Shrovetide tradition. History and traditions of Maslenitsa celebration in Russia. Ancient Shrovetide traditions

In the Church calendar as such a name for the holiday as Shrovetide does not exist. This name is taken from the common people, and the last preparatory week for Great Lent is Cheese Week. That is, the celebration of Maslenitsa (Cheese Week) begins in the last week before Lent, and ends with Forgiveness Sunday. It is also worth noting that the week is understood as one calendar week. Believers who observe fasting are prohibited from eating meat during Cheese Week, but milk, eggs, sour cream, while it is still possible to eat, including pancakes.

: in a kindergarten, at school, on a city street, in a village.

Glorification of the pagan god Yarila, as a symbol of the sun and the arrival of spring.

According to some sources, the celebration of Maslenitsa is rooted in paganism. During the celebration of Maslenitsa, people praised Yarilu, the god of the sun, spring and fertility. In glorifying the Sun, the Slavs baked cakes, according to tradition, they picked up a handful of flour in their hands, dipped them into water, and then baked a round cake from the resulting dough - a symbol of the solar disk. Later, people began to bake pancakes from dough and sourdough. A hot, ruddy, round pancake is a symbol of the sun, it was believed that biting off a pancake, a person figuratively speaking, bite off a piece of the sun, along with its warmth and life.

Shrovetide and Christian Church.

Long before Christianity, Maslenitsa festivities began seven days before the spring equinox, and continued for another seven days after it. When Christianity appeared in Russia, new holidays came. But, since Maslenitsa was slightly shifted due to Lent, nevertheless, the Slavs celebrated the holiday in the same way, on a grand scale. According to pagan ideas, the Slavs held wide festivities, danced in round dances, burned a scarecrow of the "Shrovetide", the personification of winter. After the baptism of Rus in the 10th century, and the adoption of Christianity, the church adamantly fought against this kind of pagan rituals, however, many centuries passed, and the tradition of burning a straw effigy of the "carnival" has survived to this day, but the people of believers who observe Great Lent, the church still warns against this kind of amusement. Since it must be remembered that Cheese Week is a preparation for Great Lent, during which an Orthodox person, a believer, must pray, repent, seek himself in a spiritual sense, seek the meaning of life ... But all this, of course, does not prevent a person from participating in such festivities, the main thing so that these festivities do not harm the human soul, alcohol abuse is excluded, since it is believed that drinking alcohol only alienates a person from God.

Maslenitsa celebration, rituals and traditions.

A well-known custom on Shrovetide is baking pancakes. This custom has its roots in pagan times. Pancakes were baked golden, ruddy, hot - all this is the personification of the Sun, the meeting of spring. During the festivities, the people drove round dances, decorated the wheels of the cart and carried it around the streets, all this is connected with the round shape of the Sun, all these rituals were considered as if "buttering up" the Sun, hence, by the way, the name Shrovetide comes from.

Another tradition is jumping over a fire, this custom is also rooted in paganism, since it was believed that jumping over a fire, a person, as it were, scorched his sins. But nowadays, if a similar tradition has survived, it is more for the sake of fun, fun. As for the sinful side of a person, an Orthodox person needs to go to church and bear his repentances to God, and not burn them by jumping over the fire.

At the end of all the festivities, at the end of the celebration, a scarecrow of the "Shrovetide" was burned, the personification of the outgoing winter, and the arrival of spring, the approach of the period of field work. Burning a scarecrow, people always waited and believed that the year would be fertile and fruitful.

Forgiveness resurrection

The seventh, last day of Shrovetide is considered a forgiveness Sunday, on this day all people, preparing for Great Lent, asked for forgiveness from each other, commemorated the dead.

In churches, evening services are held dedicated to the rite of forgiveness, when the rector asks for forgiveness from the parishioners, and the parishioners, in turn, ask for forgiveness from each other, responding to the request "God will forgive."

Why do we celebrate Shrovetide seven weeks before Easter?

As we know, the most important Orthodox holiday, Easter, falls on different dates every year. Every year this holiday is celebrated on different Sundays of the month. This is due to several factors, according to the lunar calendar, the vernal equinox, and the celebration of the Jewish Passover. And since Easter is a mobile Orthodox holiday, that is, it falls on different dates, then other church dates of certain holidays are counted from the date of the celebration of Easter.

