The historical region of Maramureş comprises the north-eastern part of Maramureş County in Romania and the Ukrainian land -Transcarpathia. Throughout time, this area belonged to the Kingdom of Hungary and the Austrian Empire, and from 1918 it became part of Romania. The Romanian Maramureş is the symbol of the archaic village, a special world guided by ancient values and customs giving you the impression that time has stood still here. The picturesque settlements, the wooden churches, the vast forests and the green hills form an authentic rural universe, charming in its simplicity and traditions. The life of the people in Maramureş unfolds according to the traditions inherited from the ancestors. Between the major religious holidays, the peasant deals with agriculture; when he finishes work,he celebrates enthusiastically, enjoying the music and the dances of the lands he was born in. In Maramureş, the culture, the customs and the frugal lifestyle have been preserved unmarred, reflecting the spirituality and the idyllic image of the Romanian village.

Winter Traditions. Christmas and The New Year in Maramureş

The customs specific to winter holidays are based on the superstitions and the ancient practices of the locals. Once performed, they bring health, happiness, prosperity, harmony in the house and rich harvests. As in all other areas of the country, Saint Nicholas Day or Sânnicoară Day marks the beginning of the winter holidays. Traditionally, St. Nicholas is an old man who watches the gates of heaven and makes sure that the sun does not sneak into the realms of the north. He helps soldiers in combat, rescues sailors from drowning and provides support to the widows, orphans and poor girls who have reached the age of marrying. Saint Nicholas is best known for leaving gifts to obedient, unspoiled children in their shoes, while the naughty are left with a switch the night of December 5th to 6th.

The period preceding Christmas begins with the slaughtering of the pig, which takes place on Ignat day or St. Ignatius (December 20th). In the villages of Maramureş, the blood of the animal is used to mark children, in order to make them healthier and stronger. Then, the preparations for caroling begin, followed by the household cleaning, decorating the Christmas tree and cooking traditional dishes.

On Christmas Eve they whitewash the trees and bind them with straws to have fruits in abundance. On this day, children need to eat pumpkin, to be ruddy and plump all year round. The Christmas tree is decorated with willow twigs, colored paper and garlands on which beans are strung.

On the evening of December 24th, children and young people start caroling. In Maramureş, the ritual aims to bring about fruitful crops, fulfillment in marriage and raising young children. The children go from house to house with The Star (,,Steaua" in Romanian, a singing procession) or the Goat ("Capra", a dancing tradition, with masks), in exchange for good wishes, apples, nuts, ,,colaci" (round breads common in Eastern Europe) and money. The carolers start from the priest's house and do not stop until they cross the threshold of every household, mimicking the itinerary of the heralding Magi.

The houses must be lit all throughout Christmas Eve and the gates must stay open to show the carolers that they are welcomed by the hosts. A very old custom preserved in this area is that of ,,theBrondoşi" practiced in Cavnic town. Troops of 7 to 15 boys get dressed in traditional costumes, adorned with small bells and cowbells and on their faces they wear sheepskin masks. The elders say that the embrace of the ,,brondoşi" keeps evil spirits away and brings good luck the following year. On Christmas Eve, on the Iza Valley they perform “the Viflaim”, a play enacting the birth of Jesus.

The people of Maramureş have certain superstitions related to this event. For instance, on the first day of Christmas one shouldn't broom for thus chance is wasted. Also, people don't do laundry or loan anything; instead, household animals are fed to repletion and are given a piece of leavened dough to protect them from diseases. The cattle and the doors of the stables are anointed with garlic to ward off evil spirits.

After Christmas, preparations begin for the New Year. On New Year's Eve, carolers change the gates of the villagers with whom they fought during the year, to get them to reconcile. The first day of the year is the holiday of St. Basil, when they say that the heavens open three times. In the morning, the people of Maramureş wash their face with fresh water from a bowl where they also put a penny, a branch of basil and one of fir tree. Meanwhile, they recite a spell: "May I be beautiful and young like the fir tree, loved like money, clean like water and with as much chance as the seeds of basil." Children go caroling with other traditions called ,,Pluguşorul" (roughly translated “The Small Plow") and sowing, wishing the hosts a good and prosperous year, health, happiness and abundance.

Christmas and New Year's are holidays spent with the family around a rich meal, moments when the people of Maramureş perform ancient rituals designed to keep them away from harm's way. The customs specific for this period are linked to the wellbeing of the humans and animals and to the fertility of the earth.

Easter Traditions in Maramureş

For the people of Maramureş, Easter is the biggest religious holiday and the most important day of spring, an occasion to observe both the Christian customs of the place and those of pagan origin. The Maramureş locals strictly observe Lent, during which they devote themselves to prayer and abstain from committing sins. The elders say it's not advisable to wear new or colored clothes during the fasting, but modest clothing in dark shades. On Maundy Thursday, Christians give out food and mention the deceased. Also on this day, the housewives paint the eggs and the men sacrifice the lambs. Formerly, after the religious service, children used to throw rocks at Jewish homes, thus reprimanding them for crucifying Jesus.

