In some places there is also a tradition of big bonfires. If you want more information, read about. If you find an error, please let us know. Easter Sunday is a public holiday. 2013-2021 Swedish Institute. Good Friday was spent in quiet contemplation. Plenty of shops close or have reduced hours over this time, and Påskdagen, Easter Sunday in Sweden, is even a flag day. Easter Monday is observed as a public holiday in many countries and is part of the Easter period. Giving Easter eggs as gifts in Sweden became popular in the 1800’s and was facilitated by the paper-making industry. The Easter tree can be seen all over the country this time of year. At dinner, people eat roast lamb with potato gratin and asparagus, or some other suitable side dish. In the collection 'Celebrating the Swedish Way', he has written the main sections about how we celebrate in Sweden today. Easter Holidays. Easter is the first extended weekend of the spring, and for many this means the first trip out to their holiday cottage, which has been locked and deserted all winter. trettondedag jul (Epiphany), påsk (Easter), Kristi himmelsfärds dag (Ascension Day), pingstdagen (Pentecost) and alla helgons dag (All Saints' Day). April 2, 2021 - Good Friday (Public Holiday) April 3, 2021 - Holy Saturday (De facto holiday) April 4, 2021 - Easter Day (Public Holiday) April 5, 2021 - Easter Monday (Public Holiday) April 30 - Walpurgis Night - (De facto half holiday) May Holidays in Sweden. The Swedes are well down in the statistics when it comes to church visits per year, and even if Easter swells the numbers slightly, most people celebrate it at home with their families and relatives. In the collection 'Celebrating the Swedish Way', Lilja has written the sections about the history of Swedish traditions and festivities. Also of interest, is that it’s reported that Sweden has one of the lowest percentage of church goers in the world at 29% claiming to be religious. Swedish Public Holidays 2021, Sweden . Considering that Swedes, compared to most other nationalities, are a very secularized people, one can wonder how Easter is celebrated in Sweden. As Easter is one of the best seasons to go for a vacation, holiday trips and fun-filled picnic mark the arrival of Easter season. Due to Covid-19, there are currently restrictions on travels to and from Sweden. In Sweden, it began to appear in the early 1900s and only in the homes of those German families were eggs were hidden to be found by the children. Activities included playfully thrashing each other with birch twigs and tobogganing down steep slopes. Sweden is mainly a Roman Catholic country with more than 70% of its population connected with the Church of Sweden. The Summer Holidays in Sweden commence on June 8th (or 15th for Malmö), and last until August 17, 2021. The official holidays can be divided into Christian and non-Christian holidays. In Sweden and Finland, it is an Easter tradition for children to dress as witches, old women and old men and go door to door for treats similar to the trick-or-treating tradition of Halloween on Maundy Thursday or the day before Easter (Holy Saturday). Parents who are more ambitious let the children search for the eggs themselves in a treasure hunt − following clues and solving riddles until they find their prizes. Activities included playfully thrashing each other with birch twigs and tobogganing down steep slopes. In bold text is marked official Swedish public holidays (bank holidays). However, Easter is celebrated as a holiday of spring. The members of the family arrive from near and far. imagebank.sweden.se. Jesus was described as the Lamb sacrificed by God, so lamb is traditional food at Easter in Sweden. Public holidays in Sweden (Swedish: helgdagar) in Sweden are established by acts of Parliament (the Riksdag). Easter has its own rituals. The children … For more details and updated information, please visit krisinformation.se, official emergency information from Swedish authorities. Below you can find public holidays in Sweden for 2021. Having consumed all these sweets, they are then given Easter eggs filled with yet more. A cookie is stored on your device to give you a better experience of the website. Easter Sunday is one of the most festive events among Christians worldwide. People were also supposed to mark Shrove Tuesday by eating seven hearty meals before observing a 40-day fast. It's a joint project between: Copyright © It is a very popular decoration, probably because it brings colour at a time of the year when most flowers haven’t yet bloomed in Sweden. The rule is that Easter is the first Sunday after the first ecclesiastical full moon that occurs on or after March 21. Origin and History of Easter in Sweden. This is a classic red day that you should get off from work, and some companies will let employees work a half day the day before. They are a symbol of growth and life that reawakens in nature after the long winter. At Easter, the aim is to gather as many relatives as possible. If they don’t have any family left in rural parts, they often possess a holiday cottage there. People dressed in black and ate salty food without anything to drink. Easter is no exception. Haiku Poetry Day on April 17 celebrates Haiku, a special genre of poetry. The Christian holidays are jul (Christmas). She also writes reviews and appears on radio and tv. Easter Monday Easter Monday is observed as a public holiday in Sweden after Easter Sunday. Although contemporary Swedes are an urban people, most of whom live in cities or large towns, the vast majority still have one foot in the countryside. ||| Agneta Lilja is a lecturer in ethnology at Södertörn University College, Stockholm. Good Friday... Used to