Norway celebrates Easter with a tradition of reading and watching crime stories, known as påskekrim, or “Easter crime.”
The custom grew from a clever 1923 publicity stunt. Just before Easter, Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten ran a front-page advertisement designed to look like a breaking-news report about a train robbery. The advertisement promoted a crime novel, and its unusual presentation helped make crime fiction part of the holiday season.
Norway’s long Easter break gave the tradition room to grow. Many people spend the holiday at mountain cabins, where reading mystery novels or watching detective programs became a popular form of relaxation. Norwegian television and radio have also scheduled crime dramas during the Easter period.
The tradition is not a religious requirement or a celebration of real crime. It is a cultural custom involving fictional murders, investigations, thrillers, and whodunits. The Norwegian term påskekrim is now widely used for books, television series, and other crime entertainment released around Easter.