Easter in Latvia
 | This article needs more citations. (November 2026) |
The Christian festival of Easter is celebrated in Latvia as Lieldienas ([lield̪ien̪as̪]). Lieldienas enters Holy Week with Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday, but Sunday will mark first Lieldienas. Second Lieldienas is on Monday of the following week. Each day has a special significance. Also, many pagan elements of celebrating Lieldienas have become a tradition.
Lieldienas dates
| Year | Western Christians | Orthodox |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | 11 April | |
| 2005 | 27 March | 1 May |
| 2006 | 16 April | 23 April |
| 2007 | 8 April | |
| 2008 | 23 March | 27 April |
| 2009 | 12 April | 19 April |
| 2010 | 4 April | |
| 2011 | 24 April | |
| 2012 | 8 April | 15 April |
| 2013 | 31 March | 5 May |
| 2014 | 20 April | |
| 2015 | 5 April | 12 April |
| 2016 | 27 March | 1 May |
| 2017 | 16 April | |
| 2018 | 1 April | 8 April |
Nowadays, the common date of Lieldienas is the first Sunday after the first full moon, after or during the [[S[ equinox]]. Thus, the Western Christian Church Lieldienas falls on a date between 22 March and 25 April. In Eastern Orthodox Churches, which used the Julian calendar, Lieldienas falls on a date between 4 April and 8 May in Gregorian calendar.
Latvian customs of celebrating Lieldienas
Before the arrival of Christianity, Lieldienas was a spring equinox event, celebrating the victory of light over darkness.
Although dainas have no conclusive indication of egg painting tradition in ancient times, the majority of them mention golden, silver and white eggs. Latvians today paint Easter eggs, In order for eggs to be diverse, they were boiled with colorful cloth. In one area, grits are poured in, while in other, people added colorful birch leaves, fir needles, cells, a variety of flowers, herbs or just reel them with a colorful yarn. Every family has a different way of following this tradition. Children ride on swings, with their families encouraging them to swing as high as possible for fun and for good luck in the harvest. There are songs sung especially for the occasion. Families also often hold an Easter feast, with traditional foods and cakes served.
References
- 1 2 3 4 "Lieldienas, latviešu tradicionālajā kultūrā". Latvian National Encyclopedia (in Latvian).
- 1 2 "Lieldienas Latvijā: tradīcijas un idejas ģimenes svētku galdam". lenek.lv. March 23, 2026.
- ↑ Kuzmina, Patrīcija (April 14, 2025). "Lieldienu tradīcijas Latvijā: Senās saknes un mūsdienu svinības - Vienas pieturas aģentūra Vienas pieturas aģentūra". livelatvia.lv.