Podcast in English

Snezhana Vitanova: Folk songs are a way of life for me

The singing skills of the renowned folk singer are an example of how the singing tradition is passed down from generation to generation. Her repertoire is of authentic songs from the region of Radomir where she was born (Western Bulgaria). It..

published on 1/20/22 9:45 AM

Kiril Shtrapulin has been decorating the heads of Pernik mummers with his bizarre masks for many years

Let's drive away the evil forces on Surva! - is the motto of the largest festival of masquerade games in Bulgaria and the Balkans . Traditionally, the festival held in the town of Pernik brings together thousands of participants,..

published on 1/13/22 11:31 AM
Valya Balkanska

Folk singer Valya Balkanska turns 80

Folk singer Valya Balkanska from the Rhodope region turns 80 today.  The singer gained world fame with the song Izlel e Delyo Haidutin , a recording of which was included on the Golden Record carried on board the Voyager 1 and Voyager 2..

published on 1/8/22 5:38 PM
Blind Mare in Yassen village

Masked men in Yassen village banish evil forces, diseases and bad luck in old-time ritual

As is the tradition of old, people in Yassen village near Pleven banished the evil spirits, diseases and bad luck from their homes, the Bulgarian news agency BTA reports.   A ritual called Blind Mare is performed there after Epiphany and..

published on 1/8/22 2:26 PM

Today is Babinden!

Today is Babinden , Granny’s or Midwives’ Day, a popular feast day celebrating the elderly women who once helped women give birth. The day, once marked on 21 January, old style, has lost many of its rituals of old, such as the bathing of..

published on 1/8/22 11:10 AM

Festive rituals on Ivanovden (Saint John the Baptist’s Day) in Bulgaria

After the day of the Epiphany (Yordanovden in Bulgarian) and the ritual bathing of men, the January series of customs continues with Ivanovden celebrated on January 7. In the church calendar, this is the day of Saint John the Baptist who baptized..

published on 1/7/22 10:53 AM

Day of St. Sylvester – folk customs and beliefs

On January 2, the Orthodox Church pays honor to St. Sylvester – Pope of Rome, who lived in the III - IV century. In 314 he was elected Roman bishop and pope and he remained on this position until his death in 335. This was the time when..

published on 1/2/22 10:50 AM

A winter’s tale of kukeri, and how tradition is passed down from father to daughter

They are clad in genuine animal skins weighing 30-40 kgs. each, wear horns and all kinds of different-coloured charms. They sometimes hide their faces behind fearful masks, at other times they show their weather-beaten faces. Their pictures..

published on 1/2/22 9:10 AM
The

Dervish banish evil in Varvara village

Kukeri banish the forces of evil in Varvara village near Pazardzhik on the first day of January. The Dervish, as the locals call them, start on their way from home to home at midnight. In the end they all come together in the centre of the..

published on 1/1/22 3:42 PM

“Dunavsko Horo” chain dance– the invisible thread that connects Bulgarians around the world

Few people know that Dunavsko Horo (Danube Chain Dance), which sounds traditionally in every Bulgarian home in the first minutes of the New Year, was written on a fine spring evening. Inspired by the season of new beginnings, it gives..

published on 12/31/21 1:55 PM