greek carnival

There are two different periods of the Carnival in Greece (as if one is not enough), the first formerly extended over the "12 Days of Christmas, and the second in three weeks before the start of Lent.

The first, "Carnival of the twelve days," was the entire northern and central regions of the continent, and unknown in southern Greece and the islands spread. In the early twentieth century, collected evidence for this AJB WaceCelebrations. Compliance with the celebration had already begun to break, and were made only for a portion of that period, rather than at different times in different places. In some places were held on the eve and feast of St. Basil, in the south of Thessaly and Macedonia, on the eve and day of Theofania. In some districts of the carnival on other occasions was observed.

Despite the many local variations, seems to be the basic form of the celebrationwere essentially the same. Teams celebrants would go from house to house in costumes, sing Christmas songs and sometimes dance. The costumes were numbers represent people and animals, and sometimes it would be simple disguises, its original meaning could not remember. The celebrants would be secured by spirits, and sometimes rival crews battle would be friendly with clubs or sticks, when they met each other to engage. This practice has been variously known asRogatsaria, or Lykokatzaria Kallikantzaria.

The celebrants perform its raw dramatic sketches, costumes, the play is dictated by requirements. That was essentially the same everywhere, and in its complete form, had three distinct parts. play "Death and Resurrection," "The Wedding" and "plowing" The details of the real, together with their different types of services, from place to place, and the names of the characters and theirAppearance was with considerable changes. In some places might be a more important factor than others, and in most places, some of the features of the general was gone.

The following description, in which the drama "Death and Resurrection" was the most striking element was a Wace AJP Kokkotoi by a local informant, a small village in Othrys, south of Halmyros, in the late nineteenth century recorded at a time thatPart of Greece was relatively unaffected by the corrosion of modern ideas and attitudes.

Towards sunset on the eve of persons Theofania young boys of the village would be put together in groups, usually twelve in number for each group selected four companies for their roles as play, with the rest divided into two choirs alike. The party was acting, bride groom, moor and doctor. Young people, in turn, will allow the dress of its resources. OnKokkotoi the groom wore a fustanella, a red fez, sheep bells tie around the waist of wear, and a sword. His wife, an ordinary boy in the bride dressed in her district. Il Moro was wearing a black mask of sheep or goats and sheep's fur coat. The doctor was dressed in a black coat and hat to look like a modern gentleman educated middle class professional.

When properly prepared, the band house to house perception would play. For each, Would stop the "spouse", with excessive force on the door with his sword and hammer. If approved, the choir would stand in a semicircle with the actors at the center. Everything would then sing a Christmas carol. "Today is Theofania, and lighting, and praise the great joys of our Lord in the Jordan River to him and that is exactly adore the Virgin Mary, and his miraculous. Hands wears diapers and has a child, and ask St. Saint John John `!Forerunner is a baptized child of God? "` I can and I want to and pray, but let it wait until morning. Tomorrow the sky will open, and the dew falls, and he cast the idols, and to bless and sources of water. "

Then the two choirs will sing a number of different songs for families and their capacity should be selected. Each choir will sing two lines alternately, and cry at the end of Mohr would be: "Ah, ah, ah" and stamped his foot.

Oa leading man would sing: "Master, master, champion five times, this village is not only the factories in the cities is for you, handle and sift the gold coins Treat the kids with the crumbs, master .. deal with six stained to be treated with mud that they can go to the wine shop, and wish you all the best, grow ... you know like the Olympus, and white as doves "

farmer OA, sang: "Master, if you can start to sow your plowApple, pomegranate, and quince of your yoke and ox-sting you wear a rose branch, the black ox in the yoke, the white oxen plow, oxen and brown in heavily loaded antenna, matches, can be one hundred and Okes three thousand. And pick up again, there is little we have said, God can do better. "

OA Schafer: "In these areas, marble-paved, where there may be a hundred sheep, goats and three thousand, and many children run as the activeAnts, bees buzzing and how. "

