Easter Monday (Pondělí Velíkoční) in the Czech Republic (Česká Republika)

In the Czech Republic there is a tradition of spanking or whipping girls and women on Easter Monday, translated as Pondělí Velíkoční. Monday morning after Easter Sunday, it is customary for girls and women to stay at home while the boys and men, usually dressed in nicer clothing and sometimes even in kroj – a traditional costume– and travel from door to door of female relatives and/or friends, bringing greetings, singing Easter carols, then demanding the right to spank the women with a special hand-made whip called a pomlázka and/or splash them with cold water or perfume for good luck and fertility, and demanding “treats” (decorated eggs, chocolate, food, beer, liquor, or a kiss) as their reward.

The splashing of water is intended to oblievat – to “water” the females present. Water is the symbol of life and the pouring of water is a gesture meant to bestow year-long health, beauty, and especially fertility. Some men spray perfume instead of water, or both. The splashing of water can range from a teaspoon dribbled on top of the head, to a bucket thrown over the head, to a full body dunking in a bathtub full of cold water.

The special hand-made whip, a pomlázka in Czech, consists of eight, twelve or even twenty-four willow rods, usually measuring from half a meter to two meters (1.5 to 6 feet) in length, which are braided together and decorated with colored ribbons at the end. The term pomlázka means “rejuvenator”, implying that a woman struck by a pomlázka will become younger and prettier as a result.

There used to be a tradition where the women actually tied their own hair ribbons to the braided willows so that the quantity of ribbons on the end of the pomlázka would indicate how many women that man has already visited; thankfully the popularity of this part of the pomlázka has disappeared . The spanking normally is not “hard” nor is it intended to cause any pain. The purpose of spanking is to bestow health, beauty, and, most importantly, fertility for the Spring and entire year onto the woman.

Usually women are chased around (if they decide to play along) or they just stand motionless and allow the male visitors to spank their butt. After being spanked with the pomlázka or splashed with water, the woman must give, as a gift, either candy or money to a boy, and liquor or a small amount of money to a man, as a token of her thanks.