Sections
Reference sections
The reference is built around four themes. The first is the holidays celebrated from winter to autumn. The second is festive dress, from the sarafan to the kokoshnik. The third is the crafts no household could do without. The fourth is the family, because that is where customs are handed down from one generation to the next.
Our ancestors' calendar was tied to the land and the sky: when to sow, when to reap, when to rest and make merry. A holiday marked a transition, not just a day off.
For these sections we choose what an ordinary reader will find useful: when a holiday falls, what it was remembered for, what people wore and ate, and how to talk about it with children. Theological debates, scholarly disputes among folklorists, ritual instructions and product advertising stay outside the reference.
Holidays of the year
The folk year went round in a circle: the winter cycle with carolling, the spring awakening, summer festivities and autumn thanks for the harvest. Each holiday marked a change of season and of work.
- Collection: the winter cycle
From Svyatki to Maslenitsa: the order in which to read about the liveliest holidays of the cold season.
- Answers about holiday dates
When Svyatki, Maslenitsa and Kupala night fall, and why some dates come in two versions.
- Safety at festivities (in Russian)
A short guide to preparing for an outdoor celebration and what to do if something goes wrong.
Costume
Festive dress told you almost everything about the woman wearing it: her age, marital status, means and skill with the needle. We describe its main parts in general terms.
- Kokoshnik (in Russian)
What this headdress is, how it was put together, and how to tell an old piece from a stage costume.
- Costume terms
Sarafan, poneva, embroidery and kokoshnik: short definitions without difficult words.
- Questions about costume
What to wear to a celebration if you do not have a full costume, and how to look after old pieces.
Crafts
Painting, carving, pottery and weaving grew out of household necessity and gradually became art. You can learn about them in museums and workshops and try them at home.
- Collection: crafts for beginners
Where to start with folk handicrafts if until now you have only ever held a pencil.
- Craft terms
Painting, carving, pottery and weaving explained in two or three sentences each.
- New articles
The reference feed, where articles about crafts appear as they are ready.
Family traditions
The family is the most reliable keeper of customs. What a grandmother or grandfather told you can be lost within a single generation if it is not written down in time.
- How to build a family archive of customs
A practical guide: how to prepare for a conversation with your elders, record it and keep it safe.
- Collection: celebrating with children
What to read before holding a folk celebration for children and together with them.
- Answers about family traditions
How to ask relatives about the past, what to do with different versions of one custom, and whether you need to repeat everything exactly.
Read next
- Guides
How to record your elders' stories and build a family archive of customs: steps, mistakes, a checklist. Plus the article catalogue.
- Questions
Short answers about holiday dates, costume, crafts and how to keep customs alive in your own family.
- Collections
Reading paths: the winter holiday cycle, celebrating with children, and crafts for complete beginners.
- Reference
Glossary: Svyatki, Maslenitsa, spring calling songs, Kupala night, harvest, kokoshnik, sarafan, poneva, painting, weaving.
Sources
- Ethnographic publications on the Russian folk calendar
- Encyclopaedic dictionaries of folk culture and everyday life
Customs are described in general terms as of the date this material was prepared. The same holiday was kept differently from village to village and from family to family, so what your older relatives remember may well differ from what is written here, and that is perfectly normal.