Spring breakers, warm weather, and the birth of an American tradition
By
Staff, AccuWeather
Published Mar 9, 2020 1:36 PM EDT
When the weather gets sunny and nice, college students come out to play. If you live and work in certain parts of the country like Florida, Texas and California, you probably have mixed feelings about spring breakers.
They can be rowdy, messy and hard to control. But they are also hugely important for some areas, bringing welcome vitality and cash to restaurants, hotels and small businesses.
Roughly 40% of college students travel — and usually travel as a group — for spring break. They spend nearly $1 billion in Florida and Texas alone. Spring breakers are such an established part of American culture that we know them from movies, TV and songs.
But what is less commonly known is the origins of the spring break tradition. As it turns out, the first spring breakers weren’t American at all. They were Greek.
It all began in Athens, where people celebrated Anthesteria, a three-day event to mark the coming of spring. In ancient times, it was believed that the souls of the dead walked among the living during these three days and plenty of wine was drank because it had finally matured from the previous harvest. People also decorated their houses with spring flowers and the city filled with music. On the first day of Anthesteria, the opening of the pithoi took place, which meant the opening of the wine vessels. Athenians offered wine to Dionysus, the god of wine and ecstasy in Greek religion and mythology. Then, the whole family would drink, along with any children over the age of three.
The next day, Athenians would visit their deceased loved ones and participate in wine-drinking contests. (You probably see the connection between spring break and Anthesteria pretty clearly by now.) On the last day, the Feast of Ancestors took place, which meant the offering of food to dead souls and Hermes, the Greek god of trade, wealth, luck and fertility. Also on this day, people usually played drinking games. Spring break was born!
Photo by Lance Asper
Lance Asper
American spring break as we know it can be traced back to 1936. That’s when Colgate swim coach Sam Ingram took his team to Ft. Lauderdale during a break in classes. Ingram didn’t choose Ft. Lauderdale for its party potential — he wanted the team to practice in the city’s Olympic-sized pool. Soon, Ft. Lauderdale began hosting more college swim teams. The sun, the beaches, and all the young people combined to make Ft. Lauderdale the capital of fun for spring breakers (and want-to-be spring breakers) around the country.
By 1985, 400,000 students were traveling to Ft. Lauderdale for spring break each year. The same year, the local government banned serving beer to students and restricted partying in general. Undeterred, spring breakers began to bring the party to other Florida beach towns, then other states and other countries. By the 1990s, “spring break” was just a way of describing college kids having a wild time, regardless of location, with Panama City Beach, the Caribbean, and Mexico becoming as popular with spring breakers as Ft. Lauderdale. The culture of spring break has now become a highlight of the college experience. A typical spring breaker spends $1,100 every week during their wild vacation in the sun, a rite of passage for the young and a nuisance and worry for parents everywhere.
Photo by Jay Wennington
Jay Wennington
Love it or hate it, spring breakers will be hitting beaches and towns around the country over the next few weeks. Hopefully, for those no longer in college, they will have plenty of fun but also find a safe, responsible way to enjoy this ancient celebration of the coming of spring.
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News / Travel
Spring breakers, warm weather, and the birth of an American tradition
By Staff, AccuWeather
Published Mar 9, 2020 1:36 PM EDT
When the weather gets sunny and nice, college students come out to play. If you live and work in certain parts of the country like Florida, Texas and California, you probably have mixed feelings about spring breakers.
They can be rowdy, messy and hard to control. But they are also hugely important for some areas, bringing welcome vitality and cash to restaurants, hotels and small businesses.
Roughly 40% of college students travel — and usually travel as a group — for spring break. They spend nearly $1 billion in Florida and Texas alone. Spring breakers are such an established part of American culture that we know them from movies, TV and songs.
But what is less commonly known is the origins of the spring break tradition. As it turns out, the first spring breakers weren’t American at all. They were Greek.
Photo by Jo-B
Origins of Spring Break
It all began in Athens, where people celebrated Anthesteria, a three-day event to mark the coming of spring. In ancient times, it was believed that the souls of the dead walked among the living during these three days and plenty of wine was drank because it had finally matured from the previous harvest. People also decorated their houses with spring flowers and the city filled with music. On the first day of Anthesteria, the opening of the pithoi took place, which meant the opening of the wine vessels. Athenians offered wine to Dionysus, the god of wine and ecstasy in Greek religion and mythology. Then, the whole family would drink, along with any children over the age of three.
The next day, Athenians would visit their deceased loved ones and participate in wine-drinking contests. (You probably see the connection between spring break and Anthesteria pretty clearly by now.) On the last day, the Feast of Ancestors took place, which meant the offering of food to dead souls and Hermes, the Greek god of trade, wealth, luck and fertility. Also on this day, people usually played drinking games. Spring break was born!
Photo by Lance Asper
Modern spring breakers
American spring break as we know it can be traced back to 1936. That’s when Colgate swim coach Sam Ingram took his team to Ft. Lauderdale during a break in classes. Ingram didn’t choose Ft. Lauderdale for its party potential — he wanted the team to practice in the city’s Olympic-sized pool. Soon, Ft. Lauderdale began hosting more college swim teams. The sun, the beaches, and all the young people combined to make Ft. Lauderdale the capital of fun for spring breakers (and want-to-be spring breakers) around the country.
By 1985, 400,000 students were traveling to Ft. Lauderdale for spring break each year. The same year, the local government banned serving beer to students and restricted partying in general. Undeterred, spring breakers began to bring the party to other Florida beach towns, then other states and other countries. By the 1990s, “spring break” was just a way of describing college kids having a wild time, regardless of location, with Panama City Beach, the Caribbean, and Mexico becoming as popular with spring breakers as Ft. Lauderdale. The culture of spring break has now become a highlight of the college experience. A typical spring breaker spends $1,100 every week during their wild vacation in the sun, a rite of passage for the young and a nuisance and worry for parents everywhere.
Photo by Jay Wennington
Love it or hate it, spring breakers will be hitting beaches and towns around the country over the next few weeks. Hopefully, for those no longer in college, they will have plenty of fun but also find a safe, responsible way to enjoy this ancient celebration of the coming of spring.
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