The White Falcon - 23.03.2005, Blaðsíða 8

ICELANDIC EASTER
CELEBRATIONS
BY EINAR FORDARSON
FFSC INTFRCULTURAL
RELATIONS SPECIALIST
The Sunday before Easter begins the celebrations
in Iceland. Palm Sunday (Palmasunnudagur) is
celebrated to commemorate the triumphant entry of
Jesus into Jerusalem, when people (carrying palm
branches) gathered to greet him.
Sheer Day
Thursday following Palm Sunday is called Sheer
Day, or Maundy Thursday (Skirdagur). Sheer Day
celebrates the Last Supper, when Jesus washed
the feet of his disciples. The adjective ‘’sheer”
originally meant bright or pure, and pertains to the
purification of the soul. Popular Icelandic explana-
tion of the name Sheer Day, or day of cleansing,
was that on this day people had good reason to
cleanse themselves after having walked around in
‘’sackcloth and ashes” throughout Lent.
Sources from the 18th and 19th centuries indicate
that a mud-thick, milk-and-rice porridge, cooked
until it acquired a pinkish tone, was served on
the morning of Sheer Day before people went to
church. Such porridge, was long considered a great
delicacy, for it is often mentioned specifically as a
holiday treat. It was also said to have made people
so gaseous, that the air in church on Sheer Day
often smelled less than fresh.
The current celebration of Sheer Day is much
like a Sunday in Iceland. People get the day off
from work and stores are closed. Candy shops and
theaters are open, and public transportation systems
run on a Sunday schedule.
Long Friday
Following Sheer Day is Long Friday, or Good
Friday (Fostudagurinn langi). This day commemo-
rates the long suffering of Christ on the cross. The
name refers to the fact that days of adversity seem
to pass slowly.
On no other day of the year were children as
strictly forbidden to indulge in any fun or games
as they were on Long Friday. Some even made it a
custom to spank the children thoroughly on Long
Friday for all their sins and transgressions during
Lent.
Long Friday is now celebrated in a very sober
and serious way. Church services are held on Long
Friday, but there is no entertainment and stores or
services operating. Long Friday is indeed a long
day.
Easter Sunday
Some people maintain that there was a Germanic
spring goddess by the name of Ostara and that the
name Easter (Paskar) is derived from her name.
Another possibility is that the word Easter is
derived from the name Astaroth (or Astarte).
Astaroth was a goddess in old sun worship. She
was the wife of Nimrod, whose name appears
in the Bible. This possibility is exciting because
Please see pg. 14 for Chapel
information this week.
an egg was supposed to have fallen from heav-
en into the river Euphrates. Fish in the river
rolled the egg ashore where it was hatched by
a white dove. From that egg came Astaroth.
Sun worshippers celebrated the birth of Astaroth at
Easter time, after abstaining from meat for a period
of time. If this explanation for the name of the Easter
celebration is true, then it would also explain why the
egg plays such a big role in Easter celebrations today.
There is another popular myth surround-
ing the Easter egg tradition. On Easter morning
children went into the woods to gather eggs.
As cities grew larger, it became more difficult
to track down eggs in their natural surround-
ings. Adults began to hide eggs in gardens so
that children might have something to find.
In many places, the “Easter bunny”
brought and hid eggs. Rabbit is a com-
mon spring delicacy in central Europe.
After the indroduction of Lent, it could not
be eaten until Easter. This is the origin of the
pictures or images of Easter bunnies, which
often were made of wax of af baked dough.
As time passed, instead of merely eating the
eggs, people began to decorate them. The con-
tents would be sucked out of the shell which was
then painted of otherwise covered with pictorial
designs. This craft is most advanced and probably
also oldest among Slavic people, many of whose
Easter eggs may be considered works of art.
The custom of Easter eggs seem to have been
practically unknown in Iceland until around 1920.
First to introduce it was a bakery in Reykjavik. It
was initially in the oval box form, and then in choc-
olate. Decorating chicken eggs never became com-
mon in Iceland. Exceptions may be found, mostly
to do with hard-boiled eggs that were later eaten.
Today, the Easter egg in Iceland is a hollow
chocolate egg. The egg is decorated on the outside
with a little bird sitting on top. The inside is filled
with candies and a small piece of paper with a
proverb written on it. These eggs are sold in gro-
cery stores before Easter and come in various sizes.
It is customary to place Easter eggs next to
children's beds on the morning of Easter
Sunday, before the children wake up.
Apart from the ecclesiastical tradition, there
is hardly any Icelandic customs or lore specifi-
cally connected with Easter, except that of the
sun's dance. Easter morning the sun is supposed
to dance with joy for a few moments at the pre-
cise hour that the Savior rose from the dead.
Some maintain that this will not hap-
A volunteer lays eggs out for the children to
find at last year's NATO SATCOM Easter
Egg Hunt. Easter eggs play and have played
a large part in Icelandic Easter celebrations.
(Photo by J02 Travis D. Eisele)
pen unless Easter day falls on the same cal-
endar day as in the year of His resurrection.
The Monday following Easter Sunday
is called “The Second Day of Easter,”
and celebrated like an ordinary Sunday.
During Easter week, Lutheran confirmation cero-
monies are held. Confirmation is important in the life
of the teenager being confirmed. It starts with a cer-
emony at the church. This is followed by a big feast
in the teenager's home. Friends and relatives gather
and give presents to the teenager and enjoy the food.
The food table is tacked with highly deco-
rated fish and meat dishes, cakes and coffee.
Usually these dishes are catered by professionals.
Today many Icelanders use the Easter holidays to
ski or have a good time, if they don't have to attend
a family confirmation. If weather permits there are
often 10,000 people in the Blue Mountains, 4,000
at Skaftafell ski area and other 3.000 in other areas
around Reykjavik during this weekend. There may
be as many as 17,000 people on the slopes every day.
Take part in the holiday activities, especially
in the mountains, go out, among the Icelanders
and have a “Happy Easter or GleOilega Paska.”
THIS DATE IN
ICEEANDIC HISTORY
March 30, 1816, the Icelandic literary association was founded to maintain the
Icelandic literary tradition, education and its honor. The association published
the magazine “SK1RNIR”; the oldest magazine in Scandinavia and it has been
published since 1827.
March 30, 1949, Iceland became a member of the North Atlantic Treaty
Organization.
March 31, 1863, Madam Vilhelmina Lever (a Danish woman) voted in the town
council elections of Akureyri and became the first women to vote for local elec-
tions in Iceland.
Page 12
The White Falcon
March 23, 2005