OA committed youth to sing recently said: "Listen, my strong need to lean guy with eyebrows raised, you hear your loved ones go to tender, and kiss to take, so you do not get rain or snow, and the flow down and carry off the bridge. "

The players would then start their outstanding performances. The marsh was the bride in a fit of familiarity and address to steal a kiss. The groom would capture his subject of such freedom, and he and the Morosupport it. This would culminate in the swamp to kill her husband. The bride should first throw himself to his body, grieving loudly, before recovering a bit, 'and hurry to the doctor. It came with all the beautiful melodies of a professional gentleman, and would be a lot of humor in his performance: strong sense of pulse pounding his chest and forced the victim soap in the mouth, and so on. After this pantomime, the husband would suddenly back, and jumps toFeet, dancing with the other actors. Wace completed his short story "The drama usually ends with an obscene pantomime between bride and groom."

The artists expect to be rewarded for their efforts with money, food or wine, "But if there are chickens on them do not hesitate to steal," said Wace. This was common practice.

If the Mummers are not received, and the door was closed against them, they sang a song for outsideHouse:

"Master, your dirty house, full of crows, which are half egg, half breeds, and half are collecting your eyes." The Mummers have retaliated by at least some token damages trees and vines of the owner first.

Wace was even able to field even in 1910, when the empire was greek flowed visit. He noted that "since the days of Turkish rule, the festival has lost much of its former glory, education, the desireBeing European, and the police, the stolen item to the chicken have helped to lose its meaning. "Al Platonos gangs seeking, had to make the traditional costume, as evidenced by the harassment by the police. In these circumstances, especially the actors dressed for their roles in two, fell to the bride and groom. Boys that bride was dressed in that time only in the ordinary dress of a girl, or a scarf tied played only token girlaround the head, even if the husband was able to maintain its traditional plaster. At this time the public would also "take liberties" with the bride, and would "kill" the groom. For the most passers-by, however, the band-by simply waylaid and sang their songs to them, while the bride in the face of an orange or an apple blossom and groom threatened them with the sword until they had paid for something. In this neighborhood, the drama had already begun to disappear.

Clearly thisritual form, or part of it is behind many of the costumes that span North and Central Greece survived until today and have been observed during this time and in the spring. In some places, the drama fell in simple form, and has developed a different form of popular theater, with a variety of stock situations.
The plaintiffs believe that what they do is not just a matter of amusement or entertainment, but "fortunately" in the coming year, and is determined in someWay to ensure a good season for crops.

The twelve days of vacation in mid-winter, from Christmas and ends with the Epiphany or Theophany had a period of special celebrations in many parts of the ancient world. At the winter solstice in the Roman Empire, the celebration of the festival of Saturnalia, however. The investigation has called the Roman god Saturn with greek Chronos, the Greek Chron. As described by Lucian, only in those daysbakers and pastry chefs have worked. N. class distinctions must be clear, and perhaps even reversed roles, are controlled by officials from their masters. He wrote that "The old should become a child again." During this time, gifts are normally exchanged.

In Greece, these celebrations were held under the strong influence of the cult of the god Dionysus, common in northern and central parts of the country. The revelry continued into the Christian era for the Synod ofTrullo of 652 convicted drunken revelry masking, and called the name "Dionysus" in the winter festival.

After having managed to suppress the celebration, the church has tried to take over the introduction of Christian feasts, and sanctify, but this was only partly successful. It 'clear that the old spirit continued long anywhere. In particular, opposed the country people, the original Pagani, or "pagans", any attempt to undermine their costumes, andclung tenaciously to their old habits. As a result, they survived until the twentieth century, especially in Thessaly, Macedonia and Thrace.