On Easter night, believers go to church and take home the holy light. On the first day of Easter, all family members wear new clothes and wash their face with water in which they put a red egg and a silver coin. After three days, the coin is given to a child, as a good luck charm. The men take the food that is to be served at the Easter table to be consecrated. The head of the family is the first to tap an egg; the shells are kept until the Pentecost and used as medicine for animals. Girls and women do not leave home in this period. There is the superstition that you will have good luck in the household only if the first guest is a man.

Starting with the second day of Easter, they again organize games, parties and weddings. It is customary for boys to go to girls' homes and sprinkle them with water. In some villages they celebrate "Udatoriul", an agrarian custom, when the most meritorious householder in the village is named and praised; he is accompanied by a procession of peasants dressed in festive clothes. The Easter holiday dresses Maramureş land in a fascinating aura, dominated by man's connection with divinity.

Wedding Traditions in Maramureş

In Maramureş, the wedding ritual is spectacular, full of customs meant to integrate the new family into the community and help the transition of the two young people to maturity. Unlike in other areas of the country, the ceremony here is accompanied by numerous songs and shouts alluding particularly to the newlyweds and to the life of a married woman.

In the villages of Maramureş, girls and boys meet at parties, village evening sittings and on holidays. The boy takes the girlhe likes home, then both of them ask for their parents' blessing for marriage. If the families accept the relationship, the lad has to woo the future bride in his in-laws' house, where he literally asks her to marry him. The engagement takes place on a Saturday evening, when the young people receive the blessing of the priest and exchange rings.Then the girl's parents throw a party with fiddlers, food and drink to celebrate the formation of the new family. Before the wedding, the priest announces the union three times, thus removing any possible obstacles that might arise in the way of marriage.

The party invitations are made two weeks in advance; the groom, the bride and their parents call the entire village to the wedding. Wealthier families leave this task to those who invite the wedding guests. Then preparations begin. The boys meet at the groom's house, where the flag bearer sews the flag and decorates it with ribbons, handkerchiefs, bells and wheat ears, this being a symbol of male power and vitality. They say that all the decorative elements of the flag are collected from the grooms' ex-girlfriends; after the wedding, only the ears of wheat are kept, which are used at the baptism of the couple's first child. Meanwhile, at the bride's house, the bridesmaids braid the garland.

On the wedding day, the bride and groom, each in their parents' home, say goodbye to their families by singing very profound songs, which touch all participants immensely. The bride and groom usually apologize for their mistakes and promise to be good and respectful spouses. The young people go to church separately, accompanied the wedding procession. If the spouses are not from the same village, the young man, together with the flag bearer and some wedding guests go fetch the bride.

After the religious ceremony, the wedding party takes place, starting with the dance of the bride and continuing with that of the groom, attended by men only. In the morning, the bride removes her veil and puts on a scarf, thus signaling the passing to the status of a wife. The bride's round dance takes place, attended only by married women. The newlyweds assume the duty to give gifts and a small fir tree to their wedding godparents once a year.

In Maramureş, the wedding is a real spectacle and an artistic manifestation of the entire community. The spouses' very elaborate costumes, the witty couplets of the wedding guests, the folk music and dances create a genuine party atmosphere, at which they celebrate the foundation of a new family with great pomp.

Throughout the Year Traditions in Maramureş

The Twelfth Day or the Jordan is the celebration of the baptism of Jesus (January 6th). On this day, the priest blesses the water and throws a wooden or ice cross in a river. Even if it’s freezing, the village boys dive in the water and look for the cross. It is said that he who finds it will be lucky all year long. In the old days, women used to throw parties where they sang and danced, while in the morning, they went out on the streets and threatened to throw the men they met in the water. On the Twelfth Night, the girls who want to dream the face of their predestined husband must tie a red thread on their ring finger and put a branch of basil under their pillow.

The Annunciation or Blagoveştenia is celebrated on March 25th and marks the moment when Archangel Gabriel let Virgin Mary know that she would give birth to Jesus. On this day, the song of the cuckoo is heard for the first time in the year. People await the holiday dressed in clean clothes, happy, satiated, with money in their pocket; otherwise, it is said they will have bad luck. The villagers in Maramureş collect useless things from the households and burn them.

The Tree with Pots. In the yards of the locals you will see a tree whose branches are adorned with pots. The elders say that when the pot on top of the tree is red, it means that there is a girl in that family who wants to marry. After she gets married, a pot of a different color is placed on top of the tree. The number of pots hints to the wealth of the family and their willingness to receive suitors.

In Maramureş, traditions have been sacredly kept. The villagers still wear the traditional costume and the church continues to be the spiritual center of the community, while young people still respect the advice of the elders. The rural universe generously unfolds and the stories told while nursing the fire and the old customs delight you with their charm.

[An article written by Andreea Bertea]