Therefore, Christmas is celebrated on 25th of December and not like the traditional Eastern Orthodox which celebrates it on 7th of January. Many countries in Eastern Europe celebrate Christmas on January 7th as most Orthodox Churches use the old Julian Calendar, but the Bulgarian Orthodox Church uses the Gregorian calendar, so Christmas in on the 25th December. The 20th is also the traditional 'new year' in Bulgarian … Traditionally, it’s all based on religious customs (Orthodox Christianity). Most Orthodox countries, such as Ukraine, celebrate Christmas on January 7th. Starting on the 25th, when we believe Jesus … … 2. Christmas Eve – 25 of December; In Bulgaria is celebrated with a meal consisting of an odd number of dishes which follows the forty-day Advent fast. Although, some of these practices have lost importance over the time, there are still many Hungarians who keep them proudly every December. The singers often go round singing all night, so the sun never catches them! Bulgaria's Orthodox Church follows the Gregorian calendar, which means its religious observances are in keeping with those in the West.. The 20th is also the traditional 'new year' in Bulgarian culture. In … Having the Koledari visit your home is meant to be good luck. There's a special round and decorated loaf of bread called 'pita' which has a coin baked in it. The one who finds the coin in his piece of bread will be rich and lucky in the coming year. It is the time when the whole family gather together, ancient customs and traditions come into play and Christmas spirit is felt everywhere. One legend in Bulgaria is that Mary started her labor on 'Ignazhden', December 20th (Saint Ignatius of Antioch's Day) and she gave birth on Christmas Eve but the birth of Jesus wasn't announced until Christmas Day. Christmas is a very important celebration in Bulgaria, both in religious and cultural aspect. Following the Christmas Eve meal some people will go to a Midnight Mass service. Bulgaria’s Orthodox church follows the Gregorian calendar. Photo credit: Elena Chochkova, Wikipedia. Christmas tree and carols are also important part of the celebration. Dec 1, 2013 - This Pin was discovered by Debbie White. A traditional Bulgarian Christmas Tradition – A Pig Slaughter : In Straldja, Bulgaria: Photos in chronological order. Therefore, Christmas is celebrated on 25th of December and not like the traditional Eastern Orthodox which celebrates it on 7th of January. It is believed that Mary gave birth to Jesus on Christmas Eve. Bulgarian Christmas Traditions. Fasting is a tradition from the Orthodox Church, and the most religious people do it for 40 days before Christmas. Bulgarian Traditional Pottery - Troyan Pottery . Based here in beautiful Sofia, Bulgaria, we’re proud to embrace a number of unique Christmas traditions, such as survakane, koleduvane and fasting. Unlike in many other countries, our traditions dictate not to serve meat – or any animal products, for that matter – on the table on the 24 th of December. Ok, so I know this is a bit too late to write about since Christmas already passed and so has even the New years, but like so many other I´ve been busy with celebrating the holidays my self with my family. The singing can only start after midnight. Bulgaria Christmas celebrations are known as 'Koleda' and start almost a week ahead and last till about the New Year. Christmas Traditions in Bulgaria Christmas Markets. Jan 30, 2014 - Zdrasti! Troyan pottery, traditional Bulgarian pottery, is a great souvenir. Bulgarian Christmas and the tradition of carol singers Many stars in the sky, much health in this house. Bulgaria’s Orthodox church follows the Gregorian calendar. This bread is time consuming but simple and tastes delicious. It is therefore not surprising that Christmas in Bulgaria is arguably the most popular religious holiday. Here are some more: Whoever gets up from the table during dinner time, will suffer back pains all year long. According to tradition, you should fast for the whole day, i.e. 2 January, 2016 ladysandra. Christmas in Bulgaria lasts three days! In Bulgaria the procedure for forming a new government is underway and the mandate is with GERB Jólabókaflóð, or Christmas Book Flood, is an annual tradition of giving books as gifts on Christmas Eve and then spending the rest of the night reading. Dec. December 18, 2012. by Lydia