be celebrated by listening to sad songs and dressing up nicely, but today it is … Eggs are common in Easter traditions all over the world. The non-Christian holidays are: nyårsdagen (New Year's Day), första maj (International Workers' Day), Sveriges nationaldag ( However, mostly the day is about fam List of dates for other years. Sweden holidays 2022. The eggs are usually decorated by first punching a tiny hole in each end of the egg and then blowing out the white and yolk. These dates may be modified as official changes are announced, so please check back regularly for updates. how to calculate the date of Easter. Autumn Holiday Whatever the type of egg the Easter bunny brings you this year, I hope you enjoy it! Easter celebrations in Sweden . On Easter Saturday, the celebrations turned joyful, and people began eating eggs again. Historically, påsk isn’t about Easter egg hunts, Easter bonnet competitions, and egg rolling in Sweden. For Swedish children, it’s more about dressing up as påskhäxa/påskkärring in Grandma’s old apron and headscarf, decorating påskris and painting eggs, and preparing the decorations for the påskbordet. Swedish Easter – the origins. It is a day off for the general population, and schools and most businesses are closed. The Kingdom of Sweden, as it is officially known, is a Nordic country in the northern part of Europe. Many of the practices associated with Easter have religious origins, but this is not something that bothers Swedes much. Easter Sunday is the most important date in the Christian church. Boiled and painted Easter eggs are a major Easter tradition in Sweden. This is the official site of Sweden, offering you the facts and stories of our country. Coughing and spluttering, you flee out to the yard, where the wagtails − if you live in southern Sweden, that is − have just begun their mating ritual and the last of the snowdrifts are melting in the pale spring sunshine. Many families will celebrate at their family cottage since this is the first long weekend of spring. Go to visitsweden.com to discover the wealth of tourist attractions that Sweden has to offer. On Maunday Thursday, children dress up as witches and “go witching” to neighboring houses, where they exchange their homemade Easter letters with drawings and greetings for candy and small gifts. In the 1800s, Swedes began filling paper eggs with sweets. Once the cottage has been cleaned, swept and warmed up, Easter can begin. However, 62% of Swedes claim to be members of the Church of Sweden. Most people are agreed that festive occasions in Sweden should be celebrated in the countryside. Sweden is not a very religious country. May 1 - … April Holidays in Sweden. Easter - Sweden Easter Sunday falls two days after Good Friday and celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is often a time for families to gather, and a smorgasbord is the traditional meal – with eggs as the centrepiece. Denmark -- Påskeferie Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Easter Sunday and Easter Monday are all national holidays… serious national holidays, not like Thanksgiving or the Fourth of July in the United States. In the bible, it is the day when Mary Magdalene found that an empty tomb in the cave in which Jesus had been placed. More. Children dress up as Easter witches; clad in discarded clothes, gaily coloured headscarves and red-painted cheeks, they go from house to house in the neighbourhood and present the occupants with paintings and drawings in the hope of getting sweets in return. Visit business-sweden.se for information on how to trade with and invest in Sweden. Easter (Sw. påsk, pronounced ”poh-sk”) is the foremost holiday in all Christian countries. See May's Super Flower Moon turn a shade of red as it is fully eclipsed for about 14 minutes by the Earth's shadow. They eat eggs because they have always done so − not because they have just completed a fast. Typical Easter dishes include pickled herring, eggs, lamb, salmon, Jansson’s temptation (potato and sprat bake), cheese, crisp bread and potatoes, to which you drink the traditional Swedish soft drink “påskmust” (Easter beer) and snaps. This is a list of dates for Easter.The Easter dates also affect when Ash Wednesday, Maundy … This website uses cookies. Easter commemorates the resurrection of Christ. Read about Easter Sunday around the world in 2022. It begins on Palm Sunday in celebration of his triumphant entry into Jerusalem. It commemorates Jesus Christ’s resurrection from death, as written in the Christian bible. Tables are laid smorgasbord-style, brimming with Swedish food spanning egg dishes, lamb, herring and salmon as well as more recent vegan alternatives. Last updated: During Easter week, sales of candy in Sweden increase by 50% compared to any other week of the year. In the old days, you were not allowed to spin or chop wood on Maundy Thursday, as this might intensify Christ’s suffering. Easter in Sweden is traditionally a family holiday. The whole week was designed to recall Christ’s suffering and death on the cross. The Church of Sweden (Svenska kyrkan), an Evangelical Lutheran faith, was the official religion of Sweden until 2000. The table is often laid like a traditional smorgasbord (or smörgåsbord as it’s written in Swedish). All you need to know about Swedish higher education and scholarships is available at studyinsweden.se. With regular text is marked days counted as a Sunday eventhough they are not officially a public holiday. May 1st May 1st or Labor day is associated with the beginning of spring and celebrates the Swedish workforce. Easter. At swedenabroad.com you’ll find information about Swedish embassies and their activities. Swedish Easter Traditions. Only Stockholm