Easter in Spain Posted by Paula on Apr 15, 2015 in Spanish Culture, Spanish Vocabulary
¡Buenos días!
In late March-early April, we always celebrate Easter in Spain. However, the way in which people celebrate this time of the year differs from one region of the country to another. You probably remember we call these holidays Semana Santa and Pascua, both of which have religious roots.
There are of course similarities in the religious ceremonies observed, which only vary between regions in degree of intensity and fervor: if you spend Easter in Sevilla you will probably not be able to walk along the streets because of the procesiones; however, if you happen to be in Barcelona, you may just run across old ladies and traditional families carrying their ramos and a few more people than usual attending la misa de Vigilia Pascual.
In addition to the procesiones, which last all week long in most of Andalucía and Castilla, we have many other lesser known traditions in Spain which we share with you in this post. You can learn specialized vocabulary in the process!
Domingo de Ramos with palmas: this is celebrated everywhere on the Sunday before Easter. People bring palmas y ramos de olivo, palm and olive branches, to be blessed during mass, and then keep them safe until the following year.
Tronar de los tambores: in Murcia they celebrate from the last minute of Holy Tuesday to Wednesday evening by making drums resound all day (and night!) long.
Luto de Viernes Santo: in Andalucía and Castilla, women dress in mourning during Holy Friday and Saturday; men wear trajes oscuros. There is strict protocol on the length of the mantilla that is worn during the luto, or the size of brooches that can be used to hold the mantilla in place. This protocol is mostly respected in these regions.
Ruptura de Pucheros: in Valencia, on Holy Saturday at midnight, people throw water and their old tableware off their windows, to celebrate the end of a period and the coming of the Resurrection as something new.
Mona de Pascua: the mona is a sweet pie of Valencian origin, which is also enjoyed in Murcia, Catalonia, Aragón and Castilla-La Mancha. Originally, it had the shape of a ring and included one or two eggs hidden in the pastry. Nowadays, the trend is to use more chocolate, so that the mona has come closer to un huevo de Pascua.
Pascua Granada: if you haven’t had enough Pascua in April, you can still get an additional holiday in May or early June: the Pascua Granada comes 50 days after Easter and represents both the Ascención de Jesús and the ripening of fruits and blossoming of flowers.
How do you celebrate Easter in your country? Please comment below! We enjoy learning different traditions, especially if they are fun!
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About the Author: Paula
Born in Buenos Aires, living in Barcelona, I mostly write about cultural topics in Spanish from Spain and Latin America.
Comments:
Raven:
En los Estados Unidos de América yo celebro Easter por tengo
huevo de Pascua buscar. nosotros tambien tenemos los conejillo y
cestas de pascua.
Ashlyn:
@Raven En los Estados Unidos nosotros celebramos Easter el Domingo. Muchas personas vestirse en trajes coloridos. Es muy divertido.
Karson Sluss:
En Estados Unidos,celebramos Easter en tarde marzo o temprano abril. Decoramos con papel picado. Es muy bonito. Me gusta Easter mucho. Easter es el día Jesus sube de la tumba.
Emie:
En America nosotros celebramos Pascua muy diferente. Nosotros escondemos huevos con caramelo dentro. Nosotros comemos con familia. No nosotros no traemos palmas y ramos de olivo y no ellos ponerse ropa el luto. Nosotros tenemos diferente tradiciones pero ambos celebrar Pascua!
Curtis:
En América celebramos Pascua ocultando los huevos y luego la carrera para encontrarlos. Muchas personas en Estados Unidos van a la iglesia el Domingo de Pascua. Mi familia va a un gran brunch de Pascua. Muchos estadounidenses celebran la Pascua, muriendo los huevos y comer mucho chocolate. Los niños pequeños creen que un conejo se esconde todos los huevos para que puedan encontrar.
Leah:
Semana Santa es muy interesante. En asustados unidos, Easter es muy similar. Nosotros celebramos el resurreción de Jesús. Nosotros comemos la comida bueno también. Yo no llevar la ropa particular. Yo el amor Easter y Jesús.
Alexis:
En Estados Unidos celebramos Pascua esconde huevos y corriendo para encontrarlos. Muchas personas en los Estados Unidos ir a la iglesia. Mi familia tiene una cena de Pascua. Muchos norteamericanos celebran mueriendo huevos y comiendo muchas chocolate. Los niños creen que un conejo esconde todos los huevos encontrados.
Avery (ellie) Smith:
En América pascua se celebra como la resurrección de Jesucristo. El día por lo general comienza con nosotros va a la iglesia y luego ir a un cookout en una casa de miembros de la familia. Allí los niños más pequeños hacen una caza de huevos y todos nos vamos a casa después de un día de diversión
Zoe B.:
In America we celebrate Easter differently than in Spain. Traditionally we hide plastic eggs filled with candy in our house or yard. Our celebration lasts only one day. Some families give out Easter baskets filled with goodies and treats. Most people dress up in nice clothes and attend church on Easter. Instead of walking the streets people typically celebrate in their own home.
Rachael:
En Americana nosotros celebrators Easter Es mucho diferante que espana. En los Estados Unidos nosotros buscamos por juevos. En España Ellis celebran diferante en diferante parties do la país. Nosotros Amos venamos a glacia en Easter Domingo.
hannah:
En los Estados Unidos nosotros clebramos Puscua tambien. Normalmente tenemos la celebracion en Marzo o Abril. Pienso que la celebracion es un buen momento para celebar el acenso de Jesus. Muchas familias van a iglesia para un sevicio y despues ellos van a comer.
Darreon:
Esto es realmente genial. En mi familia nos vestimos. Los chicos eran trajes y las chicas llevan vestidos bonitos. Vamos a la iglesia el domingo por la mañana y tenemos una cena familiar después en una casa de miembros de la familia. Mi tradición de Pascua normalmente dura un día.
Morgan:
Easter usually occurs around the same time period, late March-early April. Although it may occur around the same same time the traditions are very different. At least for my family, we go to church the morning of Easter. Even before going to church my sibling and I open our Easter baskets and find all the eggs we had dyed a few nights before. Then after going to church my whole family goes out for breakfast. Although our reason for celebrating Easter is similar, the way we celebrate and our traditions are very different