Sankt Hans Aften på Langeland og Strynø

Sankt Hans mandag d. 23. juni 2025

• Lohals Havn, Nordstranden i Lohals(bål kl. 21:00)
• Restaurant Koas (Sankt Hans Menu) 
• Bagenkop Havn (bål kl. 21:30)
• Dageløkke Havn (bål, taler og fællessang)
• Humble, pladsen ved Lærkevej (bål kl. 20:00)
• Tullebølle Fritidspark (bål kl. 20:30)
• Spodsbjerg Borgerforening (bål kl. 21:00)
• Ristinge Havn (bål kl. 21:00)
• Longelse Præstegårdshaven (bål kl. 19:00)
• Restaurant Skudehavnen Rudkøbing (Sankt Hans-grillbuffet)

The list is updated regularly.
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Why do we celebrate Sankt Hans?

Midsummer's Eve, 23 June, is the evening before Midsummer's Day, which is the birthday of John the Baptist.

Although the summer solstice falls on 21 June, Midsummer's Eve in Denmark has been considered midsummer's Eve and therefore the shortest night of the year.

According to folklore, Midsummer's Eve was charged with a special power. It was believed that medicinal herbs gathered on Midsummer's Eve were more powerful, just as the dew on the grass itself had a healing effect.
So did the water in the holy springs, which is why the sick flocked to them on this evening and night. The so-called spring markets with tents, stalls and fun and games developed in connection with this. The most famous is the Dyrehavsbakken amusement centre north of Copenhagen, which emerged in the 1700s. It provided material for Adam Oehlenschläger's Sanct Hansaften-Spil (1803).

But evil forces were also at work on such a powerful night; for example, witches flew past on their broomsticks on their way to Bloksbjerg or Hekkenfeldt.
To keep evil at bay, bonfires were lit, preferably in high places, or flames were lit in tar barrels or straw bundles on sticks.

Putting a witch figure on the bonfire is a tradition that only became common in the 1900s, when it also became common to give a bonfire speech and sing Holger Drachmann's midsummer song from the fairytale comedy Once Upon a Time (1885).