11th February 2003

Romanian festivals


Romania has many beautiful festivals and traditions. People have festivals for each season.
Here are some festivals that Romanians celebrate in Spring:
-The Paparuda "Rain Caller" is the ritual celebrated in Spring on a date that varies from place to place. An old magical dance invoking rain, this customs survived to the present day in many village of Romania.  The children knit coronets, adorning them with ribbons. Then they dance, going from house to house.  The hostess throws water and milk after them. The children and the young people have to receive a coin or wheat, corn, flour or bean.
-The March Amulet is a traditional Romanian custom.  Every year Romanian people knit two little tassels: a white one and a red one. At the beginning of March, they offer this amulet to the girls they love…  In Moldavia, part of Romania, all persons can receive a little March amulet. Red means love for everything that is beautiful and white symbolizes the pureness and health of the snowdrops, the first flowers that appear in spring.  The Legend of March Amulet
Once upon a time, the Sun embodying a handsome young man, got down from the sky to dance a “hora” in a village.  A dragon lay in wait for him and kidnapped him from among the people and threw him into a jail. The world got sad. The birds wouldn’t flow and the children wouldn’t laugh.  No one dared to challenge the bad dragon. But one day a brave young man decided to go and save the Sun. Lots of people saw him off and shared their strength with him. So they helped him defeat the dragon and save the Sun. His journey lasted for three seasons: summer, autumn and winter. He found the dragon’s castle and they started to fight. They fought for days and finally the dragon was killed.
Powerless and wounded, the young man set the Sun free. The Sun rose in the sky cheering up