Accordingly, the celebration of Maslenitsa every year falls on different dates, or rather, just seven weeks before Easter. But since the Maslenitsa holiday itself has pagan roots. And the Orthodox Church is against various pagan worldviews. The last week before Great Lent, which in the common people is called simply Pancake festivities and farewell to winter for people who observe fasting, this week is preparation for Great Lent, that is, half-fast, when it is already forbidden to eat meat products, but eggs, cheese, milk can still be eaten.

Easter traditions

For one of the main church holidays, Easter, Orthodox people prepare in advance, during Holy Week. On Monday, for example, they start general cleaning of the house, on Tuesday they prepare smart clothes, if necessary, wash them. On Wednesday, you can also continue cleaning the house and yard. On Maundy Thursday, it is imperative to complete all things to put things in order in the house. On Good Friday, on the day when Christ was crucified, they brought candles consecrated from the church, and burned them all day in different rooms, they also began to paint eggs and bake cakes, fasting and believers, on this day the church prohibits the use of any food ... Saturday is a day of mourning, on this day it is forbidden to have fun, drink alcohol, and enter into an intimate relationship. Easter services begin in the churches. And the resurrection is the coming of Bright Easter, when Jesus Christ was miraculously resurrected. The celebration of Easter takes place at a generously set table, in the circle of relatives.

On the day of Easter, all Orthodox people christen, that is, break each other, or exchange painted eggs with the words "Christ is Risen" and in response, "Truly Risen". The tradition of cooking eggs for Easter symbolizes the birth of a new life, as a new creature emerges from it. And the tradition of dyeing eggs red, these are the so-called dyes or Easter eggs, a symbol of rebirth through the blood of Christ. Painting in other colors is more of an innovation, and symbolizes the joy of the Great and Bright celebration of Easter.

Celebrate Maslenitsa in 2017 with February 20 to February 26, and already on the 27th, the Orthodox began Great Lent.

Every year, a week before Lent, Maslenitsa is celebrated. It is believed that this holiday was born during the period of Kievan Rus. The exact date is unknown. But what is known for sure - on Maslenitsa it is customary to eat pancakes, have a lot of fun and burn a scarecrow.

The holiday was so iconic that neither the coming of Christianity, nor the war and revolution, nor even "communism" could cancel it. Moreover, most of the customs have come down to us practically unchanged. They say that in ancient times there were two stuffed animals - Maslenitsa and Maslenitsa - symbols of certain deities, the embodiment of a man and a woman.

The celebration fell on the spring solstice and personified the arrival of the New Year. It is generally accepted that it was then that the adage “As you celebrate the New Year, you will spend it” was born. Most likely, this is the reason that the whole week was full of all kinds of fun and plentiful food, symbolizing a prosperous life.

With the adoption of Christianity, this cultural heritage received a new name "Cheese Week" and became a kind of preparation for Lent. Since the beginning of Shrovetide, it is forbidden to eat meat, except for fish, but dairy products are still allowed. The main dish is pancakes. The pancake symbolizes the sun. At this time of year, we said goodbye to winter and welcomed spring.

Maslenitsa femininity

The peculiarity of the holiday is its certain "femininity". This period was popularly called "Babskaya week". It was believed that women played the main role in most of the rituals. On Shrovetide, there were many engagements, often marriages were made. Particular attention was paid to girlish innocence, motherhood, female wisdom.

Procreation is an important element of Shrovetide. The pagans greatly appreciated the idea of the cycle of life. Mother Earth gave life to food, which a person was satisfied with. In turn, a person is obliged to give life to another, continuing the race.

The holiday was also a memorial. The pagans were sure that their ancestors, whose soul was in the land of the dead, and whose body was in the earth, influenced the fertility of the latter. In order not to anger them, a sacrifice was carried out, which was accompanied by mourning crying and plentiful meals. All this was called funeral.

Forgiveness Sunday

Shrovetide ends with “Forgiven Sunday”. It is customary on this day to ask for forgiveness from friends and relatives, to do good deeds.

Shrovetide is not a church holiday. With the advent of Christianity, its sacred content practically disappeared, leaving us only its external surroundings and gaiety.

