Why does Easter "move"

[pigletwillie]

For those who wonder why Easters date moves, here is an explanation.

Easter falls on the first Sunday after the first full moon after the spring equinox. The equinox can fall on March 20 or 21 but the rules for Easter specify March 21 as the date for the calculation. So Easter could be as early as March 22 or as late as April 25. It will be at least another 30 odd years before it can be this early again.

It seems to be tradition for some gardeners to plant their potatoes on Good Friday. This is not always good practice as Easter can fall very early as in this year, or late in April. Let the weather and ground conditions dictate, not the holiday.

Easter always seems to kick off the growing season as its the first bank holiday of the year and most people get a long weekend off. Hopefully the weather this year will be kind to us.

[OverWyreGrower]

Ta muchly, we were discussing at work today why easter is so early....

[shirlthegirl43]

Cheers for that Piglet. I am hoping to get some spuds in this weekend, weather permitting. I know Easter is early but I don't think we will have frost after the shoots come through and rarely get a hard frost that would damage buried spuds.

[bubblewrap]

[QUOTE=pigletwillie;195377]For those who wonder why Easters date moves, here is an explanation.

. It will be another 30 odd years before its this early again.

Heard on the news 152 years.

[bluemoon]

It will be another 30 odd years before its this early again.

Thank goodness for that, with a daughter born on March 20th and a niece on the 19th, plus two grandchildren needing eggs, it's turning into an expensive week. I remember the year my daughter was born, it was a late Easter and she was actually born on Mothers' Day. Trying to explain to another new mum why her own newborn wouldn't have a Mothers' Day birthday every year and, indeed, might have the odd one that was virtually Easter, was like wading through treacle.

[bluemoon]

Heard on the news 152 years.

Even better!

[smallblueplanet]

I knew how it was calculated but I still don't understand why Easter moves?

[pigletwillie]

....so long as that Sunday isn't in a month when High Tides are expected - if that is the case then it will fall on the next Sunday after the last Tuesday prior to the following Sunday when the next Low Tides are expected - so whoe be tide you if you get it wrong and forget Mother's Day

Yeah right????

[HeyWayne]

Is it Easter soon then!?

I don't think I've got any Jif lemons in!

[smallblueplanet]

For anyone else interested in why Easter moves, here goes......Easter moves because its based around the Jewish feast of Passover, which is based on a lunar calendar not a yearly one:

The gospels tell us that Christ's death and resurrection took place during Passover, the commemoration of Israel's deliverance from slavery in Egypt. Passover, also called the Feast of Unleavened Bread, is an eight-day Jewish celebration that always begins on the fourteenth day of the Hebrew month of Nisan.

The ancient Hebrew calendar is based on twelve lunar months, which is a total of approximately 354 days -- 11 days short of the full cycle of the seasons. Passover must fall in the spring because that is the time of year that lambs are mature enough to slaughter for the feast. To keep the month of Nisan in the spring, a 13th month is added to the Hebrew calendar every three years or so.

The result is that Passover always begins in the March/April timeframe but on a different day each year. Since the date of Passover is moveable, the date of Easter, which was originally based on Passover, is also moveable.

Why Easter moves.

[valmarg]

Easter always seems to kick off the growing season as its the first bank holiday of the year and most people get a long weekend off. Hopefully the weather this year will be kind to us.

Forgive me piglet, but you've brought out the pedant in me

Surely the first bank holiday of the year is New Year's Day

valmarg

[Flummery]

I thought you planted your spuds on Good Friday because the movement of Easter is associated with the moon. Lunar planting - no?

[Hazel at the Hill]

And I'm sure that as a supplimentary piece of brainery, you'll be telling us why St Paddy's day 'isn't' this year, Piggy?

[pigletwillie]

And I'm sure that as a supplimentary piece of brainery, you'll be telling us why St Paddy's day 'isn't' this year, Piggy?

Eh!!!!!!!!!!

[SarzWix]

For anyone else interested in why Easter moves, here goes......Easter moves because its based around the Jewish feast of Passover, which is based on a lunar calendar not a yearly one:

The slightly bonkers church which I grew up in didn't celebrate Easter, but rather Passover & the 'Feast of Unleavened Bread'. I always used to be really disappointed that the school holidays fell at the same time as this, as we got time off for our other festivals. It was years before I realised that Easter was also tied to Passover!