Who came up with the idea of spring cleaning? And why Spring?
jaysonjust asked:
What is the reasoning behind cleaning the house once a year? Why not fall cleaning or summer cleaning…. Why spring? If it were to do with the New Year they wouldn’t we have New Year cleaning? I’m guessing it had to do with something culturally that I’m unaware of. Anyone know how this whole spring-cleaning thing came about?
Amazon.com’s home, cleaning and gardening department
What is the reasoning behind cleaning the house once a year? Why not fall cleaning or summer cleaning…. Why spring? If it were to do with the New Year they wouldn’t we have New Year cleaning? I’m guessing it had to do with something culturally that I’m unaware of. Anyone know how this whole spring-cleaning thing came about?
Amazon.com’s home, cleaning and gardening department
January 14th, 2009 | Tags: Cleaning House, New Year, Spring Cleaning | Category: questions answered
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January 15th, 2009 at 11:02 pm
i don’t know who.. but i think it’s spring cleaning because the sun is shining but it’s to cold to be outside, and u exusted all ur winter activities so all u can do is clean.
January 18th, 2009 at 7:47 am
spring is a day when there is no trouble,no messy leaves,no hot days,no snow…
January 20th, 2009 at 2:07 pm
I think my mom came up with it to torture us,,,we wanted to be outside playing,she made us stay inside and clean out closets,and cabinets..lol
January 21st, 2009 at 11:30 am
back in the colonial days folks would basically be trapped in their house for the entire winter. People lived many miles from the nearest town so they only went once or twice a month when the roads were clear, in the snow they did not even go once a month, so after the winter with a family living in close and closed quarters the house and their bodies needed a good cleaning.
January 21st, 2009 at 6:45 pm
i don’t know who came up with it, but it is about a new year, and the birth of new things and creatures…out with the old and in with the new…baby animals are born, the plants are reborn, flowers have reborn blossoms new and fresh… so out with the old ones spring cleans out the dead things of last year, and brings a rebirth to new and fresh lively hood…it is a clensing of nature in order to be in line with it, we must throw out the old and refresh our lives with a clean start…
January 22nd, 2009 at 7:41 pm
Spring cleaning is a thorough cleanining of the house occurring normally at the beginning of spring. The origins of spring cleaning date back to the Iranian Norouz, the Persian new year, which falls on the first day of spring. Iranians continue the practice of “khooneh takouni” which literally means “shaking the house” just before the new year. Everything in the house is thoroughly cleaned, from the drapes to the furniture.
In colder climates in wintertime there are often weeks at a time when the ground is covered with snow and the snow does not stay white and clean for long. In a week or so, the snow gets mixed with sand, grit, grime, and dirt. That mixture is then tracked into houses on snowboots where it quickly forms a nearly impenetrable layer of grime on floors and clothing as well as the lower portion of walls and appliances. Removing this layer of dirt in a house requires major cleaning— furniture must be moved, rugs taken out, and heavy duty cleaning equipment such as carpet shampooers must be employed.
January 25th, 2009 at 8:07 am
No idea of who came up with it BUT I think Spring Cleaning has everything to do with the winter being gone and the house being opened up from the warmer temps. Truthfully, when it gets warmer, I feel like doing more-getting out more, cleaning, etc. I think when we aire our homes out and get some sun on our face, we’re definitely more motivated and in a better mood. Hope this helps.
January 25th, 2009 at 9:00 am
I think spring cleaning probably originated with Passover. Before Passover, Jews are supposed to get rid of all the yeast and yeast products (such as bread) from the house, and not have any yeast for eight days. Clearing all the yeast from the house requires thorough cleaning, and Passover occurs in the early spring–therefore, “spring cleaning”.
(My older sister came up with this theory a few years ago.)
January 26th, 2009 at 6:17 am
Spring cleaning came about in the Middle Ages because in England, the practice was to spread hay on the stone floors to keep them warm. As winter progressed, more and more straw was laid on top of the old straw. By spring, the straw had gotten downright nasty and filthy. So the practice was to clear it all out and thoroughly clean the floors. As to people, they would rarely wash, believing that excessive (like more than once a month) bathing led to illness. The Spring bath was usually done during the first warm spell, when people felt they wouldn’t get sick if they bathed.
January 27th, 2009 at 7:15 am
I agrre with Ecream, but also, it was a time to throw out stale stored food and replace it with freshly picked stuff.
January 28th, 2009 at 10:35 am
Just some crazy ritual from the June Cleaver era. Cleaning all year makes it easier and you don’t have to work so hard when springs gets here!