BULGARIAN FESTIVALS AND CUSTOMS

According to the Greek philosopher Democritus, life without festivals resembles a long journey without inns to stop at. According to ethnographic experts, the rites connected to Bulgarian festivals exceed 11,000. Indeed, endless is the path of customs, which had accompanied the Bulgarian from the cradle to the grave. However, they have one thing in common, and that is... But let's take first thing first and only then venture into generalization.

The richest picture in the winter calendar is that of Christmas & New Year' s customs, which lend a national coloring to these worldwide celebrations.

Since times immemorial the fire and spread have been symbols of generosity and abundance. The richer the spread on the table, the more fruitful the coming year was to be. This is why every kind of food produced in the village is placed on the table. The ritual bread depicts symbols of the vines and hives, of the field and the garden. A special place is devoted to the banitza (typical Bulgarian white cheese pastry) with baked-in cornel twigs symbolizing the home and the cattle, good health and sound learning. The honor of kindling the fire befalls on the eldest person at home. From early morning, swept up with a juniper broom, the fireplace awaits the yule-log - solid log, usually of oak because to its longevity. It is lit at dusk and its burning throughout the night spells the future and fertility. Many rites and wishes for prosperity form part of that night. But it is the impatiently awaited

Sourvakari (men going from house to house wishing people a Happy New Year) who must say the magic words. Late after midnight, they set out on their round of the homes, tapping everybody on the back with decorated cornel twigs, with wishes for health, long life and success. The cornel twig, or sourvachka, is their indispensable attribute, and is differently decorated in the country's different regions.

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Koledouvane (Christmas Carol Singing) is a nationwide custom, which shares many common features with the sourvakane. The Koledari (carol singers) also visit the households with wishes for health and prosperity. They are then presented with specially prepared food. Again, their dress and ornaments differ from region to region. Instead of a sourvachka, however, they carry a Koledarka - a long oak stick, richly carved. Extremely colorful folklore is the characteristic of this custom - songs, blessings, and dances. Here is the main difference between them: the Kouledari perform on Christmas Eve, the Sourvakari on New Year's Day. Stemming from the difference between the Julian and the Gregorian calendar, both customs have preserved their original vitality and are related in meaning. But if their meaning lies in the expectation of fertility, another New Year's Eve custom is particularly touching with the hope of marriage and family happiness.

Ladouvane or the singing to rings is a maiden's rite performed on New Year's Day only in West Bulgaria, the Central Balkan Range and in some areas along the Danube river. In the rest of the country, the custom is celebrated on Midsummer Day. Preparations start early in the day. The lasses drop their rings together with oats and barley - the symbols of fertility - into a cauldron containing spring water. The rings are tied with a red thread to a bunch of a perennial plant such as ivy, crane's bill or basil. The cauldron is left overnight in the open, beneath the stars and on New Year's Eve, following ritual dances around it, the girls' fortunes are told. The last major winter holiday of the Bulgarian peasants is THE FIRST SUNDAY BEFORE LENT (seven weeks before Easter). From that date onwards, until autumn when the fieldwork is completed, no marriages are concluded. The most important custom of the week is the Mummer's Games. They are related to the Dionysian festivities of the ancient Thracians and stand for abundance in the broadest sense - from a barn full of wheat, to a house full of children.

The Mummers Custom (KUKERI) marks the beginning of the spring calendar and preparations for it take some more time. Everybody makes his own personal mask - a proof of the skill and aesthetic feeling of each mummer. This is why no two ritual masks resemble each other. In general, they are multi-colored, covered with beads, ribbons and woollen tassels. The dress, too, is colourful and florid, once again the fruit of individual imagination. The colourfulness of masks, dress and ritual dances lend a theatrical or carnival feature to the custom. An important element of it is the symbolic ploughing and sowing - a sign of a rich harvest from fields and gardens. The heavy swaying of the main mummer is meant to represent wheat heavy with grain and the bells tied around the waist are intended to drive away the evil and sickness.

Trifon Zarezan, which is celebrated during the first half of February, is another long-standing custom of an occupational nature. On Vine-grower's Day, the vines are pruned and sprinkled with wine throughout the country. Ritual songs and dances are performed around the abundant spread, with wishes for a plentiful harvest. In some areas, a "Vine King" is chosen, who is crowned with a wreath of wine twigs. Everybody treats him with great respect, for it is believed that fertility will depend on the King's happiness.




The colourful rituals of the MUMMERS and TRIFON ZAREZAN attract many visitors from different countries. The National Mummers and Sourvakari Festival (held every five years in the town of Pernik, on January 20th) is attended by an ever-growing number of foreign tourists. Paricipation in the Trifon Zarezan festivities is an exciting experience. Visits to well-known vine growing centers are organized, the vines are pruned, and the guests sample wine and local dishes.

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The MARTENITZA is a unique national custom known only in Bulgaria and originating from the ancient Thracians. The first martenitzas were made of white and red woollen thread to which a silver or gold coin was tied occasionally. The March the First rites are interesting and varied. In some regions women dress completely in red on this day and in North-East Bulgaria the lady of the house tosses a red cloth over a fruit tree, or spread red wool onto the field for fertility. In stockbreeding areas, a white-and-red thread is tied to the cattle. The tradition today is as alive as ever: every year on March 1st, the Bulgarians present each other with martenitzas.

St. George's Day is the most important celebration day. It takes place on May 6th and has a strong occupational content, marking the beginning of commerce and stock-breading for the year. Its vivid ritual features have been preserved until today - on the night before May 6th, young boys pick blossoming willow twigs to decorate the house, pens and cattle for health. During the night, the sheep are turned out to grass because the dew is said to have curative powers at that time. During the day, the table is laid with ritual bread and dishes, and merry songs are sung, with the traditional wishes for joy and abundance.

Not long before St. George's Day, the great festival of youth takes place:

LAZAROUVANE Alive and celebrated throughout the country. it is of Slav origin and besides the assertion of fertility, also bears an element of love and marriage. This also determines the particular attention paid to dress: festive and beautiful, with superb heavy jewellery. The lazarouvane is a string of ritual games and songs studied in advance by the young girls during the long Lent. The ritual versions are many, the difference being in the celebrations of St. Lazar's Day itself (8 days before Easter). The feature shared in common, however, is the coming out of girls fit to be married. Getting married and setting up a home has always been a part of the feelings and hopes of the Bulgarian. In days of old, people believed that the greater the rituals devoted to marriage, the better the guarantee for happiness, long life and a house full of children.

BULGARIAN WEDDING The family custom of the BULGARIAN WEDDING is a string of rituals and symbols. Although it starts with the invitation of the guests, preparations in both houses continue for days: wedding banners are made, bread is baked, and a number of rituals symbolizing the end of bachelorhood and maidenhood are performed. The dressing of the bride is an exciting ritual and the departure from the native home is saturated with emotion - in the yard, thickly veiled, the bride turns to the door and to her parents with three ritual farewell bows. Her welcome at the groom's house is also accompanied by interesting symbolic actions. She is presented with bread and salt, wine and honey - so that his and hers married life may be sweet and harmonious.

Have you noticed the common feature of the Bulgarian festivities and customs?

It is the ideal person whose traits are virtue, industriousness, a sharp mind, good health and a sense of beauty. And good actions! The acting figures of all popular celebrations: the koledari, the sourvakari, the mummers and lazarki, in all possess the unusual power of doing good; their wishes and blessings invariably chase away the evil. In this sense, the Bulgarian festivals and customs are a moral, aesthetic and philosophical behest passed down from generation to generation. Developed and enriched, they have remained alive as man's contacts with his environment and his fellow men.

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