St. George's Day: customs, table and namesakes

Every year on May 6, we celebrate St. George the Victorious - the familiar St. George's Day.

The day is an official holiday of the Republic of Bulgaria.

Names: Georgi, Gergana, Genoveva, Ganka, Gencho

Customs

On the morning of St. George's Day, the mistress of the house gets up and sweeps the yard. Then she decorates the doors with a bouquet of geraniums, lilacs and a blossoming branch of a fruit tree.

The most popular custom for this day is roasting a lamb to bring the whole family to the table. The first male lamb born in the year is born. A wreath of fresh flowers is placed on his head, a lighted candle is attached. The lamb is given to lick salt for satiety and fertility and to eat fresh grass - for health and youth in humans and abundant grazing in animals. The lamb is slaughtered next to the east wall of the house or in a place sacred to the locality, called obrochishte. The blood of the animal is poured into the river, "so that the blessing may flow in the house." If nettle is placed in the vessel with the lamb's blood, it later serves as a cure for rashes and other skin diseases. With the blood of the lamb, the cheeks of the children are smeared so that they are healthy and lively. The victim's bones are buried in a place "where no human foot treads." The knuckle of the front right leg is kept and serves as a light and counter lesson.

Early in the morning, even before sunrise, women, maidens and children pick spring flowers and medicinal herbs from which they make wreaths and wristbands. With the wreaths they decorate the windows and doors of the houses, and the wrists are tied to the milk kettles, the nightshades and the roast lamb. Green branches are also placed on the children's blankets.

The summer grazing begins with St. George's Day. Early in the morning, the herds are ritually led out to the first green pasture, and the animals are driven with a green stick. Shepherds ritually milk the first milk in a cauldron decorated with herbs and flowers tied with red thread to protect the sheep from lessons. Milking is done through a silver bridal bracelet or a Gergiev cowhide. The first milk is traditionally given to relatives.