Egypt has two very different ways to celebrate Easter. Coptic Christians followed the rituals of the Coptic Christian Church in Coptic Cairo, which Saint Mark started. Egypt as a whole celebrates the beginning of spring with Sham El Nessim.
Easter traditions in Egypt.
- When is Easter in Egypt?
- How does Egypt celebrate Easter?
- The feast of Sham el-Nessim – Why is Sham el-Nessim celebrated?
- Conclusion – Easter trips to experience traditions
Easter is known to be a Christian holiday, but most people in Egypt are Muslims. But in the land of the pharaohs, these two things that don’t seem to go together aren’t a reason not to celebrate Easter together, even if it’s for different reasons.
But look more closely. Easter for Christians and the originally Egyptian Sham el Nassem festival that everyone in Egypt celebrates have much in common. This is not just a coincidence.
Since Easter Monday has always been the same day as Sham el Nassem, it has always been a public holiday in Egypt. The pharaohs’ descendants celebrated the end of winter at Sham el Nassem, a Muslim spring festival. The pharaohs started the traditions and rituals still used today, like painting, eating colored eggs, and pickling fish in salt.
Eggs and fish were used as ancient pharaonic symbols for the god “Bramhat,” the god of survival and time. In both Pharaonic and Christian beliefs, the egg signifies being born again, and salty fish illustrate the mummification process that ensures eternal life. And Christians have used the fish as a sign of Jesus for a long time.
Egyptian Copts talk about how happy they are that Jesus rose from the dead, just as they always were when spring came back.
Please read our article about Holidays & Festivals in Egypt in 2023
When is Easter in Egypt?
In Egypt, the day after Easter is known as Sham El Nessim, a national festival at the beginning of spring that dates back to ancient Egypt. In Egypt, Coptic Easter Monday is celebrated on the same day as Orthodox Easter Monday. The day is part of a broader spring festival called Sham El Nessim and a national holiday.
The date differs from Western Easter as the other Christian churches base the date of calculating Easter on the Gregorian calendar. But the Eastern Orthodox Church still uses the earlier Julian calendar to estimate feast dates, including Easter.
Easter is a religious festival that celebrates the resurrection of Jesus. Most Christians celebrate this day as a public holiday by taking a day off for the general population, schools, and businesses. The event is based on the Julian calendar, like in Western countries. During this time, both Christians involved egg hunting, the myth of the legendary Easter Bunny, followed by Eastern parades with a variation of delicious Easter food.
Easter Traditions in Egypt: How does Egypt celebrate Easter?
Easter in Egypt is a great time to visit if you like to travel and see new places. Ancient Egyptians made essential breakthroughs in art and science that have made life better for people for over 4,000 years.
From the time of the Pharaohs to the Muslims, the Egyptians left behind some of the world’s most impressive buildings and treasures.
The Julian calendar, used by many Orthodox churches, is based on a different set of dates than the Gregorian calendar used by most of the West. So, the Orthodox Easter celebration usually happens in March, a few months after the Western one. The Coptic Easter festival is celebrated on April 1, a holiday. Today, most businesses, schools, and other places are closed.
During Shemu’s ancient Egyptian spring festival, salty fish, lettuce, and onions were offered to the gods. Once Egypt became Christian, it connected to Easter because both holidays happened in the spring.
On Easter Monday, when the Muslims took over Egypt, everything started. The date of Sham el-Nessim was based on the Christian calendar, even though it was based on the Islamic lunar calendar, which is not based on the solar year.
Common traditions in Egypt before Easter:
The Coptic Easter celebrations start on Saturday night by reading a psalm, singing sacred songs, and burning incense.
The lights are turned down during the service, and when the resurrection is discussed, the lights are turned back on. On Easter Sunday, religious people go to church, see their families, give each other gifts, and have picnics in the city’s most beautiful parks.
Are you planning your Easter vacation to Egypt? These travel articles give you all the information you need when planning your trip!
Helpful advice to help you make the right choice.
The Feast of Sham el-Nessim – Easter traditions in Ancient Egypt
The feast of Sham el-Nessim always happens on Monday after Orthodox Easter, and Christians and Muslims celebrate it as a secular national holiday instead of a religious one.
Fresh, fermented mullet, boiled eggs, lettuce, and Malana, a green leafy vegetable, are all traditional foods for this festival.
Preferable food at the festival of Sham el Nessim:
Fresh is the grey mullet salted, dried, and fermented in a pickle. The Egyptians eat it for good luck, which is also a sign of fertility, so eating it is good for you.
In the past, giving this fish to the gods was thought to make sure that there would be a good harvest.
Some families’ knowledge of how to make Fesikh is passed down from father to son. Interestingly, making this traditional food has become an authentic tradition and craft in Egypt called “Fasakhani.”
During the process, the fish meat is left to sit for a few months before being eaten. But this tradition isn’t as important as it used to be; many people now use white fish meat.
Before being eaten, hard-boiled eggs are always painted with tempera and dried in the sun; some are real masterpieces. Coloring eggs is still a widespread Easter tradition in Egypt and everywhere else in the world.
Conclusion Easter trips to experience traditions
Egypt has a rich and exciting history and a great climate. All these things make it the perfect place to spend the Easter holidays in 2021, a great time to enjoy the country’s beauty in a warm and pleasant climate.
You might never have said it, but this holiday is known in Egypt, and Coptic Christians celebrate it yearly. Still, ancient Egypt isn’t the only place with a spring celebration almost simultaneously. It’s called Sham el-Nessim, and it seems to be related to the Christian holiday Easter.
So, are you making plans for your Easter trip this year? What’s Easter like in Egypt?
On our trips to Egypt, you can taste the past by walking in the pharaohs’ footsteps through ancient temples and monuments.
On your Egypt tour, you can spend the days in Cairo, seeing the Great Pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx. Then, if you book an Egypt Nile Cruise Package, you can sail down the Nile to Luxor and Aswan on a cruise. Relax in the Red Sea and go swimming with dolphins and corals.
Check the best time to visit Egypt when planning your trip to Egypt
There are many ways to spend Easter 2024 in Egypt, and there are a lot of new ideas for Egypt vacation packages and trips. Book your dream trip now, and let us care for everything else. Easter is important for more than just kids. Around Easter, the sun returns, flowers bloom, and the days get longer and warmer.