Learn all about Easter Monday
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| Hello, and welcome to the "Culture Class—Holidays in the Czech Republic" series at CzechClass101.com. In this series, we explore the history and traditions behind Czech holidays and observances. I’m Michael, and you're listening to Lesson 23, Easter Monday—Velikonoční pondělí. |
| In the Czech Republic, Easter Monday is the culmination of Easter, and it is celebrated in the spring, right after Easter Sunday. Easter in the Czech Republic is seen by religious communities as a celebration of the Resurrection of Christ, but on a broader scale, the holiday also consists of general spring festivities—many of which also have rich corresponding folklore. |
| Now, before we go into more detail, do you know the answer to the following question? |
| What is Easter pomlázka and how does it work? |
| If you don't already know, you’re about to find out, so stay tuned! |
| Easter Monday marks the end of Easter or Holy Week. Each day of this week has its own distinctive name and reason for being called as follows—Blue Monday, Gray Tuesday, Ugly Wednesday, Green Thursday, Good Friday, White Saturday, Easter Sunday or even Easter Divine Sunday, and finally Easter Monday. The vast majority of existing Easter customs and traditions relate to Easter Monday, which is a mixture of the celebration of spring and Christ’s Resurrection, or Zmrtvýchvstání Páně. |
| One of the typical symbols of Easter are eggs, which are a symbol of fertility and new life. Eggs are emptied or cooked, and then colored in various ways. These Easter eggs are known as kraslice. Other symbols of Easter include twigs of pussy willow, or kočičky, with emerging buds that are cut and put in a vase. In memory of the old Biblical symbol of the lamb, or beránek, many people also bake bread during Easter in the shape of a lamb. |
| A particularly characteristic custom of Czech Easter is pomlázka. The name comes from the word pomladit, meaning "to rejuvenate." Boys weave flexible whisks from young willow branches and visit homes in their neighborhood. While singing traditional carols, they playfully 'whip' the neighbor girls with the whisk. Girls can resist unwanted carolers by pouring buckets of cold water on them, and in some areas, girls take the option of repaying boys in kind in the afternoon, and use the whisk sometimes completely non-symbolically. |
| Now it's time to answer our quiz question— |
| What is Easter pomlázka? And how does it work? |
| The word pomlázka means "rejuvenation" or "keeping somebody young." As we have just mentioned, boys have whisks made of young willow branches and symbolically whip girls on their backsides while singing Easter carols, or in Czech, velikonoční koledy. The girls reward them by tying ribbons on the whisk and presenting them with colored Easter eggs. |
| Well listeners, how was this lesson? Did you learn something new? |
| How do you think Czech girls feel about Easter? |
| Leave a comment telling us on CzechClass101.com, and I’ll see you in the next lesson! |
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