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Shrovetide is widely celebrated throughout Russia. This holiday reflects centuries-old traditions, carefully preserved and passed down from generation to generation. Each day of Shrovetide week is filled with a unique meaning.

Shrovetide is not only the week before Great Lent and the upcoming Easter. Traditionally, it is a turning point in winter, when people, tired of cold weather, finally meet the imminent approach of spring and rejoice at the close warm and fine days. Shrovetide in 2017 will begin on February 20 and end on the 26th with Forgiveness Sunday and the subsequent strict fasting until Easter.

Orthodox people, despite the upcoming fast, try to observe age-old traditions, while not forgetting about the restrictions on festivities and daily prayers. The Meat-Passing Week, which prohibits the use of meat, gives you the opportunity to eat plenty before keeping yourself austere, so pancakes, favorite by Russians, are served with all kinds of fillings: fish, cabbage, honey.

Monday. Meeting.

Shrovetide opens the first day of the week. On Monday, the hostesses baked pancakes. The first pancake was traditionally given to the poor, so that they would pray for the souls of deceased relatives, or leave them on the doorstep as a tribute to their ancestors. On this day, they made sure to make a straw effigy of Maslenitsa and dress up in old clothes, thereby getting rid of unnecessary negativity in the house. Relatives visited each other and treated themselves to pancakes, celebrating the opening of Maslenitsa week.

Tuesday. Flirting.

Tuesday has traditionally been a day of festivities, games and fun. On this day, young people went to visit each other, ate pancakes and sleigh rides from the icy mountains. Buffoons walked the streets, entertaining the people and treating themselves to the generous donations of the hostesses. Flirting was the day of matchmaking, when parents looked closely at future relatives and in a comic manner began to conspire about the upcoming celebration. Guests were traditionally greeted with pancakes and wine, and then everyone went to the mass festivities. Young people secretly looked at each other, grooms chose brides, and girls looked at future husbands and secretly wondered which of them would be the first to send matchmakers.

Wednesday. Gourmet.

On Wednesday, traditionally, the sons-in-law went to visit their mother-in-law for pancakes. In those days, there could be several of them, so they walked in grand style in the houses, tables were bursting with treats. In the evenings, they praised all mother-in-law and sang songs of praise to them and played funny skits with dressing up. The comical performances continued until late at night. At this time, women and girls gathered together, rode sleds through the villages and sang funny songs and ditties.

Thursday. Revelry.

From Thursday, the festivities became widespread, and people in whole villages and villages rode through the streets. At this time, fist fights and wall-to-wall games took place, where young people showed their prowess and become, showing off in front of girls and brides. The children went from house to house and caroling to the merry songs. The adults willingly treated them with delicacies and conveyed greetings and obeisances to their parents.

Friday. Mother-in-law of Vespers.

On Friday, the sons-in-law invited the mothers of their wives to visit them and returned their hospitality and hospitality a hundredfold. The rich organized honorary evenings, when not only the mother-in-law, but also all her relatives. Family gatherings strengthened the relationship between relatives, and the general fun reminded of the imminent approach of the long-awaited spring and warmth.

Saturday. Sister-in-law gatherings.

The daughter-in-law honorably invited her husband's relatives into the house. If the sister-in-law, the sisters of the husbands, were unmarried, the daughter-in-law would invite her unmarried girlfriends to a common gathering. Married relatives were invited to the married sister-in-law. In this case, the sleigh was linked by a steam locomotive and the daughter-in-law carried her relatives to their sister-in-law. The newlywed, according to custom, prepared gifts for her sister-in-law and presented each one.

Sunday. Forgiven day.

The Shrovetide week ends with Forgiveness Sunday. At this time, relatives went to visit each other and asked for forgiveness. Also on this day, they visited cemeteries and paid tribute to the memory of deceased relatives. On Sunday, they burned a Maslenitsa effigy, danced around the fire, and the bravest jumped over it and made a wish. The farewell to winter was over. The people were in no hurry to go home and burned high hot fires to melt the remnants of the snow and quickly invite the beautiful spring. Unnecessary and broken things were put into the fire. On this day, all old grievances and conflicts were forgotten. The old people smiled and said: "Whoever remembers the old, he will be out of sight."

