Tag Archives: Eastern Europe

Focus on culture: Święconka in Poland

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Author: Błażej Benisz via Wikipedia Commons Deacon blessing the Easter food (Święconka), Ołtarzew, Poland 2007

Today’s blog post is taking up the topic of my last blog post, and is keeping us in Poland and in Eastern Europe for a little while longer.

Easter is an important holiday in Poland and a popular Polish Easter tradition is the ‘blessing of the Easter baskets’,  or Święconka [ɕvʲɛnˈtsɔnka], on Easter or Holy Saturday. Baskets lined with a white linen or a lace or embroidered napkin are decorated with evergreen twigs of bukszpan (boxwood) and ribbons, and filled with a selection of Easter foods and are then taken to church to be blessed.

The foods in the basket all have a special symbolic meaning:

  • chleb (bread), symbolizing Jesus
  • jaja (eggs) [jaja na twardo barwione w łupinkach cebuli = hard-boiled eggs dyed in onion skins] , symbolizing Christ’s resurrection
  • kiełbasę (sausage) or ham, symbolizing abundance
  • sól i pieprz (salt and pepper), symbolizing purification
  • owieczka (a lamb), either as a figurine or as a cake or bread in lamb-shape, symbolizing Christ
  • chrzan (horseradish), symbolizing the bitter sacrifice of Christ

Depending on the parish, the baskets are either lined up on tables or taken to the front of the altar in a procession of the parishioners. The priest or deacon then sprinkles the baskets with holy water, using either a straw brush or a metal aspergillum (i.e. a liturgical sprinkling wand). Special prayers addressing the various contents of the baskets, i.e. the eggs, cakes, meat, etc., are said. Traditionally, the blessed food remains untouched either until Saturday afternoon or Sunday morning.

The Christian custom of Easter eggs has a long history, reaching as far back as ancient Mesopotamia, where early Christians stained eggs red in memory of the blood shed by Christ at his crucifixion. The Church officially adopted this custom, and eggs came to symbolize the resurrection of Christ: The hard egg shell symbolizes the sealed Tomb of Christ, which, when cracked open, symbolizes Christ’s resurrection from the dead and the empty tomb left behind. Another interpretation sees the egg as being dormant, while containing seed for new life and renewal.

The custom of Easter baskets is also observed in some other Slavic countries, like Croatia.

Is there a similar custom in your country or region? Tell us about it in the comments! 🙂

 

Focus on culture: Śmigus-Dyngus in Poland

Dyngus_postcard

Author: Nationwide Specialty Co., Arlington, Texas — In Buffalo, N.Y., Stanley Novelty Co., 200 S. Ogden St., via Wikipedia Commons

Today’s blog post is taking us to Central and Eastern Europe, in particular to Poland and one of its Easter customs called Śmigus-Dyngus. Variants of this custom are also observed in Ukraine, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary. Śmigus-Dyngus is celebrated on Easter Monday and is also known as  lany poniedziałek (‘Wet Monday’, or as Поливаний понеділок in Ukrainian). In the neighbouring countries, similar customs are Oblévačka (Czech) and Oblievačka (Slovak – both meaning ‘Watering’) and Vízbevető (‘Water Plunge Monday’ in Hungarian).

Traditionally, on Easter Monday boys are allowed to throw water over girls and spank them with pussy willow (Salix species) branches, even though this part of the tradition is less common nowadays. In former times, girls had to wait until the next day to do the same to boys on Easter Tuesday, but today everybody splashes everybody else with water on Monday. This custom is accompanied by a number of other rituals, like reciting verses or processions from door-to-door, and in some regions even involving boys dressed as bears. The origins of the custom are unclear but are thought to date to pagan times (before 1000 CE).

Pussy willow (Salix species) are the earliest signs of spring since the catkins appear long before the leaves, and are therefore a symbol of rebirth and renewal. Before the male catkins of the Salix plants come into full flower they are covered in fine, greyish fur, resembling that of tiny cats or ‘pussies’.

450px-PussyWillow

Śmigus-Dyngus  is actually a combination of two different customs, which long ago became merged. Śmigus refers to the water fight itself, whereas Dyngus refers to another custom according to which a girl, when threatened with a shower of water, could bribe herself out by offering a painted Easter egg (pisanka, plural pisanki) as a token. The term for this Easter egg had a German origin where it was called ‘dingei‘ (the egg that is owned) or ‘dingnis‘ (a ransom), which in Polish became ‘dyngus‘. During the Dyngus procession (chodzenie po dyngusie) , village boys went from door to door and recited verses and demanded gifts. The pisanki (painted Easter eggs) were thought to be magical charms that would bring good harvests, successful relationships and healthy childbirths.

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Author: Opusztaszer via Wikipedia Commons, Húsvét Ópusztaszeren 2009, Hungary

Is there a similar tradition in your region or country? Tell us about it in the comments!! 🙂