and Central Sweden have a full week of Easter Holidays. Sweden Public Holidays 2021 This page contains a national calendar of all 2021 public holidays. An agrarian strain runs through Sweden’s self-image: this is a nation of strong, sinewy peasants, raised on meat and turnips. Easter-style trick-or-treating. Po Tidholm is a freelance journalist and a critic based in the province of Hälsingland. Spiced schnapps is also a feature of the Easter table. The lunar cycles used by the ecclesiastical system are simple to program. Easter Sunday is one of the most festive events among Christians worldwide. The woodstoves are lit, and the smoke fills the kitchen, naturally. The Good Friday is one of the few official religious holidays in Sweden. © Time and Date AS 1995–2021. Swedes’ biggest candy day is Maunday Thursday. A negative Covid-19 test certificate is required for foreign citizens coming to Sweden. List of dates for other years. Although decorating eggs dates further back, to the 1600’s, when Swedes would paint eggs to celebrate the spring. The other regions only have an extended Easter weekend. In the north, Easter is more of a skiing holiday. And it’s fairly common to see cute little witches roaming the streets. Easter Sunday commemorates Jesus' resurrection from death. Summer Holiday. Is Easter Sunday a Public Holiday? Traditionally, people decorate their houses with colourful feathers and eggs and go for picnics and barbecues. The Third or Last Quarter Moon is when the opposite half of the Moon is illuminated compared to the First Quarter. Photo: Lola Akinmade Åkerström/ In Sweden, the Easter celebrations used to begin with the three days of Shrovetide, full of carnivals, games and revelry. While many other countries typically … The custom of bringing birch twigs into the house and decorating them with coloured feathers dates back to the 1880s. While we diligently research and update our holiday dates, some of the information in the table above may be preliminary. This website is administered by the Swedish Institute. In western Sweden, the practice was to light bonfires, fire shotguns and shout to scare away witches. Sweden holidays 2021. Easter Candy in Paper eggs instead of Chocolate Easter Candy. It’s tradition that children dress up as cute little Easter ‘witches’ and walk around collecting sweets from kind neighbours. It commemorates Jesus Christ’s resurrection from death, as written in the Christian bible. On that day, witches also flew off to consort with the Devil at Mount Blåkulla. A traditional Easter lunch is likely to consist of different varieties of pickled herring, cured salmon and Jansson’s Temptation (potato, onion and pickled anchovies baked in cream). The Swedish Easter holiday is a five-day affair, starting on Skärtorsdag (Maudy Thursday), and goes right through to Annandag Påsk (Easter Monday). In Sweden, the Easter celebrations used to begin with the three days of Shrovetide, full of carnivals, games and revelry. Easter is also associated with Swedish candy, particularly the pick and mix variety so cherished by locals. On the occasion of Easter in Sweden, people do attend church prayers and services. Gives you time to prepare for Easter too. Outside shop entrances, in peoples’ living rooms, outdoors in the neighbours’ gardens. Happy Easter! Many Christians all over the world annually observe Pentecost, also known as Whitsunday or Whit Sunday. Watercolour paint, ordinary paint, dyes, and glued-on decorations all can become part of … Ascension Day is the 40th day of Easter. However, most of them look forward to the long Easter weekend as an opportunity for family reunion or a vacation in the beaches. 24 March 2021. The following algorithm will compute the date of Easter in the Gregorian Calendar system. While in other countries Easter is specifically a religious holiday, it has become a secular one in Sweden. On the occasion of Easter in Sweden, people do attend church prayers and services. When Easter rolls around in Sweden, it’s often the signal for Swedes to head out to their stuga or country cottage. Marking the arrival of spring, Easter is celebrated with gusto in Sweden. Swedish families usually gather for an Easter Buffet during this time. Easter Day (April 1) Easter Sunday, or simply Easter is another holiday. Nowadays, eggs are a favourite accompaniment to the dish of pickled herring that is the centrepiece of most Swedes’ Easter meals. In 2022, it falls on a Sunday, and some businesses may choose to follow Sunday opening hours. The Easter Bunny is just one of the many traditions that were adopted from Germany, where since the seventeenth century there were references to this character. When Sweden was a Catholic country, Easter … Do Swedes celebrate Easter … Despite its religious origins, Easter is a mostly secular holiday in Sweden. Eggs were sometimes painted in different colours, probably because they were often given away as presents. Sweden holidays 2021. There are window shutters to be opened and stuffy rooms to be aired. And few associate the omnipresent birch twigs − nowadays decorated with brightly coloured feathers − with the suffering of Christ. That will often mean grandparents, cousins, aunts and uncles all getting together for a weekend of fun and laughter. Privacy & Terms. However, most of them look forward to the long Easter weekend as an opportunity for family reunion or a vacation in the beaches. Sweden holidays 2022. It is a religious holiday that commemorates the ascension of Jesus Christ into heaven. We have posted about Norway's Påskekrim and the Easter Trees in Sweden but here are a few traditions from all the Scandinavian countries. 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