Shrovetide at all times was celebrated on a grand scale. And you don't skimp on joy this fun week in 2017. Leave all the hardships to winter and enter a new period of life renewed. We wish you happiness and do not forget to press the buttons and

The start date of Shrovetide varies depending on when Lent begins, which lasts seven weeks before Easter. And it is just before Great Lent that Pancake Week is celebrated.

Shrovetide is a preparatory week for Lent dedicated in the Christian sense to one goal - reconciliation with neighbors, forgiveness of offenses, preparation for a repentant path to God - this is the Christian component of Shrovetide. Shrovetide Week, Shrovetide is the colloquial name of Cheese Week - the last week before Lent. During Shrovetide, no meat is eaten, but fish and dairy products can be consumed. Shrovetide is a solid week fasting on Wednesday and Friday is canceled.

Shrovetide 2017- this is the farewell to winter and the joyful expectation of spring, this is a folk festive cycle that has been preserved among the Slavs since pagan times. Shrovetide in villages and cities is always celebrated with mass festivities - noisy, fun and with generous refreshments. We are sure that the festivities on Maslenitsa 2017 will be no less fun. When will Maslenitsa 2017, do not think that the only treat for the holidays is pancakes. As a rule, when Maslenitsa is celebrated, a rich table is laid. In the old days, pancakes and pies with various fillings were put on the table at Maslenitsa: mushroom, cottage cheese, cabbage, and more.

Why is Maslenitsa called Maslenitsa or Cheese Week

Maslenitsa got its name from the fact that in the last week before Lent, it is allowed to eat butter, dairy products and fish. In the calendar of the Russian Orthodox Church, this period is called Cheese Week, - the week (week) following the Motley Week. In the Orthodox Church it is believed that meaning of Cheese Week- reconciliation with neighbors, forgiveness of offenses, preparation for Great Lent - the time that needs to be devoted to good communication with neighbors, relatives, friends, and charity.

Lent services begin in churches. On Wednesday and Friday, the Divine Liturgy is not celebrated; the Lenten prayer of Saint Ephraim the Syrian is read. The last Sunday before the beginning of Great Lent is called the Church of Cheeseweed Week (it is on this day that the consumption of dairy products ends), or Forgiveness Sunday... On this day, after the evening service in churches, a special rite of forgiveness is performed, when the clergy and parishioners mutually ask for forgiveness from each other in order to enter Great Lent with a pure soul, reconciled with all their neighbors.

The main traditional attributes of the folk celebration of Maslenitsa: Maslenitsa stuffed animal, fun, sleigh rides, festivities, Russians have obligatory pancakes and flatbreads, Ukrainians and Belarusians have dumplings, cheese cakes and a block.

Folk rituals of Maslenitsa

The ritual side of Shrovetide is very complex and dates back to ancient times. It includes rituals related to the beginning of a new cycle, and to the stimulation of fertility, and to the cult of ancestors. The main heroine of the holiday was Maslenitsa, embodied in a scarecrow. Shrovetide is not a deity, however, it represents an archaic stage in the development of a dying and resurrecting deity. The Scarecrow of Maslenitsa seemed to be the focus of fertility and fertility, and the rituals of his seeing off were supposed to convey this fertility to the earth. For the peasant, the fertility of the land was extremely important. Another side of Maslenitsa is connected with the stimulation of fertility - the memorial. The departed ancestors, according to the ideas of the peasants, were simultaneously in the other world and in the land, which means they could influence its fertility. Pancakes are the main attribute of Shrovetide. Contrary to popular belief, pancakes are not and have never been a symbol of the sun among the Slavic peoples. Pancakes have always been a memorial dish among the Slavs, so they correspond very well to the memorial essence of Maslenitsa.

Shrovetide traditions

Pre-Christian Maslenitsa - celebrated in March, on the days of the vernal equinox, the pagan holiday of the farewell to winter - the comedy. The celebration of Shrovetide was accompanied by rituals that glorified the sun, symbolizing the death of seasonal death and the approach of the rebirth of nature, and lasted for a week. Shrovetide was days of universal fun and revelry, feasting... It was a feast of the stomach, accompanied by drunkenness and food to the point of gluttony. There was also a place for eroticism. In some villages, team-mates were arranged, together, the whole village was brewed beer. Shrovetide is a wide celebration. It was impossible to skimp on expenses.

