Easter Traditions in Poland
Polish springtime traditions include pisanki and pussywillows.
Easter customs in Poland include decorating eggs called pisanki and cutting of indigenous plants to use as "palms" for Palm Sunday.
Easter is one of Poland’s most celebrated holidays. Food, decorations, church going, and other traditions are a part of Polish Easter traditions. From Ash Wednesday to Easter Monday, Poles celebrate much as they have for centuries.
Polish Easter “Palms”
Because palms do not grow naturally in Poland, Polish people are used to cutting sprigs of pussywillow on Ash Wednesday. Sometimes, these are decorated with ribbons. These are later blessed, in place of palms, on Palm Sunday at church. The ability of pussywillow to be dried ensures that it can be placed by the cross at home and preserved until it can be replaced the following year. Historically, Polish people have been known to consume a couple of pussywillow buds to ensure a fruitful year.
In some parts of Poland, Easter celebrants use evergreen branches, raspberry branches, or wildflowers if in bloom. If no flowers are in bloom, artificial ones are made and used to decorate the greenery.
Easter Foods in Poland
The Saturday before Easter, traditional foods are taken to church to be blessed. These foods have symbolic meaning. For example, horseradish symbolizes the bitterness of Christ’s sacrifice. Ham symbolizes abundance. A lamb, fashioned from butter, sugar, or salt (or wood, or clay), symbolizes Christ Himself.
This food is not eaten until Easter Sunday, when it is placed on a white tablecloth that symbolizes the white cloth in which Christ was wrapped. Traditionally, because smoke and work are not permitted on this day, and because the food has already been prepared, no cooking takes place. A traditional Easter soup and Easter cakes may be served at the meal, which begins with an egg being cut into eight pieces and then eaten.
Decorated Eggs in Poland
Poland has its own Easter tradition of decorated eggs called pisanki. These may be dyed, decorated using a wax removal method, or colored with paper or fabric. These are placed on the table during the Easter Sunday meal. Colored eggs may also decorate cakes, be buried underneath trees, or fed to livestock to ensure prosperity. Eggs are decorated on Holy Thursday or Good Friday.
