Whit Tuesday
Whit Tuesday is the Christian holiday celebrated the day after Pentecost Monday, the third day of the week beginning on Pentecost. Pentecost is a movable feast in the Christian calendar dependent upon the date of Easter. "Whit" relates either to the white robes worn by those baptized on Pentecost, or to the French word "huit," since Pentecost is the eighth Sunday after Easter.
In the Eastern Orthodox Church, Whit Tuesday is known as the "Third Day of the Trinity" and is part of the Feast of Pentecost. Not only monasteries and cathedrals, but parish churches often celebrate the Divine Liturgy on this day.
It was a holiday in the Lutheran Church in Germany at Bach's time, where all major holidays were celebrated for three days. Bach and others composed cantata music for the occasion.
It used to be a public holiday in Denmark and Sweden. In Denmark it was abolished 26 October 1770, and in Sweden 4 November 1772, both places as part of larger reductions of the number of holidays.
The Dancing procession of Echternach takes place on Pentecost Tuesday. In the 19th century, it was also the occasion of the feast of Saint Tetha in Cornwall.