A characteristic feature of the celebration of Maslenitsa is skating... Ice mountains were specially arranged, on which many people gathered. We rode on sleds and sleighs, creating a "heap of small" on them, on birch bark and on any means at hand. According to tradition, in the villages on Maslenitsa, they certainly rode horses harnessed to decorated sleighs. In front of the sleigh, a shaft was installed with a wheel fixed at the top, symbolizing the sun. Entire sled trains were organized. For all the entertainments and fun, skating and festivities, mummers and buffoons were present and took an active part in them - these are the folk traditions on Maslenitsa. Harnessing, like riding, was common throughout the week. Fist fights were also widespread. The holidays ended with the burning of Maslenitsa.

Folk traditions at the Maslenitsa

Pancake week is divided into two periods: Narrow Shrovetide and Wide Shrovetide who have their own traditions. Narrow Shrovetide - the first three days: Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, Wide Shrovetide - these are the last four days: Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. In the first three days, it was possible to do household work, and from Thursday all work stopped, and the Wide Maslenitsa began. Among the people, every day of Maslenitsa has its own name.

Monday Shrovetide - MEETING

Traditionally, for the first day of Maslenitsa, places of public festivities, ice slides, booths were prepared; stocks were created for refreshments - pancakes, pies, pancakes, rolls were baked, snacks and drinks were prepared. Young people made a straw doll representing Shrovetide. They dressed the doll, dressed it up, took it on a sled to a high place and called on Maslenitsa to come, ride and lie in pancakes. The hostesses began to invite and treat the guests.

Shrove Tuesday - PLAY (flirting of young people)

Traditions for this day of Maslenitsa youth in the morning invited each other to pancakes. Boys and girls exchanged visits and after a few treats went out into the streets, on the hills to have fun, to have fun. Youth games were arranged. Guys looked out for brides, girls - grooms.

Wednesday Shrovetide - LAKOMKA (at the mother-in-law on pancakes)

On Wednesday, it was the mother-in-law's mother-in-law who traditionally organized a plentiful meal with obligatory pancakes for Shrovetide. She gathered relatives with the first priority of inviting and honoring sons-in-law.

Shrovetide Thursday - RAZGUL (wide Thursday)

Traditionally, street festivities on Maslenitsa took on the most widespread character on Thursday. People poured out into the streets, converged on certain places for joint meals and drinks. Songs sounded over the villages. Noise, din, laughter and the ringing of bells accompanied the sleigh trains. The buffoons entertained the audience. The ice slides were covered with children and youth. The guys arranged various pranks. Fistfights were growing.

Shrovetide Friday - MOTHER'S PARTIES

Traditions at the Maslenitsa ordered the son-in-law to personally invite his mother-in-law to visit him on Friday. Other relatives also gathered to treat their son-in-law, also with pancakes.

Saturday Shrovetide - ZOLOVKIN'S SEATING

By tradition, on Saturday, the young daughter-in-law showed her skill in preparing food and invited relatives to her place.

Sunday for Shrovetide - WIRES (burning of Shrovetide - ritual of seeing off winter)

At some elevated place, a long pole was installed, at the top of which a wheel was fixed, symbolizing the movement of the sun towards spring, which rose higher and higher in the firmament every day. This building was lined with firewood, brooms, and in the evening a big fire was made. A scarecrow of winter, cold, seasonal death was burned. All this was accompanied by fun, sleigh rides from the mountains, various fun. These lights were visible from village to village.

The celebration of Shrovetide was necessarily associated with pancakes, which symbolized the solar disk. On Shrovetide, weddings were played - both nature and people were preparing for fruiting.