Strangely, however, in every neighborhood seems to create a single "explanation" for the origin of the festival in this special place they have. Although these pseudo-explanations vary from place to place, tend to fix what may have been only local remnants of a large ancient practice, the real purpose of whichlost the historical memory of a specific historical event or pseudo-historical. The folklore scholar George Aikaterinides notes that these various "explanations" can not for what is clearly a general pattern of local variations and old are changing. are pseudo-explanations to explain the patterns observed from time immemorial have been, but were often produced in very hostile pressure from a church that has seen both as a dissolute and evil. L 'Connect a pair of harmless "historical explanation" seems not only a product of the ever-present desire to explain what can not declare at the time, but also a defense against religious pressures. To mark a "historic event" a harmless and safe practice seems innocent enough of a pagan associations.

O Volaka, Drama: On January 7, teams of five or six "Mori" (arapides) through the city streets with blackened faces wearingsheep skins and bells, and hold short swords. Each team consists of a husband and wife. The day after the two participate in a sham marriage, which is followed by a local party.

Neo or Monastiri, Domokou: people wear masks of animals dancing in the town square and a parade with a "camel".

O Pyrgi, Drama: The next day and revelers party Theophania with blackened faces wearing fur and bells.

Vrisi or Kali, Drama: Community meals are held onEvenings before Christmas and New Year. At the dawn of Theophania owners go to their homes with the ashes from the fire on winter solstice kalikantzari exorcise the demons of winter. After the liturgy, dressed in animal masks men gather outside the church and go door to door in teams. Later, children in white hat with bull-like horns and wore pants to dance around a fire dressed.

Galatitsa O: E 'a procession of masks, the eminentThey have a fake "camel".

O Grevena young people take the icons from the church, and walk the streets with them, led by a cross. Later, they dance around a fire.

O Palaiochóra, Halkidiki: foustanellas Run dressed men in a dance with a scimitar Mock.

Thessaly plain O: On the eve of Theofania, kids in costume, the grandfather grandmother, husband, wife, and Bear Bear-holder to return home from home where they are offered food and. Then drinks for parties in their homes.
I "Mori" (Arapides) Monastiraki Theophania sharply sixth team in January of masks through the village of Monastiraki, near Drama. Here, as in many places, taking the element of masquerade, the most important role in the celebrations.

The numbers in four modules. The largest, the "Moors" (Arapides) will have their name from the dark nature of their impressive costumes, which for some time, andHelp of friends, to wear. They dress in long, black, shaggy fur and a large leather mask goat herders and sheep carrying three heavy bells around his waist. In the swamp in a hand holding a wooden sword, and the other a bag of ashes from the furnace, the continuous acquired during the twelve days of Christmas, which is burned by tap water through luck. They will be accompanied by Giling, men in strength, papoudes, dressed in stylizedrural male and Evzones or tsolides, whose national costume of foustanella.

With the accompaniment of local instruments, the lyre and Daire (a large tambourine), groups of masks their way through the streets of the city, visit all the houses in turn to homeowners dealing with a "good year" , and receiving in return. When the various groups arrive in the main square, all in a dance joint. During this part of the procedure, a modelBear with his traditional nurse appeared. Finally, take a ceremonial rather than plowing, the plow and the design of a arapides pappoudes leadership to ensure "a good new year."

On the slopes of Mount Pangaion in Macedonia is a small town Nikisiani. Every year on the Feast of St. John (January 7), the "Moors" the city on foot, as observed in a variant of the same habit of Monastiraki. Shortly after noon, a company three to six years, often led bya character dressed in foustanella can be seen abroad.

The Moors Nikisianis wear leather shoes, wrapped around the calves up in wool, leather bound with strips of skin of sheep or goats. They also wear wool pants loose, mostly white, the former local dress. Upstairs has a wool jersey jacket with long sleeves, and over a short coat, pastor of Shaggy, coming below the knee. Under this, on the back, I'm pretty stuffedLeaves of the corn plant to a significant impact. Hanging by a rope around his waist, which are also the breeding ground for humpback whales first four bells. Three are small, it differs in different sizes, and taken from the stands. The fourth and largest of iron, beaten, held in the middle, with another soon on both sides. Each "Moro", with a black mask of animal skin, with a hat shaped like a cone. This is a frame within the mesh, and sustainable leafy corn. ItPending is an embroidered cloth. A knife as big as a wooden sword ended his equipment.

