https://padlet.com/stefaniasimona/xmascards Christmas is a major annual celebration, as in most Christian states. Christmas was introduced with the advent of Christianity in Romania. en-us 2017-12-13 17:03:51 UTC 2024-06-20 11:12:36 UTC hello@padlet.com https://padlet-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/icons/Ornamenttree.png stefaniasimona https://padlet.com/stefaniasimona/xmascards/wish/215931241 Traditions, superstitions and customs passed from generation to generation.
Christmas is the period of traditions, superstitions, and habits transmitted from generation to generation. The carols, scenes with religious motives and rich meals are indispensable in all corners of the country, especially in the village, where customs have been kept better.
Christmas Feast means for all the inhabitants of Europe time spent with family, parties, gifts, joy, but there are some customs that vary according to the country and the history of each people.
Linguists did not agree on the origin of the word "Christmas". Some say they would have been inherited from the Latin "creationem", which means creation or birth, and other historical sources would suggest that it is the origin of a much older, Thracian word before Romanization of Dacia. Other specialists say it would come from glory. At least eight different meanings have been associated with this word over time.
Christmas is a period of traditions, superstitions, and habits transmitted from generation to generation. In all the historical areas of Romania, the center of the winter holidays is the family and the faith in a better and prosperous year.
On the evening of the Eve, the houses are clean and ready to wait for the caroling. The carol is the most widespread Christmas tradition, along with the decoration of the fir tree.

]]> 2017-12-13 18:36:28 UTC https://padlet.com/stefaniasimona/xmascards/wish/215931241 stefaniasimona https://padlet.com/stefaniasimona/xmascards/wish/215934309 For the most anticipated holiday in December, Christmas, the Romanians have equally turned to tradition, knowing to accept more recent customs. Welcoming with joy, the Birth of the Savior brings with it a sum of very old practices that celebrate the Winter Solstice, the moment when nature gives hope to revive.
The custom of caroling embraced not only ritualistic song and gesture but also many messages and symbols of an ancient Romanian spirituality. He has preserved himself sometimes associating with the celebration of the great Christian event that is the Nativity of Jesus Christ. There are also star songs (or Christian carols) that have the theme of Nativity.
On the eve of Christmas, on the sidelines, in all the villages in the country, begins the caroling. The children with the star of the Birth of the Lord and are gladly welcomed by the hosts who reward them with apples, walnuts and cola. The singing of star songs is a very important part of the Romanian Christmas celebrations. On the first Christmas day, many carols walk in the snow-covered streets of the towns and villages, holding a star made of cardboard and paper with biblical scenes painted on it. The Romanian tradition demands that the children go home from home , singing star songs and reciting poems or legends throughout Christmas. The leader carries a wooden star, covered with tin and decorated with bells and colored ribbons. An image of the Holy Family is stuck in the center of the star and the whole creation is attached to a broom quill or a strong stick.

]]> 2017-12-13 18:43:02 UTC https://padlet.com/stefaniasimona/xmascards/wish/215934309 stefaniasimona https://padlet.com/stefaniasimona/xmascards/wish/215939496 In Maramures, those who are caroling are people in all their flesh. It is customary to pass on to each house and then, with the hosts who have mastered it, to continue caroling. The Christmas Eve is over and everyone can enjoy ritual food: pork, sarmale, chocolate and cozonace, cakes and wine. The three Christmas days bring peace and quiet to the houses. There is also a period of culinary and spiritual posture that takes place before Christmas, for six weeks ending on Christmas Eve. On Christmas Eve there is the custom of decorating in the house or in the yard a fir tree with different globes, with sweat or with chocolates called salons. The three Christmas days are 25,26 and 27 December. These holy days are respected hundreds of years old traditions. The oath is one of these habits. Both groups of children and groups of adults gather together and go carols to the neighbors' houses or to other people's homes. Then, "What a great news," a very old melody and very popular in the people, as well as "A beautiful tree". The carols are always served with food (coils made in the house) or money. The Slavic people from Romania celebrated on January 7 Christmas because of their Christmas is that same date two weeks after the Romanian Orthodox Christmas.]]> 2017-12-13 18:54:26 UTC https://padlet.com/stefaniasimona/xmascards/wish/215939496 stefaniasimona https://padlet.com/stefaniasimona/xmascards/wish/215945260 The Christmas tree, as we know it today, decorated with globes in which the sparkle light of the candles or the electrical installation is reflected, has not always been adorned.
Although in Europe its pre-Christian origin is no longer contested by anyone, opinions remain divided: some see in it a representation of the "tree of the world"; others regard it as a direct reference to the "paradise tree", adorned with apples a bright red, which reminds of the sins committed by the first men before their banishment from heaven.
Until the 15th century, the green twigs with which Christmas houses were adorned, as did the gifts that made each other's people, were considered pagan traditions. But not long ago an entire tree would be used instead.

