Ukrainian Christmas
Ukrainian Christmas ( Ukrainian Різдво ) is celebrated by Orthodox Christians in Ukraine according to the Julian calendar , because the one of Pope Gregory XIII. The Gregorian calendar, introduced in 1582, was not adopted by most of the Orthodox churches for church holiday calculations. For example, December 24th and 25th of the Julian calendar currently (through the year 2100) fall on January 6th and 7th of the Gregorian calendar. Christmas Eve ( святвечір, святий вечір ) is in Ukraine on January 6th (from 2100 on January 7th) of the civil year. Since New Year ( Новий Рік ), like all civil dates, has been celebrated in the former Russian Empire according to the Gregorian calendar since 1918 , there is an interesting oxymoron : the so-called "old new year" ( старий Новий Рік ) is celebrated on January 14th , d. H. January 1st according to the Julian calendar. The eve in Ukraine is often called the “second Christmas Eve”, the “generous evening” ( schedryj vetschir ) or Melanka ( Меланка, Маланка ), since December 31 (July) is the ecclesiastical day of St. Melania .
Nova radist 'stala, jaka ne buvala ( Нова радість стала, яка не бувала ... - "A new joy has come that have never before been") - with these words of a Ukrainian Christmas carol ( колядка koljadka ) is to Christmas on reminds us of the recurring but always new joy over the birth of Jesus. Due to the late introduction of Christianity (not until 988 by Prince Volodymyr the Great in the East Slavic empire of Kievan Rus ), Christmas, like many other Christian festivals, is closely intertwined in Ukraine with the customs and superstitions of paganism. In the lexicon of Christmas carols, the birth of Christ is often compared to the rising of a sun; the festival itself is accompanied by many traditions that are emblematic of the coming year.
According to the Gregorian calendar, Christmas is celebrated on December 25th by Catholic and Protestant Christians in Ukraine. On November 16, 2017, the Verkhovna Rada declared December 25 an official public holiday in Ukraine.
Christmas eve
On Christmas Eve before Christmas (January 6th) the “big family” gathers at the table to celebrate the big event together. The term “family” in Ukrainian corresponds to the German term “ relatives” : At Christmas, the (close) relatives ( родина rodyna ) and not just the family ( сім'я sim'ja ) gather . This is crucial for understanding Christmas in Ukraine as a “family celebration”. This fellowship does not just extend to those present; It is believed that deceased family members also take part.
Twelve fast foods are served and the number recalls the twelve apostles of Christ. Hay is placed under the tablecloth and on the floor, the smell of which is supposed to bring a touch of the real circumstances of the birth of Christ into the solemn living room. Then Diduch ( дідух ) is carried in, a sheaf of wheat, which in the mythological-religious understanding of the people represents the figure of the ancestor, a new, bloodless sacrifice to God and God himself. At the corners of the table, garlic and walnuts are placed under the tablecloth, as a symbol of the cohesion of relatives (like the cloves of a garlic bulb) and the health of each family member (health should be "strong as the nut").
On the table different varieties come from Wareniki ( вареники warenyky ) ( dumplings with filling) with potatoes or steamed sauerkraut (and / or a mixture of both), also a fast variation of the Ukrainian National feed Borsch (борщ) This is a special sort donut ( пампушки Pampuschky ) eaten, hearty and dipped in a garlic sauce. There are also herrings, various salads without meat and white bread slices topped with sprats, butter and lemon, as well as biscuits and other dishes. Most important of all is kutja ( кутя ) - a nutritious sweet food, another symbol of Christmas that is especially popular with children. Kutja is mainly made from boiled wheat grains, poppy seeds ground and soaked with sugar and, depending on your taste, with walnuts, raisins and honey. In different regions of Ukraine, rice or barley is often used as the base instead of wheat.
When all the dishes are on the table, the eldest family member present opens the solemn dinner with a prayer, the blessing of the Kutja and a first spoon of it. After everyone has tasted the kutja, other dishes can also be eaten.
Koljaduwaty ( колядувати ) (Christmas carols - коляди koljady , - singing) is one of the most important activities during the Christmas season, as it not only praises God, but also conjures up happiness, success and prosperity for all relatives in the New Year. While many Christmas carols have visible pagan traces within them (God as a sun figure; the concept of God as a person physically present attending and thereby blessing the family dinner; figure of Mary as a symbol of fertility, etc.), there is one Most of the songs express a political national idea: Just as God let his son come into the world as a human being on the night of Christmas Eve, he should also give the Ukrainians their own nation-state again after centuries of oppression by various empires. Since independence in 1991, however, this has clearly lost its relevance.
Children's games also have a special meaning on this evening: they are a sign of the family's prosperity in the New Year. If you z. For example, if you hear more chickens than roosters in the game “Chickens and Roosters”, it will be a good year because they stand for fertility.
When dinner is over and the table has been tidied up, a bowl of kutja is placed on the table with a suitable number of spoons: for the souls of the deceased who visit the family on Christmas Eve to take part in the solemn dinner and thus to their loved ones support.
First christmasday
Christmas Day (January 7th) is also a complex mixture of pagan and Christian elements: First you go to church for mass (which in the Byzantine tradition can last up to four hours on this day), but the family is allowed are not visited by women in the morning. This would bring bad luck and problems in the coming year and, in order to avoid this, many housewives do not shy away from not opening the door at all. However, if a man or a boy comes, he is invited in and entertained.
After the mass, everyone gathers again at the table for lunch, but this time with meat dishes: roast poultry, various types of homemade ham and smoked sausage (mostly from their own slaughtered pig), meat salads and other delicacies. Alcohol beverages can now also be drunk, as Lent is over on Christmas Day. There are no presents on Christmas Day. Since the festival has a sacred meaning for the family, the community of the family comes to the fore.
After lunch they meet again. In many regions is expected carolers groups in the afternoon of the first Christmas day. In the evenings, children act out the Christmas story, read poems and sing Christmas carols. For this they get money and sweets from the adults as a reward.
Second day of Christmas
Boxing Day (January 8th) is the day of the " carol singers" ( колядники ). On this day you will also visit distant relatives and expect the first groups of stars in the late afternoon. These have a long tradition in Ukraine and are repeated in a similar, carnival-like manner in Melanka customs for the “old new year”. At Christmas, however, the groups are formed from (often disguised) children, adolescents or adults of similar age and sometimes only of the same sex. Each family is visited by up to ten different groups in one evening. They congratulate her on the birth of Christ and wish prosperity and health in the New Year, recreate the Christmas story, make jokes and sing Christmas carols.
The hosts and guests thank them with money and sweets or other food (in the past especially with sausage and ham). While the disguise is optional (at least traditional costume-like dresses are important), the poinsettia and a bell are indispensable for the carol singers. There are also many customs related to this: B. you give a child who has not started speaking for a long time to drink from the bell in order to “deliver” his tongue. Young people koljadnyky ( carol singers) often form groups according to gender and go from house to house with their songs and Christmas stories : if the girls earn more money and sweets, the boys have to fulfill a wish or a task for them and vice versa. The money and food collected are put together at the end for vecornyci (an evening of dancing and games).
Web links
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- ↑ The Verkhovna Rada has recognized December 25 as an official holiday in Ukraine ( memento of the original from December 29, 2018 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Official website of the Zhytomyr Oblast Administration; accessed on December 29, 2018 (Ukrainian)