When the Moors in the streets of the city by a large drum, the sound of their bells echoes before wandering across the landscape. They play in the streets with little progress dance steps, their bells rhythmically and waved their "swords". At intervals, the group stops and Frisk in a particular position. Suddenly, two Ethiopians pretend to fight, and if you wantground like all the others are dead to him and complain. Then raise it as if resurrected. After some time, converge on the main square, where to act the drama "Death and Resurrection" again. Then there's the dance, which lasts until the evening.

At one time this custom has been for three days in January 151, the sixth and seventh but now is limited to the afternoon of the last day, even if in memory of the previous practice, the other day justCompany of children on the streets ringing the bells of the sheep and goats.

There are many local "explanations" for this practice at an advanced stage. The dress of the "Moors" to represent John the Baptist, the bells at the baptism of Christ to the world what was happening was promulgated. Others say that the bells represent the victory of Alexander the Great, the Indians, when the bells of Macedonian soldiers were used to frighten the elephants to panic and throw theirReiter.

It is said that when that day a year, residents in their animal costumes and emerged from their homes, making demonic noises so frightened that she fled the Turks left the village for the Greeks.

For thousands of years, many Greeks Pontier as we know, the greek name for the Black Sea (Pontos Efxinos) on the northeastern coast of Asia Minor they lived. In their isolation, they have many interesting variations of the oldestGreek customs. Threatened with genocide in the years following World War II, many of them left their homes and settled within the nation-state to bring their customs with them.

In this time of year in Pontos the element of drama has been the most important part of the celebrations for twelve days and had developed their own art form. The Mummers Momoyeroi or simply a series of short pieces that had broken loose from the traditionallimited availability of land is usually found in Greece itself.

This result is clear evidence of the power of the Dionysian drama seen in religious festivals in different places at different times and in different ways. The Dionysian festival, which was transformed into the high drama of Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides in the theater in Athens, has developed many centuries later, in a tradition of satirical drama popular among the inhabitants of rural areas in the region of Pontus.

This formof theater popular in many places off 1950, but was again revived in 1970-'80, and traditional performances are held today in several villages in the area of drama.

Although Greece was, until recently, a society dominated by men on the 8th January, the day of St. Domna, the patron of midwives and elderly women who lived in some villages of northern Greece by refugees from Eastern Thrace, traditionally weaker sex claimsthemselves.

exchange of gender roles in these villages for the day. Those women who are old enough to have children in the streets together and sitting in cafes while the men stay at home and, theoretically at least, takes care of the housework. Any men who show their faces in public confidence on this day, as well as musicians need to entertain the women and their accompanying parties are chased and soaked in water or other harassment and intimidation. It is saidthat women use their time of liberation, to gather in coffee, sing songs and tell off-color jokes firm.

In some villages near Nigra to take the women present, the midwife. He used to get on a throne decorated with orange flowers hung over and sit with the onions and garlic, and wears a necklace made of figs, grapes and carob. But today, women are flowers in her hair. Then a noisy party. Women hold four of the sides and the midwifeArmpits as their leader is dancing before her. Eventually, they deal with her in the village of Spring with song and dance, where wet with water.

E 'known that similar festivals held in ancient times. On Skira of Athens, just one day the women left their homes and crops in a mock parliament, in imitation of their husbands. It 'was this institution which is the basis of the comedy The Parliament of the women of Aristophanes'. It seems likely that today's hot oneThe survival of this ancient tradition.

St. Athanasios Day January 18th is a day for the public perception of animal sacrifice, meal, followed by a local, in many parts of northern Greece.

As Saint Tryfon is the protector of farmers and their crops, the day of San Tryfon is (1 February) an important opportunity in the country. The holy water from the church, make sure sprinkle the gardens and fields, in particular the vineyards.