Tarr. 18. A Meal for Christmas. The young men in Bulgaria parade around and sing Christmas carols for random strangers. The meals should always be an odd number, and with no meat. In Hungary, Christmas means time to be together with the loved ones. This makes winter a perfect time to visit Bulgaria if you want to experience some of the local traditions and rituals. People around Bulgaria are honoring with their families Christmas traditions celebrating Christmas Eve Saturday night. While carnivals are widespread around the world before Lent, … The young men in Bulgaria parade around and sing Christmas carols for random strangers. Christmas is a very important time of year for us in Bulgaria, with lots of traditions to follow. Like most everywhere else in the world, Bulgarian Christmas traditions are full of superstition. Troyan pottery, traditional Bulgarian pottery, is a great souvenir. Koleduvane: A Bulgarian Christmas Tradition. It is an old tradition to bake little round breads with a hole in the middle, called gevretsi. Bulgarian Traditional Pottery - Troyan Pottery . Christmas Eve (called 'Budni Vecher') is a very important day and the main Christmas meal is eaten in the evening of Christmas Eve. In Bulgaria, Christmas Eve is a big thing and though we also celebrate Christmas Day, most of my childhood memories of Christmas are all of family dinners on the 24th. If your walnut is delicious you will have a good year, but if it's empty or has a small nut you'll have a bad year! There are a number of classical Christmas Eve meals in Bulgaria. Bread in Bulgaria, in this reference, has a very symbolic meaning – it is the result of the cultivation of wheat (one of the best achievements of humanity, helping for the feeding of hundreds of millions of people from all over the world). a variety of customs, religious practices, rituals, and folklore associated with the celebration of Christmas. You won’t believe, but it is delicious! Click on one to see the larger photo. On Christmas Day some families will have another big meal, but this time there will be meat, normally some kind of pork. We already mentioned the one linked to finding the Christmas coin. published on 12/25/18 9:00 AM. These Western celebrations are well adopted by the Bulgarians and often combined with the older local traditions. The round bread called pita or pitka has a hidden coin in it. Santa Claus is called “Dyado Koleda” which literally means Grandfather Christmas. The songs are often in two parts with half of the singers singing the song and then the other half repeating it back. They are needed for “payment” for the carol singers called Koledari. Bulgarian Traditions The Christmas traditions are an integral part of the festive season and these typically include fasting, enjoying special meals, attending church and singing carols around the village. Christmas (Koleda or Rozhdestvo Hristovo) in Bulgaria is one of the most cherished holidays in the year. Dec. December 18, 2012. by Lydia Tarr. Walnuts are especially popular. It is an honor for everyone to receive them in their homes. Christmas Traditions Christmas is a very important celebration in Bulgaria, both in religious and cultural aspect. Bulgarian Christmas Traditions. December would be a period of fasting and the 24th is the last day of it. Summary: Bulgarians have some great traditions, and the pre-Christmas Koleduvane is certainly one of them, a mix of pagan rituals and Christian symbols. Happy/Merry Christmas in lots more languages. 06 of 10. It is common to prepare 7, 9 or 12 dishes. Home / Bulgaria / Bulgarian Christmas Traditions. This is a group of young and old men, dressed in traditional clothes, who sing Bulgarian christmas carols. Santa is known as 'Dyado Koleda' (Дядо Коледа) which means Grandfather Christmas. If you have been to Bulgaria on Christmas or stay in Bulgaria then do share your first-hand experience in the comments below. A tradition rooted in antiquity, survakane is basically children (lightly) beating adults on the back with elaborately… Word Cloud for Christmas in Bulgaria. 