]]> 2017-12-13 19:06:47 UTC https://padlet.com/stefaniasimona/xmascards/wish/215945260 stefaniasimona https://padlet.com/stefaniasimona/xmascards/wish/215946700 According to the documents, in 1605 in Strasbourg the first Christmas tree was erected in a public market. She had no candles yet and was adorned with red apples. In 1611, in Breslau, Duchess Dorothea Sybille von Schlesien adorns the first fir tree as we know it today.
After 1878, the Thuringian-silver-stained Christmas decorations (globes) are more and more successful, so this pure German tradition will conquer the entire world, being adopted everywhere, whether it is Asia, Africa, North America and South or Australia.
At the end of the 19th century, in the German salons, the feast was unthinkable without the Christmas tree, adorned and sparkle. In 1776, through the German soldiers who participated with the English in the war of independence, the tradition of the Christmas tree reached the United States, and in 1880 the White House conquered.
At the time, the first Romanian students started to study at the universities of Berlin or Vienna, and at the royal court of the Hohenzollern dynasty arrived in the Romanian Lands in 1866 where princes and princesses began to adorn the fir tree , the habit being immediately imitated by the Bucharest counterpart. The German Christmas Song O Tannenbaum, with lyrics by Melchior Franck, set on a popular melody in Silesia, from the 16th century, becomes Romanian A beautiful tree, and the custom of firing of the fir tree penetrates into all Romanians' houses.

]]> 2017-12-13 19:09:47 UTC https://padlet.com/stefaniasimona/xmascards/wish/215946700 stefaniasimona https://padlet.com/stefaniasimona/xmascards/wish/215950264 In the villages of Maramures, the carolites storm the streets from Christmas Eve and are rewarded with nuts, apples, coils or money. The young people walk from home to the house with "Steaua" or "Capra", a representation spread in many areas of Romania, according to the book "Traditions de Crăciun" by the Center for Creation, Art and Tradition Bucharest.
Something special and celebrated in the Maramureş area is the "Games of the Land", the origin of which is believed to have been the ceremonies with masks from the nights of waking, an ancient ritual of honor of the dead. After riding all night, children and young people take their whips and go out into the village streets. Whoever is in their way is "cut off" by the whip of the "handsome." The Maramures "mosques" generally wear a mask made of fur horns and knock at people's doors to scare them and hate a better year.

]]> 2017-12-13 19:16:41 UTC https://padlet.com/stefaniasimona/xmascards/wish/215950264 stefaniasimona https://padlet.com/stefaniasimona/xmascards/wish/215954562 Another tradition in this corner of Romania is "Viflaimul" - a popular play in which the moment of the appearance of the magicians and the shepherds that preceded the birth of Jesus is recreated. About 20-30 young people can participate in this show, in which are embodied biblical characters such as Mary, Joseph, Herod, the publisher, the innkeeper, the angel, the shepherds, the three Eastern rays, the soldiers, the death, the devil, and many others, depending on how big the fog is.
Also here, Christmas is not sweaty, laundry is not washed and nothing is borrowed. Those who have animals and birds in the household are accustomed to giving their food a lot of food and a piece of leavened dough, which is said to protect them from disease.
In some areas, on Christmas Eve there are still fruit trees with straw to be more fruitful in the coming year. The superstitious goats with garlic, cattle, horns and hips, to cast out evil spirits. From ancestors it is said that if the cattle lie on the evening of the evening on the left, it is a sign that winter will be long and frosty.
Also in Transylvania, there are still kept in the villages of Târnave the "valet of boys". The boys are gathering in the mud to gather, even from the days of the post, I come for the party last week. The climbing fog is organized according to complicated rules and each member has a role (girara, girara, county, large brook, small brook). Also in this area is played a carol with roots over two millennium, titled "Emperor of Rome". The coin shows the historic context of the birth of Jesus during the Roman emperor Octavian Augustus and describes the moment of the coming of the three East Magi with gifts - gold, myrrh and incense.
In the village of Limba, in Alba County, there is still an old custom - "Piţăratul". The name comes from "piţărău" - the cochlea that young people receive when they go to the caroling. It is made of dough that remains of bread or cakes.
In the village of Ilva Mare in Bistriţa-Năsăud, in the Ajnul de Crăciun they go through the village "belciugarii" - young women dressed in goats, soldiers, bear, priest, gendarme, doctor, groom and bride, interpreting in each house a small play. Habit is not specific to Christianity, but people in Ilvelor Valley believe that the household in which the "Belciugarians" play will be rich in the coming year. That's why everyone expects them and rewards them.

