New
New articles
This feed lists the reference's material on the Russian folk calendar by date. Each entry has a short description and a note on how it might help you. The newest articles are at the top, so if you have been here before, start reading from there. The date is the day the material was prepared, and the topic tags show what it relates to: holidays, costume, crafts, family or safety. We try to publish so that each season there is something to read about the holidays coming up, and we clarify and expand earlier pages when needed.
We only publish a page when it can be read from beginning to end. There are no announcements or placeholders in this feed.
Questions answered
Twelve short answers about holiday dates, costume, crafts and family customs.
Why it helps: Quickly clears up the things people ask about most often.
Reference sections
A map of themes: holidays of the year, costume, crafts and family traditions.
Why it helps: Shows where to look for the answer to your question.
How to build a family archive of customs
Eight steps with hypothetical examples, common mistakes, alternatives and a checklist.
Why it helps: Helps you preserve your elders' stories about holidays.
Reading collections
Reading paths on the winter cycle, celebrating with children and crafts for beginners.
Why it helps: Helps you read in a sensible order rather than at random.
Safety at folk festivities (in Russian)
How to prepare for an outdoor celebration, what to remember about ice and what to do if someone feels unwell.
Why it helps: Helps you enjoy a festivity calmly, especially with children.
Reference
A glossary of terms on the folk calendar, costume and crafts.
Why it helps: Explains the old words that appear in the articles.
The kokoshnik: history of a festive headdress (in Russian)
What a kokoshnik is, what it was made of and how to tell an old piece from a stage costume.
Why it helps: Helps you know what to look for in a museum or in a family chest.
Read next
- Collections
Reading paths: the winter holiday cycle, celebrating with children, and crafts for complete beginners.
- Archive
All material by date and topic, plus a note on two old addresses on this domain.
- Guides
How to record your elders' stories and build a family archive of customs: steps, mistakes, a checklist. Plus the article catalogue.
- Sections
The four themes of the reference: holidays of the year, folk costume, crafts and family traditions.
Sources
- Nsnk reference material
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.