Easter holiday in Norway
Hi, OLS user!
Are you spending April in Norway?
As you probably know, most Norwegians are not particularly religious. Still, our calendar and bank holidays follow the Lutheran Church.
Like in english, the word holiday or helligdag, referrs to religion.
hellig – sacred
dag – day
The official holiday days for Easter in 2025 are
søndag – Sunday 13th of April, also referred to as palmesøndag
torsdag – Thursday 17th of April, also referred to as skjærtorsdag
fredag – Friday, 18th of April, also referred to as langfredag
lørdag – Saturday 19th, also referred as påskeaften
søndag – Sunday 20th, also referred to as første påskedag
mandag – Monday 21th of April, also referred to as andre påskedag
Remember, days and months are not written with a capital letter in Norwegian, like in English
Even though Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday are not technically holidays, Norwegians will use any excuse to get out of the office. Most offices will be empty the entire week. While this might annoy some people, you should adopt a different approach: If you can’t beat them – join them!
Survival tip: Check the opening hours of your local supermarket, as a lot of them will be closed for several days in a row, particularly in rural areas.
Are there some words or traditions revolving Easter that is unclear to you? Please write in the comment section, and I will do my best to clear things out.
Happy Easter!
Best,
Hannah, OLS Community Manager - Norwegian