]]> 2017-12-13 19:25:06 UTC https://padlet.com/stefaniasimona/xmascards/wish/215954562 stefaniasimona https://padlet.com/stefaniasimona/xmascards/wish/215958660 In Saliste, in Sibiu, an old tradition is preserved in 1895. On the evening of the Eve, the bunches of sons are wandering in all the houses of the village, dressed in popular costumes. The caroling starts with the house of the mayor and the priest, after which the sons start home from home until the morning, and at the end they go straight to the "mist", where the "host" hunts.
On the first day of Christmas, at noon, the bunch of sons ride in the church after the end of the job, being listened to the whole village.
On the fourth Christmas day, all the towns in Mărginime, as well as from the settlements beyond the mountains, from the counties of Vâlcea and Argeş, are invited to the meeting of the juniors in Sălişte, which is held annually since 1895, with one interruption, ten years after the Second World War. Every fog presents their traditional games and message, and then they all get caught in the Union Hill.

]]> 2017-12-13 19:34:20 UTC https://padlet.com/stefaniasimona/xmascards/wish/215958660 stefaniasimona https://padlet.com/stefaniasimona/xmascards/wish/215959103 In addition to decorating the fir tree, in some households an ancient custom is preserved - decorating the houses with plants: basil, marjoram and bumble bearer, good luck. Traditional cuts of pork, ham, horses, sausages, sausages, waffles or waistbon are prepared in the evenings. Tradition says that unmarried women can see their maid if they put a little of all their food in a straw, on the porch, under the window.
In Moldova, especially in Bucovina, people make Christmas cakes and keep them until spring when they are placed between the horns of the cattle when they start to look at it. It is said that these coils have to be round like the Sun and the Moon.
Bucovina is, moreover, recognized for the way traditions are preserved. Here, on the Eve, women tend to hide their spindles from the fork or put a stone in the oven to keep the snakes away from the household.
A beautiful but lost tradition is to go out with hands full of dough and to touch each orchard in the orchard, repeating: "How are my hands full of dough, so that the trees are full of fruit all year round" .
Also in Bukovina are prepared 12 dishes, including smoked plums, potato sherals, mushrooms chopped with oysters, sponge bons, which are for the lunch table - last before the end of the fast. Sometimes several hairs are spilled beneath the table. Over the table is a red wool thread, crossed in the form of a cross, and at the corners of the table is placed the head of the ostrich. In the middle of the table is a round bull and around the 12 dishes.
Once the table is finished, the villages are animated by the laughing crows. In some areas, they dress in the traditional harbor, with suman or cojoace, and with the cheeks adorned with myrrh and bite.
In some areas, besides carollers, the crowd of masked guys - "babe and sneaky" - who through play, gestures and dialogue send out wishes for the coming year.