Signs and sayings on Shrovetide

The first pancake for the rest (in butter).
The first thaw - parents sighed.
Eat cheese, sour cream, butter, all troubles - get rid of the generosity of your soul.
Porridge is not tasty without oil.
Gone Christmastide, sorry to leave, Olive came - to ride (Voronezh.).
You are welcome to us about Shrovetide with our good, with an honest belly.
Where are the pancakes, here we are; where porridge with butter - here is our place.
Damn not a wedge, the belly will not split.
Not oily without a pancake.
Ride on the slides, roll in pancakes.
About butter - you feast for a week, you get drunk for seven.
We drank beer about Shrovetide, and with a hangover broke after Radunitsa.
The songs about Shrovetide are merry, and more fun than that - about Radonitsa.
Maslenitsa is Semikov's niece.
Shrovetide obeduha, money priberukha.
He called, called the honest Semik the wide Maslenitsa to take a walk.
Maslena: honest, cheerful, broad, world-wide.
Pancake week - pancake maker
Let's pay our respects to a cheese house on Sunday (that is, let's play it off, dress up, etc.).
The Maslena River is wide: Great Lent was also flooded.
Feast-walk, baba, on Maslena, but remember about fasting.
Maslen is afraid of bitter radish and steamed turnip.
Blasius will spill oil on the roads - it’s time for winter to remove his feet, the way is led by her, after Prokhor is followed.
Son-in-law - pie on the table.
The mother-in-law has a son-in-law and a stupa milking (that is, milking).
The son-in-law will come, where to get the sour cream?
Bad weather on Sunday before the oil season - for the mushroom harvest.
Not everything for the cat is Shrovetide, there will be Great Lent.

Shrovetide is a holiday that came to us even before Christianity, which means it is a pagan holiday. But despite this fact? Maslenitsa in our country is loved, celebrated and do not want to say goodbye to this holiday. When he came to us, no one remembers for sure, or rather, there is no one to ask. Well, in Russia they have always loved and love to take a walk, and there is a reason, so in this case! It is noteworthy that Maslenitsa is celebrated for a week, that is, from Monday to Sunday. It always starts on Monday, there is no exception. But the climax comes on Sunday, when they burn a straw effigy.

What the Maslenitsa holiday personifies

The question is very difficult, since there is no unequivocal confirmation that Shrovetide is the farewell to winter. It's all about the floating period of this holiday, when it can be celebrated both in March, that is, already in the calendar spring, and in February, even in winter. So, the February frosts may not recede yet, but the holiday is already celebrated. Therefore, it is not necessary to speak of the unambiguity of the fact that Maslenitsa is the farewell to winter, although I really want to ...
It is with the wires of winter that this holiday personifies the majority.

When is Maslenitsa celebrated in 2020, 2021 ...

Every year the Maslenitsa celebration date changes. Take a look at the table, find the year and find out when it will be celebrated.

As you can see, it's not difficult, but now you probably know when to go to the celebration! For those who want to understand where this all comes from, we will say that everything depends on the cycles of the moon. Since the holiday is tied to the date of Easter, which depends on the phases of the moon, then Maslenitsa itself depends on it. Maslenitsa week begins before Great Lent, and the fast itself begins before Easter. Somehow it turns out that way!

Shrovetide is usually celebrated

This holiday has its own signs and features, which, although not particularly observed, are. So Shrovetide was called Meat Week, when you can't eat meat. This is one of the features of the celebration. But the second name Cheese week is closer to the truth. That is, for seven days you can eat cheese and dairy products, including butter, in honor of which the holiday has the most popular name among the people.
So, on Shrovetide you need to bake pancakes, eat yourself, visit pancakes, dip them in butter and eat. In fact, oh, eat right, because this holiday is before Great Lent, which means this is the last opportunity to eat. Although to say that you need to eat up on a pagan holiday in order to gloriously celebrate a Christian one is again somehow not entirely correct.

Well, if we put aside all the religious components, then the modern Maslenitsa is, first of all, folk festivities, singing, moreover, often supported by our municipal authorities. So in many cities on Maslenitsa performances are held, where artists with folk creative activities perform, they arrange contests like how to climb a pole, walk a log to a ram, and the like. Walking on this holiday is not prohibited, but on the contrary, it is encouraged. At least, such a picture emerges from the many years of experience of the policy of our authorities and the attitude of the people to this holiday.
As we have already briefly mentioned, the apotheosis of the holiday falls on Sunday. Why? There are several reasons. This is the last day, which means break your forehead, but take a walk at the holiday. Sunday is a day off and that means you can really find time to take part in the celebration. All events organized by the municipal authorities for Maslenitsa take place on Sunday. And the last, most important thing that everyone loves so much is the burning of a stuffed animal. This image of a burning shock is familiar to many from childhood, since the holiday was actively celebrated in the USSR, because it seems like it is not Christian, which means that you can spend the winter without tying this event to religion. Yes, the scarecrow burns nicely and beautifully, here the main thing is for the organizers of the event. We hope they will not cut the budget, on this saint, and the scarecrow in your city, town, village will burn as it should and incendiaryly attractive ...

