Curious Bulgarian traditions From fire dancing to name days

There are many Bulgarian traditions and celebrations that often get a “Really?!” reaction from foreigners, and the following are a small selection. Many of them originate from pagan times or have Christian roots, and have been strictly followed for centuries.

Baba Marta One of the most highly valued customs in Bulgaria is called Baba Marta (literally, Granny March), starting on the 1st of March and celebrating the beginning of spring. Family members, relatives, friends, and colleagues give each other white and red tassels that you normally wear on your wrist. They are only taken off when you see a stork or a blossoming tree, which symbolize the messengers of the arrival of the warmer season.

Fire dancing Fire dancing, more famous in Bulgaria as nestinarstvo, can be seen in villages around the area of Bourgas (a city in the sea of Bulgaria), mainly on the holiday of St. Konstantin and Elena (May 21st).The dancers, who are most often women, perform a dance on hot glowing embers whilst in a trance state. The tradition implies that the fire dancer is chosen and guided by the saint of the holiday, whose icon is being held while dancing on the embers.

Name days and Palm Sunday Name days are paid a lot of respect in Bulgaria, almost as much as birthdays. Many people are named after saints, for example everyone who is called Georgi will celebrate their name day on St. Georgi’s day (May 6th).Palm Sunday, known in Bulgaria as Tsvetnica is the holiday of flowers and trees and for centuries people have believed that it is a day of the forests, meadows and fields On this day, everyone named after a flower or a tree celebrates their name day with a big family gathering and a meal..

Easter traditions in Bulgaria The Bulgarian Orthodox Easter traditions vary from the common Easter traditions: they involve egg colouring, egg breaking and Easter breads.The egg breaking custom takes place before the big meal and it involves all the family members tapping their eggs against each other, after each person has chosen a colourful egg. The person with the last unbroken egg is said to have a whole year of luck to look forward to.The typical Easter bread in Bulgaria is called kozunak and it is a sweet bread, sometimes with raisins in it.

The New Year’s Eve chasing away of evil spirits Before New Year’s Eve approaches, children prepare (with the help of their parents) a survachka, which is a tree branch, decorated with all kinds of coloured threads, dry fruit, dry peppers and popcorn. The kids also learn a few verses, which they recite whilst beating the backs of their family and relatives (lightly of course) with the survachka.

Kukeri The participants in this ritual are called kukeri and they are dressed-up men in handmade costumes and masks, all made of wood, leather, fur and copper and bronze bells hang off them. They dance, play games, make jokes, jump, jingle the bells and roll on the floor.

Valentine’s Day vs. Winemaker’s Day Bulgarians celebrate both holidays: couples normally focus on Valentine’s Day and the single ones have a tradition of appreciating Bulgarian wine in huge quantities! Jordanov Day or cross-searching in the cold waters The tradition entails a priest ritually throwing a cross into a river, lake or any water basin, and all the men wishing to be healthy over the coming year jumping in the ice cold waters to look for it. Old beliefs dictate that if the cross freezes whilst in the water, the year will bring fertile crops

Throwing away the umbilical cord Originally, the umbilical cord is thrown away at a specific place that predetermines the fate of the child. For instance, if thrown in a school, the baby will become a teacher, if thrown in the sea - a sailor, if thrown in a church - a priest