Bear running

Bears in 1961 in Raigering

Bear driving is a widespread custom in many places in the Upper Palatinate , especially in the district of Amberg-Sulzbach , in which a young man disguised as a bear is usually up to mischief in the locality on the Monday of the parish fair weekend. In many localities, the bear is accompanied by other figures such as a driver, a "sow" or a "witch".

designation

The term “bear” has nothing to do with a brown or polar bear . Rather, the term aims at the term from the dialect for the male domestic pig , which is also referred to as "bear".

Because of the widespread use of bears and their respective local peculiarities, various names have been used in the regional dialects. In the southeast corner of the Upper Palatinate , the " Kirchweih " is called "Kiada", which is derived from the Bavarian password "Kirchtag". That's why the bear is also called Kiada bear there . In the rest of the Upper Palatinate, the bear is called Kirwabär from the dialect word "Kirwa", which is derived from the East Franconian name "Kirchweih". In Franconia, on the other hand, there is also the term Kerwabär driving .

procedure

Selection of the kirwa bear

In many localities there are special rituals for choosing the kirwa bear and his companion:

• In Ursensollen , the young man becomes the Kirwabär, who is the last to enter the village inn on the Monday of the parish fair weekend.
• In Freudenberg , the role of the Kirwab bear changes several times a day.

Dressing up the kirwa bear

The disguise of the kirwa bear also differs from place to place:

• In Raigering the Kirwabär is painted black and dressed in rubber boots, an apron, a headscarf, a pig's bladder, a cow's tail and the “fairground”.
• Before 1949, the Kirwabär in Freudenberg consisted of a donkey's head and a sheepskin slung around the neck. In 1949 a photographer came through Freudenberg who was carrying a polar bear skin to take pictures of people with it. The Freudenberg family bought this fur from the photographer and used it until 1978 as a disguise for the kirwa bear. In 1979 it was replaced by a new one.
• In Aschach, municipality of Freudenberg , the Kirwabär wears a girdled sheepskin and is accompanied by two Kirva sows dressed in white and with a fairground.
• In Köfering , the Kirwabär wears a black bear costume and a kind of iron crown on his head, and he is led through the village by a metal chain wrapped around his belly. The kirwa bear is accompanied by a kirwahex dressed in a dirndl, a wig with pigtails, a headscarf and slippers and knee socks.

During the bear run in Raigering in 1961, the bear dances with a lady of the house

Kirwabar drifting

During the actual kirwabar hustle and bustle, the kirwabar usually moves through the village with music. In some places he is accompanied by one or more drivers who have the task of taming the kirwa bear, a kirwahex or a kirwasau. Often the Kirwabär then dances with the lady of the house. It is also part of the tradition that young men challenge the kirwa bear to a wrestling match on the street.

Lubricant

As a rule, the kirwa bear carries the so-called "lubricant" with him, with which he blackens children or passers-by accompanying the kirwa bear. The main component of the lubricant is usually soot. This is often mixed with a wide variety of ingredients, for example fat , beer or shoe polish. There is a specialty in Lintach . There the Kirwabär uses red lipstick instead of a mixture of soot.

literature

• Uli Piehler: Me hom Kirwa! Parish fair joys in the Upper Palatinate. 1st edition. Buch & Kunstverlag Oberpfalz, Amberg 2009, ISBN 978-3-935719-56-8 .

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b} From the Kirwa donkey to the Kirwa bear. In: kirwa.net. Ulrich Iberer, Ulrich Piehler, accessed on December 21, 2015 . 
2. ↑ ^{a b c} Uli Piehler: Mir hom Kirwa! Parish fair joys in the Upper Palatinate. 1st edition. Buch & Kunstverlag Oberpfalz, Amberg 2009, ISBN 978-3-935719-56-8 , p. 92 f .
3. ↑ Uli Piehler: Me hom Kirwa! Parish fair joys in the Upper Palatinate. 1st edition. Buch & Kunstverlag Oberpfalz, Amberg 2009, ISBN 978-3-935719-56-8 , p. 107 .
4. ↑ Ursensollner Kirwa Customs. In: kirwagemeinschaft.de. Kirwagemeinschaft Ursensollen, accessed on December 18, 2015 . 
5. ^ Festschrift of the Burschenverein 07 Raigering for the 100th anniversary
6. ↑ Interesting and worth knowing from the Freudenberger Kirwachronik since 1419. In: Homepage of Ferdinand Schwarz. Ferdinand Schwarz, accessed December 18, 2015 . 
7. ↑ Aschacher Kirwa - Monday bear driving 2015. (No longer available online.) In: kbv-aschach.de. KVB Aschach e. V., archived from the original on December 23, 2015 ; accessed on December 22, 2015 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
8. ↑ 2014 - Kirwa Monday. (No longer available online.) In: hkv-koefering.de. Heimat- und Kulturverein Köfering e. V., archived from the original on December 23, 2015 ; accessed on December 22, 2015 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
9. ↑ Reinhard Seidl: The village drove the Kirwab bear in front of it. Schwarzenthonhausen revives old traditions. For the first time in 18 years, the village set up a Christmas tree. In: Mittelbayerische.de. Mittelbayerischer Verlag KG, December 2, 2015, accessed on December 18, 2015 . 
10. ↑ Kirwabar driving. (No longer available online.) In: tourismus.kallmuenz.de. Kallmünz market, archived from the original on December 22, 2015 ; accessed on December 21, 2015 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
11. ↑ Kirwa Lintach : Kirwabär-Treiben 2014. (No longer available online.) In: kirwa-lintach.de. Kirwagemeinschaft Lintach e. V., archived from the original on December 22, 2015 ; accessed on December 21, 2015 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.