Kukeri
(Bulgarian: êóêåðè; singular: êóêåð, kuker) is a traditional Bulgarian ritual to scare away evil spirits, with a costumed man performing the ritual. The costumes cover most of the body and include decorated wooden masks of animals (sometimes double-faced) and large bells attached to the belt. Around New Year and before Lent, the kukeri walk and dance through the village to scare evil spirits away with the costumes and the sound of the bells, as well as to provide a good harvest, health, and happiness to the village during the year.The kukeri traditionally visit the peoples' houses at night so that "the sun would not catch them on the road." After going around the village they gather at the square to dance wildly and amuse the people. The ritual varies by region but its essence remains largely the same.
Martenitsa
(Bulgarian: ìàðòåíèöà, pronounced ; plural ìàðòåíèöè martenitsi) is a small piece of adornment, made of white and red yarn and worn from March 1 until around the end of March (or the first time an individual sees a stork, swallow, or budding tree). The name of the holiday is Baba Marta. "Baba" (áàáà) is the Bulgarian word for "grandmother" and Mart (ìàðò) is the Bulgarian word for the month of March. Baba Marta is a Bulgarian tradition related to welcoming the upcoming spring. The month of March, according to Bulgarian folklore, marks the beginning of springtime. Therefore, the first day of March is a traditional holiday associated with sending off winter and welcoming spring.
Nestinarstvo
(Bulgarian: íåñòèíàðñòâî) is a ritual originally performed in several Bulgarian villages in the Strandzha Mountains close to the Black Sea coast in the very southeast of Bulgaria. It involves a barefooted dance on smouldering embers (æàðàâà, zharava) performed by nestinari (íåñòèíàðè). It is usually performed on the square of the village in front of the whole population on the day of Sts. Constantine and Helen or the day of the village's patron saint. The ritual is a unique mixture of Eastern Orthodox beliefs and older pagan traditions from the Strandzha Mountains. In the 20th and 21st century the ritual became largely commercialized and is now performed for the foreign tourists all over the seaside resorts of the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast by people who have little to do with the original tradition. A few Bulgarians still perform the ritual in its more authentic form in the villages of Strandzha.
Rose festival in Kazanlak, Bulgaria
Bulgaria is one of the biggest producers of rose oil in the world. The reason for this is hidden in the high qualities of the Bulgarian Kazanluk rose ("Kazanlashka roza"), a special type, that was cultivated in our country after many years of production and development. The Bulgarian roses are inheritors of the so called Damascena rose, that was brought here ages ago. The rose oil is called "the liquid gold" of Bulgaria
The period of the harvest lasts only 20-25 days. No other cultivation method has been able to preserve the character of the rose almost unchanged for over three centuries. This fact explains why there were no attempts at cultivating other rose varieties in the Rose valley near Kazanlak. It has established itself as a stable, independent type of rose, differing in its anatomy and physiology from the oil-bearing roses cultivated elsewhere.
(Bulgarian: êóêåðè; singular: êóêåð, kuker) is a traditional Bulgarian ritual to scare away evil spirits, with a costumed man performing the ritual. The costumes cover most of the body and include decorated wooden masks of animals (sometimes double-faced) and large bells attached to the belt. Around New Year and before Lent, the kukeri walk and dance through the village to scare evil spirits away with the costumes and the sound of the bells, as well as to provide a good harvest, health, and happiness to the village during the year.The kukeri traditionally visit the peoples' houses at night so that "the sun would not catch them on the road." After going around the village they gather at the square to dance wildly and amuse the people. The ritual varies by region but its essence remains largely the same.
Martenitsa
(Bulgarian: ìàðòåíèöà, pronounced ; plural ìàðòåíèöè martenitsi) is a small piece of adornment, made of white and red yarn and worn from March 1 until around the end of March (or the first time an individual sees a stork, swallow, or budding tree). The name of the holiday is Baba Marta. "Baba" (áàáà) is the Bulgarian word for "grandmother" and Mart (ìàðò) is the Bulgarian word for the month of March. Baba Marta is a Bulgarian tradition related to welcoming the upcoming spring. The month of March, according to Bulgarian folklore, marks the beginning of springtime. Therefore, the first day of March is a traditional holiday associated with sending off winter and welcoming spring.
Nestinarstvo
(Bulgarian: íåñòèíàðñòâî) is a ritual originally performed in several Bulgarian villages in the Strandzha Mountains close to the Black Sea coast in the very southeast of Bulgaria. It involves a barefooted dance on smouldering embers (æàðàâà, zharava) performed by nestinari (íåñòèíàðè). It is usually performed on the square of the village in front of the whole population on the day of Sts. Constantine and Helen or the day of the village's patron saint. The ritual is a unique mixture of Eastern Orthodox beliefs and older pagan traditions from the Strandzha Mountains. In the 20th and 21st century the ritual became largely commercialized and is now performed for the foreign tourists all over the seaside resorts of the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast by people who have little to do with the original tradition. A few Bulgarians still perform the ritual in its more authentic form in the villages of Strandzha.
Rose festival in Kazanlak, Bulgaria
Bulgaria is one of the biggest producers of rose oil in the world. The reason for this is hidden in the high qualities of the Bulgarian Kazanluk rose ("Kazanlashka roza"), a special type, that was cultivated in our country after many years of production and development. The Bulgarian roses are inheritors of the so called Damascena rose, that was brought here ages ago. The rose oil is called "the liquid gold" of Bulgaria
The period of the harvest lasts only 20-25 days. No other cultivation method has been able to preserve the character of the rose almost unchanged for over three centuries. This fact explains why there were no attempts at cultivating other rose varieties in the Rose valley near Kazanlak. It has established itself as a stable, independent type of rose, differing in its anatomy and physiology from the oil-bearing roses cultivated elsewhere.
