Easter in Latvia Easter in Latvia The Christian festival of Easter is celebrated in Latvia as Lieldienas (). Lieldienas enters Holy Week with Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday, but Sunday will mark first Lieldienas. Second Lieldienas is on Monday of the following week. Each day has a special significance. Also, many pagan elements of celebrating Lieldienas have become a tradition. Nowadays, the common date of Lieldienas is the first Sunday after the first full moon, after or during the vernal equinox. Thus, the Western Christian Church Lieldienas falls on a date between 22 March and 25 April. In Eastern
Holy Week during Great Lent—to be blessed by the priest which are then taken back home to be shared by family and friends with joy. On the afternoon of Easter Day, a joyful service called "Agape Vespers" is celebrated During this service the Great Prokeimenon is chanted and a lesson from the Gospel is read in as many different languages as possible, accompanied by the joyful ringing of bells. The Coptic Orthodox Christians fast the Lent for 55 days including the Holy Week which they call Holy Paschal Week. The Friday before Palm Sunday is called "The Concluding Friday of Great Lent".