Originally published on Skoy Enterprises LinkedIn.
It’s almost that time of year again. Move the couches, scrub the baseboards, dust off the blinds, and clean out the closet. Clear off the old dirt of winter in preparation for the sunshine that lays ahead. Spring cleaning is about to bloom.
Spring cleaning is so engrained in our lives, it feels like everyone does it (and those who don’t, probably should). According to a survey from the American Cleaning Institute, 72% of households participate in spring cleaning of some sort. It seems normal now, but how did spring cleaning become so apparent in our yearly schedules that nearly ¾ of the country participate?
There are many origins of spring cleaning. Different cultures all over the world have their own reasons for why we spring clean dating back centuries.
In Jewish tradition, spring cleaning relates to Passover, which falls in March or April each year. In ancient Egypt, Jewish slaves would clean their homes before Passover each year, making sure no unleavened bread crumbs were left. Egyptian slaves were all fed unleavened bread, and so this became a symbol of Jewish slaves' survival and was forbidden on Passover. Spring cleaning was a way to make sure no unleavened bread was left behind.
Christians have spring cleaning traditions as well. Greek Orthodox members traditionally clean leading up to Lent, even declaring a Clean Monday the official start of Lent. Similarly, in the Catholic tradition, they clean the church altar before Good Friday.
Nowruz, or Persian New Year, takes place on the first day of spring in Iran and entails a 13-day celebration called “shaking the house”. In this tradition, they thoroughly clean the house, buy new clothes, and spend time with family and friends.
For Chinese New Year, they include Little New Year (Xiaonian), which is celebrated by cleaning and cleansing the home from any negativity or lingering spirits. According to the legend, this is the day that the Kitchen God will report the good and evil of a family to the Jade Emperor, who gives out a reward or punishment. On this day, they sweep their houses and place red paper cutouts in their windows for decoration.
It’s no surprise why spring cleaning is engrained in so many ancient cultures—cleaning the gunk out of our lives feels good. Winter can bog us down, bring seasonal depression, and ultimately make us care less about having a clean home. But at the first breeze of spring, we are ready to start fresh again with freshly mopped floors and dusted ceiling fans.