06 December 2019 by Hristina Dimitrova 5 min read. © Copyright 2000 - 2021 James Cooper | About the site | Cookies & Privacy | Site Map | Other Links | Support | Website logistics by LetterBlock | Proud Affiliate of the Merry Network, whychristmas?com answers your Christmas questions! I’m spending Christmas in Bulgaria this year with my girlfriend’s family. The true Bulgarian tradition however, is to eat pork with cabbage on Christmas. your own Pins on Pinterest It’s the only recipe from my little booklet with naturally sweet Christmas recipes I publish here, not only because I will prepare Tikvenik this year on Christmas Eve. In my family we exchange gifts before dinner on Christmas day, however it’s a matter of personal choice. Continue to 6 of 10 below. Word Cloud for Christmas in Bulgaria. It's traditional that the table is left with all the food on it until the morning of Christmas Day. We are celebrating Christmas Eve today! The Day of Saint Ignazhden. Copyright 2019 by Learn Bulgarian Easily. Christmas Eve – 25 of December; In Bulgaria is celebrated with a meal consisting of an odd number of dishes which follows the forty-day Advent fast. The person who finds the coin can also expect good luck in the year to follow. At home the whole family usuallyprepares all the traditional BulgarianChristmas meals, which are the samefor each family, but may differ innumber. These will include foods like 'banitsa' (a pastry filled with yogurt and feta cheese) and 'baklava' (a dessert made of filo pastry that's filled with chopped nuts and soaked with syrup or honey). The elder of the family breakes the bread equally for everyone. Order, as opposed to chaos, is something that is sought for in almost any Bulgarian tradition and ritual. Some people get to … Straw is often put under the tablecloth and you might even bring a wooden plough into the house and put it behind the door! Fish. These are meant to help you have good crops during the next year. You might also hear Koledari (carol singers) which are normally young men who go carol singing dressed in traditional clothing. Hungarian Christmas traditions are plenty and make Christmas a unique and special time to share with family and friends. A classic Bulgarian Christmas Eve selection of dishes. The term Koleduvane comes from the Bulgarian word for Christmas ( Koleda ) and means performing specific rituals and singing special Christmas songs. The religious Bulgarians do not eat any animal products or meat during that time. After all, this is the time when the entire family comes together. On this day the food is only vegan, so no dairy … Author: Albena Bezovska. There are a lot of beliefs and rituals related to the Christmas holiday, however, only a few are celebrated throughout the whole country. Women choose mainly food that swells like beans, rice, wheat etc. In some regions, the elderly women will prepare “baklava” – a rich sweet dessert made of layers of tin unleavened dough filled with chopped nuts and held together with syrup made of sugar or honey. Weekly Political Highlights 17-23.04.2021. The person who finds the coin can also expect good luck in the year to follow. They include beans, sarmi (rice in cabbage or vine leafs), honey, banitsa (sweet or salty filo pastry pie), walnuts, oshav (dried plum tea) and pita (round bread). Winter in Bulgaria is packed with holidays that mix Christian and Pagan traditions. On Christmas eve even our teenage brothers and sistersremain at home, celebrating with all the family. The exchange of presents and the Christmas tree have recently become part of the Bulgarian traditions. 06 of 10. Another Bulgarian tradition is what remains of the Christmas Eve feast you leave out on the table in the belief that deceased friends and relatives will come and dine when everyone is away or sleeping. Most Orthodox countries, such as Ukraine, celebrate Christmas on January 7th. in Bulgaria. Walnuts are a necessary component to the Bulgarian Christmas meal. In Bulgarian Merry Christmas is 'Vesela Koleda'. So, pack your warm clothes and come explore Bulgaria in winter. Learn all about Bulgarian holiday traditions with Marina Georgieva! As with other Bulgarian traditions, this one has a motivation behind it: this custom is said to protect against evil spirits. The bread is normally cut by the oldest person at the meal and they hand it around the table. Discover (and save!) The Bulgarian word for Christmas is “Koleda.” People from around Straldja say that the name is derived from the Bulgarian word “to butcher,” because the primary ritual of this time of year is the slaughter of a pig. 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