Talk about Christmas traditions and customs in Russia
пятница 13 января 2023, 15:20
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«How marvelous the moonlight! It is impossible to describe the joy, on a night like this. Of bustling along with a crowd of laughing and singing girls, and with a lot of fellows getting up to every manner of prank and mischief that is put into their head by such a happy, laughing night. It is cosy inside the thick sheepskin coats; your cheeks glow redder in the frosty air, and Old Slyboots himself puts you up to all sorts of tricks». N. V. Gogol «Christmas Eve» Christmas has been celebrated since the 10th century, after the baptism of Rus by prince Vladimir. Christmas traditions have changed many times. For instance, a nativity theater came from Poland to Russia in the 17th – 18th century. Then at the beginning of the 20th century there was Ded Moroz as an analogue of Western Santa Claus. From 1929 to 1991, the celebration was forbidden by the Soviet government. Only after Perestroika the tradition of celebrating was revived. The Christmas week is surrounded by a magic halo. Even our ancestors observed nature during this period of time to know how the year would go. We inherited traditions, omens and divinations. Christmas carols are widespread. The carol is a little song about events of the birth of Jesus Christ. Those who sing receive sweets, and those who listen thank the singers with treats. There are also omens that are used to predict the future. For example, if the weather on Christmas day is very frosty, then the summer will be hot. If this day is warm, the spring will be cold. We have an interesting tradition, when a cake with a coin hidden in it is placed on the festive table. The one who became the owner of a piece with a coin will be financially well-off. If you see a big dog on this day, a great luck will be ahead. On holidays you can look into the future by turning to divinations. The simplest divination is a fortune-telling by a book. All you need to do is ask a question, open the page at random, and land your finger on a random line. The phrase will be an answer or an advice. It is important to choose the right book! So we suggest turning to the classic of literature and learning more about Christmas traditions and miracles. We recommend you to get acquainted with the topic through the story of Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol «Christmas Eve». In the UrFU Library there is this book in Russian and English languages, and an audio version is also available in the ELS «University Library Online». Text and translation
by E. A. Solovyeva
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