The Roma Christmas: «Roma people celebrations last almost a month: January 1st to January 20th»

Culture

As Ukrainians are getting used to celebrating Christmas in accordance with the Revised Julian Calendar, Roma people cherish their traditions as the most valuable treasure, and keep living on their own time.

Customs and traditions of the Roma people vary by region and ethnic subgroup. Which dishes are on their festive table, which Christmas carols do they sing, why do they toss kutia up to the ceiling, and what do they treat a horse in their home to?

Volodymyr Yakovenko, Natali Tomenko, Janusz Panchenko, and Illia Herasymov from the ARCA Youth Agency for Roma Culture Advocacy and Jianes media project teams continue familiarising us with the topic.

Janusz Panchenko, Roma ethnographer and linguist:

«There is this rite I just loved back in my childhood days. On Christmas Eve, once the first star is seen in the sky, it is time to partake to lenten dishes. Then, the eldest man in the family takes a spoonful of kutia (our family makes kutia with rice), makes a symbolic sign of the cross and tosses it into the «Holy Corner»… If there are any small kids in the family, they get a taste of kutia before that. Next, this kutia is tossed up to the ceiling. And once rice starts falling down, guests shall try and catch it. The more you catch, the more successful you are going to be in the upcoming year. Some try to catch it using their hands, others—to increase their chances—use their hats.

Back in my grandfather’s house, this tradition was very much alive; in my home, that was already not the case. The reason is that you are supposed to toss this rice up with such strength that it should get stuck to the ceiling—and that leaves stains. Today, many people just do not want to damage their flats and either toss it up very delicately, or do not toss it up at all. Back in the olden days, no one cared if the ceiling had stains—nay, that was even considered to be somewhat stylish if, say, people pay you a visit and see numerous ‘Christmas Eve stains’ in your kitchen».

Illia Herasymov, journalist:

«At night, young people could «rustle» horses, dismantle the gateway, or otherwise disturb the masters of the household—all in order to demand ransom from them. Then, the master of the house would approach them, wish them health and happiness, present them with a symbolic ransom, and all of them would get to celebration together. This tradition was alive in my family, and so did my uncle».

Natali Tomenko, Deputy Director of ARCA Youth Agency for Roma Culture Advocacy:

«I recall me and my Mum and my sisters burning pieces of paper, observing shadows, decoding signs on the eve of the Old New Year. Mum was willing to find out when would I get married whereas me, I was curious as to what other things apart from my marriage await me in the future.

These «magical» elements remain part of our culture but nowadays, as I study psychology, I get to realise how all of that is embedded in the cultural context. Children believe in magic. As we are at war, our people are traumatised and are therefore ‘in a state of childishness’ inside. Today, many people in Ukraine and abroad dream of peace. I believe that our childhood dreams are very powerful, that they merge and become reality».

Volodymyr Yakovenko, Executive Director of ARCA Youth Agency for Roma Culture Advocacy:

«Roma people are quite conservative; they need more time to adapt to changes. Hence, as of today, the Roma community still celebrates New Year on January 13th/14th as they are convinced that this date is the genuine, ‘Roma New Year’. Same thing pertains to Christmas. In my opinion, it is not important which date people select for the celebration of Christmas—December 25th or January 07th. The important thing is that people should be aware of the actual meaning of this holiday, specifically: that Christmas is about loving each other, forgiving each other, collaboration and mutual assistance».

You can listen to the full version of this podcast by opening the audio file attached.