Easter marks the start of spring, the triumph of life and renewal and is a time of festivities and tradition in Estonia.
Easter is known by many names in Estonia, including lihavõtted (a direct reference to the return of meat on menus after Lent), munadepüha (egg holiday) and kiigepüha (swing holiday, pointing to the tradition of taking to traditional wooden village swings on Easter Sunday).
In the old folk calendar, the spring holiday started on the next Sunday after the first full moon following the spring equinox, falling between March 23 and April 26. The holiday week was important for household chores, such as spring cleaning after a long winter. According to tradition, the weather during this week could be used to predict conditions for the entire summer. If it rained, a wet summer would follow, and if there was fog, a hot summer could be expected.
Maundy Thursday was considered a semi-holiday, during which people prepared for Good Friday. Lighter meals were eaten, such as soup. The types of soup varied by region, but one thing was certain: everyone rested on Good Friday. It was very rare for anyone to even leave the house on that day.
Easter Sunday, much like today, was a festive occasion. On this day, people traditionally exchanged eggs or gave them as gifts. Young people would gather by the village swing and girls would give decorated Easter eggs to the boys as thanks for building the swing, where they would then spend the afternoon together. People gathered in their homes or at the local tavern and exchanged eggs as gifts. Eggs were also used in food, most commonly as egg butter or egg spread.
Pussy willows brought indoors were and are an inseparable part of the holiday. Those who hadn’t gotten them earlier would place them in a vase by the time egg dyeing began. When liverworts started to bloom, people would also bring in moss and the first spring flowers. In the 20th century, it became customary to sprout grass on a plate or in a bowl for Easter, creating a bed on which to place decorated eggs. Nests made of twigs and moss were also crafted to hold the colorful eggs. Additionally, budding branches of various kinds were placed indoors and used to decorate rooms.
Easter customs and springtime traditions varied across different regions of Estonia. Some of these old Easter traditions are celebrated each year at the Estonian Open Air Museum in Tallinn. Visitors can also travel to Setomaa in southern Estonia to gain a deeper understanding of the local customs there.
These days, Easter Sunday is usually celebrated by having a long lunch, dyeing and swapping eggs and a traditional Easter hunt. Eggs are usually colored using natural dies, such as those from onion peels or beets. The multicolored eggs are a mandatory part of any Easter spread and the natural colorings mean they’re perfectly edible.
While rooms can be decorated with artificial eggs, real eggs are needed for the traditional egg tapping competition, which crowns a new champion each year. The rules are simple — tap the tip of your egg against your opponent’s, and whoever’s shell remains unbroken wins! Some families keep the fun going all year round — it’s just that enjoyable. If natural dyes are used, the extra layer of the one with the cracked egg having to eat it is sometimes added to the competition, making ultimate victory dependent not only on the best tapping tactic but also one’s capacity for boiled eggs.
Many Easter customs still practiced today originate from old folk traditions. One such game, popular especially in Setomaa, is egg rolling, which shares the same goal as egg tapping: to crack the opponent’s eggshell. Players roll their eggs down a sand mound, aiming to hit other eggs. The difficulty of the slope is entirely up to the player. The winner is the one whose egg stays intact.
Traditional Easter food covers everything to do with eggs, but also curd and cottage cheese dishes, including salads, desserts and pastries utilizing these ingredients. Prime examples include deviled eggs and egg salad, Of meats, veal, hare and rabbit are revered during this period, while it’s no good turning your nose up at fish, pork, chicken or lamb either.
Porridge and all manner of baked goodness, including homemade white bread, pastries and cakes, are also held in high esteem around the holiday. However, among Easter desserts, paskha is widely considered a favorite.
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