I thought about whether it is possible to set the table for the New Year according to the truly Russian canon, but without tangerines, Olivier and champagne?
It is these three components that are believed to make the night from January 31 to January 1 "New Year", but after all we all know: this is "brought from outside "a holiday, and in Russia Christmas was traditionally celebrated, I periodically say this in the comments of the champions of old traditions write.
These advocates often declare - on the night of December 31 to January 1, you need to sleep, and not go for a walk and indulge in gluttony, as our ancestors did.
And so I decided to figure it out, is it so?
It turned out not at all.
Confusion (and a lot) arises because of the dates, or rather, because of the calendar - after all, now January 1 according to the old style - January 14 according to the new style.
And in the calendar of January 1 (according to the old style) there was already a holiday - Vasilyev's Day, St. Basil of Caesarea (and, besides him, there are many others). But the festivities all fell on Vasilyev's evening - the evening of December 31, he was called differently in different places, somewhere - Generous, somewhere - Oat, somewhere he was called Vasiliev, and somewhere - generally Melanin, because on December 31, Malanya fell on the calendar. Roman.
At the same time, the table on December 31 was supposed to be abundant (Malanya is fat and Malanya is a stomach, this is about him), and also symbolic.
Since Basil of Caesarea was considered the patron saint of pig breeding, there was definitely a piglet - in many places he was called, and was called, Caesarean.
Of course, the traditional wheat kutia was on the table without fail - this is a ritual dish.
And, of course, bread - in the form of a loaf or rolls, pancakes or pies, everything depended on the traditions of the area.
Moreover, yes, the celebrations could go on all night. Evliya elebi, a 17th century Ottoman traveler, wrote about the night of January 31 to 1:
- That night - the night of the strongest frost - the kafirs had a feast for slaughtering pigs. Festive firing from rifles and cannons continued until the morning.
So, as you can see, on the night of December 31 to January 1, our ancestors were not bored. Our calendar, of course, was changed, making January 1 14. But the traditions of the feast can be borrowed.
Would you like to try it?