]]> 2017-12-13 19:35:23 UTC https://padlet.com/stefaniasimona/xmascards/wish/215959103 stefaniasimona https://padlet.com/stefaniasimona/xmascards/wish/215960945 In the villages of Oltenia, on Christmas Eve, there is the practice of "scouring in the fire". All the members of the family gather around the fire and, in turn, give a shit, saying: "Good morning to Eve / That's better for Christmas / On a good watch / Wooly sheep / Milky cows / Healthy people / Make the pieces, corn, wheat. "
"Piţarăii" is a Dacian custom that is practiced in the localities of the Jiu Valley and which signifies the sacrifice to the divinity as a thanks for the fruitfulness of the trees and trees. Piquars are only men, children or adolescents, organized in crowds, clothed in popular clothes that gather in the night before Eve to decorate flags with bells, multicolored planks, tassels and flower coronets that hang on their feet a few meters long. The alley then starts to ride.
In Oltenia, the valleys echo the Carols every Eve. The most widespread is "Steaua," which is generally sung in four. Each member has a role: one keeps the Star, another is responsible for the money, walnuts and promised sacks, while the other two hold the sack and a stingray to defend the dogs. Also in Oltenia, on Christmas day, women still follow a hundred centuries old habit - in the morning, they go to the cemetery, where they incense the graves, then return home and remove the colacy baking them. Each egg is placed on an egg and a candle, and then it is given by the neighbors.

]]> 2017-12-13 19:39:58 UTC https://padlet.com/stefaniasimona/xmascards/wish/215960945 stefaniasimona https://padlet.com/stefaniasimona/xmascards/wish/215962328 In the localities of Almăjul Valley, the carols take with them a stick of hazelnut wood embedded in the shell or smoked at the candle. The knife is hit by the floor of the house to expel the evil spirits. The hunter being the godfather, in the Romanian folklore, snakes, clouds, to escape the household of devils and to bring prosperity. The elders throw wheat and corn grain in front of the carolites. People think that if they mix the grains over which the carolites have passed the seed they will put in the furrow will have a good harvest in the coming year.
On Christmas Eve, the Serbs in Banat make the fire to burn the "badnajak". It's a young oak trunk that is lit on the Christmas night in the courtyard. Sparks of fire would bring household welfare.
In Apuseni, on the last Sunday before Christmas there is "Christmas of beasts" or "Wolves Night". At dawn, an "unsettled" lamb is sent to the edge of the village. Here, the evening before, the girls hang in a tree masks that represent the spirits of the forest. The boy chooses one of them, and becomes the "grasshopper" of the village - a personification of the wolf, considered to be the protector of the forest and of the game. The boy walks through the village, accompanied by a mistress, and no girl or woman is allowed to come out in their way, because it is said that it will be haunted all the year by wolves. Men receive them in the yard, where they serve them with drink and steak. In the evening, the lads go to the wolf huda, a deep cave, where they throw a pig or a ram, a sacrifice offered to wild animals.

]]> 2017-12-13 19:43:29 UTC https://padlet.com/stefaniasimona/xmascards/wish/215962328 stefaniasimona https://padlet.com/stefaniasimona/xmascards/wish/215965266 The Dobrogean variant of the "Goat" is "The Structure". The traditional Christmas costume is made in this area from a thick wool cloth, which is tied with reeds, plants found abundantly on the banks of the Dobrogea lakes. The boys are gathering in bands since December 6, from Santa Nicolae, to start the rehearsals. In the past, the bands were well organized. Everybody had a "head" to keep all traditions, a helper, an accountant, a tuxedo, a cat and a mare. These arrangements are still preserved in some localities where boys organize themselves according to old habits.
In northern Dobrogea, near the Măcin Mountains, the monsters of virgins also have the "Oleleul" - a pagan character who first enters the household, encompasses the cloud of chariots two or three times, and then watches it. Olele has the mission to scare evil spirits. He is generally dressed in a sheepskin shell and armed with a buzzard and a wooden sword. The costume is complemented by the tortoise, the bells and the bells that the "olele" beats from the ground to protect the households from evil spirits.
Also in the Dobrogea area are the so-called "mosoi". These colorful masked cartoons became an emblem for Luncaviţa, the only common in Romania where habit is practiced. The carols are wearing masks to symbolize the presence of the ancestral spirits that cast off the evil of the birth of Jesus, and preach a year more abundant, with peace and joy. The monsters are dressed in a long cake to the ground, turned back, fox fur or rabbit fur, masks made from gourds, horns of ram, colored ribbons, flowers and colored beads.

]]> 2017-12-13 19:51:01 UTC https://padlet.com/stefaniasimona/xmascards/wish/215965266