its roots traced back to Napoleon Bonaparte. It is said that the French emperor was so impressed with the eggs he had while stopping in Bessières, that he requested that a massive omelette be prepared for his troops so that they could enjoy the eggs as well.

No matter how you celebrate, how much or how little ...