Origin and History of Easter in Italy
Easter celebrates the resurrection of Jesus after his death. According to historical records it is believed that after being crucified, Christ rose from the tomb and later returned to heaven along with his father, the Holy Ghost. Since this magical event took place on the Passover day. People celebrate his resurrection along with the traditional Passover. Gradually Christianity became famous even in non-jewish nations and among people who don’t know the history of Passover. The rituals of ancient pagan spring festival gradually got associated with the present day Easter celebration. Thus this pagan festival is called the basis for modern Easter celebrations. And the word Easter is derived from the Anglo-Saxons spring goddess named Eostre.
Local name: Pasqua
Ways to celeberate Pasqua in Italy
Italy is dominated by Catholic Christians thus traditional Christian beliefs are thoroughly followed here. Apart from Christmas, Easter is the most widely celebrated festival in Italy. Easter celebrations begin with Carnevale activities that are believed to be the introduction to the Lenten season. These celebrations portray the traditional folklore of the country. Some of the most well known carnevales are seen in cities like Sicily, Venice and Ivera. The attractive and important part of these carnevales is the masks that people wear. Citizens wear masks of different types, which represent spirits and witches from the demon world. On Easter Sunday many churches have special statues of Virgin Mary and Jesus. During Easter the churches are decorated with olive branches instead of the usual palm fronds. Since Easter is the end of the Lent season, food plays an important role in the celebrations. Traditional Italian Easter meal includes lamb, special Easter breads, artichokes, chocolate eggs etc.
