From whitewashing the house to visiting holy wells, we look at some of the ancient Easter traditions in Ireland.

Whitewashing the Walls
Traditionally in Ireland preparation for Easter started at the beginning of Lent culminating with a big gathering of family and friends celebrating with food and drink. The old traditions included cleaning the house and applying whitewash to houses, leaving them pristine before Easter.


Visiting Holy Wells
Ireland is dotted with hugely historical holy wells. Another big tradition in the lead up to Easter was to visit the sites of where loved ones were buried in graveyards and also to visit holy wells, which were said to have special curing properties, especially on Good Friday.

Good Friday Traditions
In ancient tradition it was said that any child born on Good Friday and baptized on Easter Sunday will have the gift of healing. It was thought that boys born and baptized on these days should join the priesthood. Those that died on Good Friday would go straight to heaven.

Holy Water and Fires  
It was also a tradition to bring cinders from the fire to the church to be blessed. Holy water was also blessed and it was said to drink three sips for good luck and sprinkle holy water over everything to bring blessings, including the home, family and even farm animals.

Easter Eggs
Easter Eggs are a tradition that have continued to live on to this day. In ancient times they were celebrated to signify life and were given as gifts. Irish villages and houses had a cluideog, which was a ritual where children would go around collecting eggs and then cook them with other food outdoors on the farm. Children would go from farm to farm dancing and singing and looking for Easter Eggs.

The Cake Dance
A cake dance is a tradition that has largely now passed but it was a big part of the celebrations before or on Easter Sunday. The cake would usually be a barm brack marked out with symbols such as birds or fish. The cake would be placed at the center of the table prominently on a piece of white linen, the music would start and the dancing would begin – hence the Cake Dance. The best dancer would win the cake.

Easter Saturday and Easter Sunday  
Easter Saturday and Sunday were, and still are for many, the culmination of the 40 days and 40 nights of Lent and fasting. Traditionally in Ireland, people would light a Paschal candle as a symbol of Christ being risen. They would get up at sunrise and dance to celebrate.

Happy Easter 2015!