Swedish Midsummer Celebration

Midsummer (Swedish: Midsommar) is one of the most important holidays in Sweden. It is celebrated on Midsummer’s eve , which is the Friday that occur between June 19 and June 25 each year. While other Nordic countries have a tradition of bone fires to celebrate their corresponding holiday, in Sweden we instead have maypoles raised. In contrast to Christmas, Midsummer is not an all family holiday. Instead, it is not unusual to celebrate it with your friends, especially when you are a teenager or young adult. The traditional festivities usually gather a lot of people at folk museums, fields, parks, etc. According to tradition you dance around the maypole and play games. For lunch you eat pickled herring (Swedish: sill) with potatoes and sour cream. For dinner you could have a barbecue and it is not unusual to go for a swim. For many people it is important to eat strawberries during midsummer. According to tradition you wear a wreath of flowers on your head, and both men and women usually do. According to folklore, the Midsummer night is full of magic. If you collected herbs and other medicinal plants during the night, they would have better effect. It was believed that if you rolled around naked in Midsummer dew, it would boost your health. If you saved your wreath of flowers and put it in your Christmas bath, it would rejuvenate you or give you some of summers energy. According to some beliefs, you would dream of your future husband/wife if you had – seven or nine (depending on local beliefs) – different flowers under your pillow when you slept. The flowers were to be picked after night fall.