Luilak

Luilak

Between May 9 and June 12; Saturday before Pentecost

Luilak, or Lazybones Day, is a youth festival celebrated in Zaandam, Haarlem, Amsterdam, and other towns in the western Netherlands. The celebration begins at four o'clock in the morning on the Saturday before Pentecost, when groups of young people awaken their neighbors by whistling, banging on pots and pans, and ringing doorbells. Any boys or girls who refuse to get up and join the noisemaking are referred to as Luilak, or "Lazybones," a name that is said to have originated in 1672 when a watchman named Piet Lak fell asleep while French invaders entered the country. Thereafter he was referred to as Luie-Lak, "Lazy Lak." In many parts of the country Luilakbollen, or "Lazybones Cakes," traditionally baked in the shape of fat double rolls and served with syrup, are a specialty of the season.
Children celebrate Luilak by making little wagons, often shaped like boots and decorated with branches and thistles, known as luilakken. Pulling the wagons over the cobblestone streets can generate enough friction to set the wheels smoking. The children then either watch while their luilakken go up in flames or else dump them in the canals.
In Haarlem, Luilak marks the opening of the celebrated Whitsun flower market in the Grote Markt at midnight ( see Merchants' Flower Market).

SOURCES:
BkFest-1937, p. 243
BkFestHolWrld-1970, p. 66
FestWestEur-1958, p. 134
FolkWrldHol-1999, p. 341