The accepted days of the week for Shrovetide with their name and traditions of celebration

Monday is called Shrovetide Meeting. Already on this day, they begin to bake pancakes, eat, treat and distribute. Distributing pancakes to those in need. They also made and erected a scarecrow that was burned on Sunday, the last day of Maslenitsa.

Tuesday was popularly called "Flirting". This day was completely devoted to the newlyweds, if any. On this day, festivities were organized: sledding, carousels and slides.

Wednesday "Gourmet". On this day, they ate and overeat. We went for pancakes and invited. It was thanks to this day that the popular expression “go to the mother-in-law for pancakes” appeared among the people. However, the mother-in-law was also waiting for Friday, when it was her turn to come to the pancakes.

The people called Thursday “Razgulyay”. Festivities, skating, all kinds of entertainment events, all this describes the word walk around, and also characterizes this day at Pancake Week.

Friday "Mother-in-law's evening", it was on this day that the mother-in-law's turn came to visit. However, the polite relatives invited the mother-in-law on the eve of Thursday.

Saturday is popularly called "Sister-wife's gatherings". Young daughters-in-law invited her husband's sisters, talked to them, treated them to various delicacies and gave gifts. If the sister-in-law had not yet managed to get married, then the daughter-in-law called her unmarried girlfriends, and if the husband's sister was married, then only married relatives were invited.

Sunday. The last day of the celebration. But as we know, one holiday is not complete without another, because the last day of Maslenitsa is nothing more than "Forgiveness Sunday".

Do Catholics celebrate Maslenitsa (Catholic Church)

Like the Russian Shrovetide, such holidays exist in almost all Catholic countries. Perhaps their name and chronology is different, but the meaning is about the same. As with us, "Catholic Shrovetide" is celebrated before Lent, on the eve of the so-called Ash Wednesday (Shrove Tuesday). The holiday for Catholics is called carnival. By the way, if you translate the word "carnival", then it literally means "goodbye meat". That is, the carnival is just preparation for fasting.
In countries with a predominance of the French language, such a holiday is called Mardi Gras, in English-speaking countries it is "Pancake Day", in the USA - "Fat Tuesday". Like us, on the days of the Catholic Maslenitsa, all kinds of entertainment events are held, such as games, festivities. processions. The most famous Maslenitsa event in Europe is the Venice Carnival, which takes place before Lent and lasts 10 days. Pancake races are held in London on the last day of the local Maslenitsa. Many have heard of these. Anyone can accept them. In races, you need to run the distance as quickly as possible, while tossing a pancake in the pan. The winner is determined from those who still ran with their pancake, and even as quickly as possible.

On these days, you can and should eat a lot of fatty foods, that is, gorge yourself before Great Lent. The number of days of the Maslenitsa Catholic carnival is different in different countries: in Norway only 2 days, in Argentina - 2 months, including Lent, but usually about 5-7 days. The holiday is also actively celebrated in Great Britain, Canada, Ireland, Australia ...
If we talk about the main dishes of the holiday, then in Greece - cheese bread, in Poland - donuts with fillings.

Summing up when and how Maslenitsa is celebrated

Here, even without our conclusions, it is clear that the Shrovetide date is floating, while it is entirely dependent on Easter. In order for you to better navigate, take a look at the table with the chronology of religious holidays associated with Easter.

Chronology of holidays associated with Easter (Resurrection of Christ)

That is, we can say that Maslenitsa is celebrated 49 days before Easter. But the history of the holiday is very rich, absorbing both Slavic mythology, and the politics of municipal authorities and a certain vision of the holiday by the common man.
In short. It is a holiday, first of all, for the people, when they are tired of winter, they want some space for action and thought, a change of weather to warm, but the authorities do not oppose it. That is why, until now, the Maslenitsa holiday in Russia is very popular and in demand. After all, this is a great opportunity to spend a holiday on the street with your family, under the growing sun, eat pancakes with sweets, burn a scarecrow, feel the spirit of spring around and everywhere.