Mysterious Romania (XVII) Name Day

There’s a tradition in Romania that, I’m almost certain, is unique.

While people living in other countries celebrate  only their birthday, Romanians can have a second celebration – the name day.

It is valid for people who were given the name of a saint: Maria (Mary), Ion ( John), Vasile(Basil), Petre (Peter), Gheorghe(George), Andrei(Andrew) and so on.

Each saint has his or her day in the calendar, so on that date the people with a saint name have a party.

While for birthdays you have to be invited to go to that person’s house, on the name day everyone who wants to congratulate the celebrated person can come. There are no invitations. Usually people bring flowers and candy-boxes to women and  flowers and drink bottles to men. ( You may imagine how happy are florists around here).

 

On 26th October, tomorrow, there’s a great festivity as there’s St Dumitru’s day( Demeter). All women and men called Dumitra, Dumitru, Dumitrita celebrate and receive gifts from family and friends.

 Folk tradition says that, on this day, warmth goes inside the earth and cold comes out. St Dumitru takes the leaves out of the trees and makes the flowers go dry.  On this day the doors are unlocked and winter is released on earth. 

Fire has a great symbolism now. Fire is a pastoral divinity protecting the shepherds and purifying the sheep.

On St Dumitru’s Eve people start a night  ceremonial fire called Samedru’s fire.

Children jump over the fire, when the flames aren’t high, to be healthy all along the year. The old people of the village throw a piece of cinder from that fire in the garden to give it the power to bear fruit again the next spring.

This ceremony is century old and has a preChristian origin. In ancient times people started the fires to allow the spirits of the dead, coming on earth, to get warm.  

On St Dumitru’s Eve, shepherds lay a sheepskin down, among the sheep. If a black sheep comes and sits on it the winter will be mild, if a white sheep comes and sits on it the winter will be a harsh one.

Women must share dry fruits, nuts and apples to the children and a special service is held in churches.

 Wishing all who celebrate their name day tomorrow – my husband included -  a long healthy life, full of joy!

And here’s the traditional Romanian wish -  

                     Sa traiesti cu numele!

Birthday Wishes for A Special Friend

                 Carmen aka Katie Marin, my life long friend, celebrates her birthday today.
                                    HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!

In loneliness, in sickness, in confusion - the mere knowledge of friendship makes it possible to endure, even if the friend is powerless to help. It is enough that friends exist.

                       

 Pompilia Stoian's song expresses in the best possible way my own thoughts and feelings:

"Prietena draga, ne cunoastem de-o viata.

De ani si ani langa mine te stiu.

Mi-ai dat mereu cu-n suras, o povata

Si-n ceasul greu mi-ai fost sprijinul viu."

I want just one thing: to live long enough to pay back, in some way, your undeserved and overwhelming friendship!

Easter Traditions in my country, Romania

Easter is one of the most important celebrations of Christianity, commemorating the moment when Jesus came back from the dead. Romanians start preparing for this special day long before the day itself as  Lent lasts for 48 days. During these days people go to church, many of them give up meat, eggs, or dairy products. It’s  considered a ritual of purification for both the body and soul.

In my country, the symbol of this celebration is the  red Easter egg. Eggs, in general, were a traditional symbol of fertility, and rebirth

Why do we paint the Easter eggs in red? It is said that when Virgin Mary came to cry for her crucified son, she placed a basket of eggs under the Cross. The eggs turned red as a symbol of the blood that flowed from the wounds of Jesus, and since then we paint Easter eggs. At first, the eggs were painted only in red, but later we started painting them in many colors, including green, yellow, orange, blue, and even black.

On the night before Easter, Romanians put on new clothes and go to church. At midnight, everyone lights a candle from the priest’s candle. The light from these candles symbolizes the return of Jesus from the dead. It’s a very special moment and the sight of hundreds of candles in the night can take your breath away.

At dawn, after attending the religious service, everyone goes home, carefully holding their candle. On Easter morning we wash our faces with water from a bowl , into which we put a red egg and a coin. It is said that if you wash your face with this water, you will be healthy and beautiful – just like an Easter egg.

Even after Easter is over, there are some words that can be heard on the streets for weeks to come. When a person sees a friend or family for the first time after Easter has passed, the normal introduction is skipped and the first person says, “Cristos a inviat (Christ has risen).” The second person responds by saying, “Adevarat a inviat (Indeed, he has risen).” This verbal exchange is very much part of the celebration and is a way for people to remind each other of the importance of Easter even after the holiday is over.

Wishing all my awesome followers, bloggers and fellow authors, who celebrate Easter this Sunday, a sunny spring with lots of joy and accomplishments!

MARTISOR -Traditional Romanian Celebration

Mărțișor ( [mərtsiʃor]) is an old Romanian celebration at the beginning of spring, on March the 1st, which according to old calendar was also considered as the beginning of the new year. Symbolically, it is correlated to women and to fertility as a means of life and continuity. Alike though not identical customs can be found in Bulgaria, while similar ones exist in Albania, Greece and Italy.

The name Mărțișor is the diminutive of marț, the old folk name for March (Martie, in modern Romanian), and thus literally means "little March". It is also the folk name for this month. Some ethnologists believe that the Mărțișor celebration has Roman origins, others support the theory that it is an old Dacian tradition.

Mărțișor, marț and mărțiguș are all names for the red and white string from which a small decoration is tied, and which is offered by people on the 1st day of March. Giving this talisman to people is an old custom, and it is believed that the one who wears the red and white string will be strong and healthy for the year to come. It is also a symbol of the coming spring. Usually, both women and men wear it pinned to their clothes, close to the heart, until the last day of March, when they tie it to the branches of a fruit-tree. In modern times, and especially in urban areas, the Mărțișor lost most of its talisman properties and became more of a symbol of friendship or love, appreciation and respect. The black threads were replaced with red, but the delicate wool ropes are still a ‘cottage industry’ among people in the countryside, who comb out the wool, dye the floss, and twist it into thousands of tassels. In some areas the amulets are still made with black and white ropes, for warding off evil.

                Nowadays, on March 1, Romanians buy silky red-white threads tied into a bow to which a small trinket is attached and offer them to the (female) family members, friends and colleagues to show friendship, respect or admiration.