In the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...

, and some parts of

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...

, the Easter Whip is used as part of a tradition of spanking or whipping on

Easter Monday Easter Monday refers to the day after Easter Sunday in either the Eastern or Western Christian traditions. It is a public holiday in some countries. It is the second day of Eastertide. In Western Christianity, it marks the second day of the Octa ...

. In the morning, men gently spank women with a special handmade whip or

switch In electrical engineering, a switch is an electrical component that can disconnect or connect the conducting path in an electrical circuit, interrupting the electric current or diverting it from one conductor to another. The most common type of ...

called ''pomlázka'' or ''karabáč'' (in Czech) or ''korbáč'' (in Slovak) or ''siba'' or ''korbács'' (in Hungarian). The ''pomlázka'' consists of four to twenty-four

withies A withy or withe (also willow and osier) is a strong flexible willow stem, typically used in thatching, basketmaking, gardening and for constructing woven wattle hurdles.

(willow rods or other twigs), is usually from half a meter to two meters long and decorated with coloured ribbons at the end. Women wear multiple long dresses to avoid the minor pain that would be caused by the whipping. If men arrive at women's houses after 12 o'clock, women throw a bucket of cold water on them. In some regions the men also douse girls with water or spray perfume on them. When going house to house, the male first sings a verse relating to eggs and spring themes like bountifulness and fertility. If the young woman doesn't have any decorated eggs she turns around and the man takes a few whacks at her legs with the whip. The spanking may be painful, but is not intended to cause suffering. In cities, it's usually practised only among family members. In the past, young boys would chase young girls on the village streets with the whips, and vintage illustrations of people in traditional dress show girls running or hiding. Playful running around, similar to the game of tag, still occurs, but aggressive ambushing is now considered unacceptable bullying by the modern generation. Tradition says that women should be spanked with a whip in order to keep their health, beauty and fertility throughout the following year. According to 2019 survey, 60% of Czech households follow the tradition of spanking (or watering) someone on Easter Monday. In

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

, it's made of olive twigs, but it isn't used for whipping. In some countries, such as

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

Easter palm An Easter palm ( pl, Palma wielkanocna, lt, Verba) is a traditional Lithuanian and Polish symbolic decoration associated with Palm Sunday. Barbara Ogrodowska states that the ceremonial palm branch is the "most important attribute" of Palm Sunda ...

s or

pussy willow Pussy willow is a name given to many of the smaller species of the genus ''Salix'' (willows and sallows) when their furry catkins are young in early spring. These species include (among many others): *Goat willow or goat sallow ('' Salix caprea ...

s are used.

Etymology

"Wicker whip": Czech ''karabáč'', Slovak ''korbáč'' (the standard name for "whip" is ''bič'' and ''korbáč'', itself originating from

Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...

''kırbaç'', usually means only 1 particular type of it—the "wicker whip") – Hungarian ''korbács''.Magyar Nyelvőr – Pacsai Imre: Magyar–szlovák kulturális és nyelvi kapcsolat jegyei
/ref> In the Czech Republic, such a switch is called ''pomlázka'' meaning " rejuvenator", implying that a female struck by a ''pomlázka'' will become younger and prettier.

References

{{Authority control Czech folklore Easter traditions Whips Slavic Easter traditions Czech traditions Slovak traditions

Etymology

See also

References