Mukhaeva Marina Nikolaevna
2nd year student, specialty “Solo and choral folk singing”, State Educational Institution of Secondary Professional Education “Marx School of Arts (Technical School)”
Sergeeva Maria Pavlovna
scientific director, teacher of the State Educational Institution of Secondary Professional Education “Marx School of Arts (Technical School)”
Wedding traditions, rituals and ceremonies of various regions of Russia are of great interest to ethnographers, folklorists, and researchers in various fields of science. Despite the fact that many studies have been devoted to the study of this area of folk culture, scientific works, the wedding ceremony and its regional varieties remain insufficiently studied, especially in the field of ethnomusicology.
The Middle Volga region is a special ethnographic region of Eastern Europe, located at the junction of Europe and Asia, which is inhabited by peoples who have much in common both in economic and historical development, and in origin, culture, way of life: Russians, Mordovians, Tatars and others.
The traditions of family holidays and rituals of these peoples were formed by many generations over the centuries. Despite the differences in family life and religion, some family rituals have much in common and at the same time differ due to their characteristic features.
The purpose of this work is to compare the features wedding ceremonies peoples of the Middle Volga region, their song traditions.
The wedding ceremony of the Russian villages of the Middle Volga region is clearly divided into two parts: the first takes place in the bride’s house, includes farewell rituals, preparation for the bride’s transition to new family and is accompanied by farewell wedding lament songs, bride’s laments and songs of praise; the second part is a wedding feast in the houses of the bride and groom, accompanied by dance songs.
Its description in written sources is given according to the stories of local residents of the older generation and sometimes appears in a transformed form, more reminiscent of a theatrical performance, where various elements are mixed and combined together wedding game, which are accompanied not by strictly regulated traditional songs and lamentations, but by drawn-out and dance songs suitable for the event.
The main elements of a Russian wedding: matchmaking, bridesmaids, handshakes, drinking bouts; economic preparation for the wedding, parties at the bride's, girls' bath; gathering of people, ransom of the bride, transfer of the bride to the groom's house; feast at the groom's house.
Ritual songs were organically woven into the course of the wedding, created a festive atmosphere, gave special importance to what was happening, and were performed at the beginning of many important points weddings and helped to perform the wedding ceremony: they suggested the time of departure to the wedding, informed about the arrival of the newlyweds at the groom’s house, called the groom’s parents to meet the newlyweds, invited guests to the wedding table, and notified about the end of the wedding festivities.
Many elements of the wedding ceremony were formed with utilitarian-magical purposes, but today, due to changed living conditions, they have lost them. M.V. Khokhlacheva points out that “the most important role in the wedding ceremony is played by lamentations, which reflect the deep essence of the image of the bride, her emotional and psychological state.”
Wedding crying is a developed ritual associated with the bride’s farewell to her family, in which she addresses the guests present, her father, mother and friends, and says goodbye to her home before leaving for the wedding. Ethnographer A.N. Minkh characterizes a wedding lament as follows: “Bittern - consists of lamentations in a chant, in a wild and drawn-out voice. If the bride screams with feeling, then many women begin to cry and, being delighted, hug the bride and, in turn, echo her - here, for heaven's sake! The screaming performers perform such roulades that it sends a chill down your spine—young guys and boys are going to watch and listen to that music.”
At a Russian wedding in large quantities presents song genres of joint singing, which were performed mainly by bridesmaids. These are great songs in which the bride and groom were praised, their positive traits, so-called “bride songs” close to lamentations, songs for welcoming the wedding train, reproachful songs in which the groom, his family and friends were ridiculed, dance and plangent songs.
The wedding ceremony of Mordovian villages is closest to the Russian one; it also has a similar developed ritual. However, for a long time there was a custom of kidnapping the bride; it took place with the secret consent of the bride herself, her parents, or without it. The kidnapping was not accompanied by any rituals, but could end in a fight, injury to the participants and even the bride.
In Mordovian villages, the wedding ceremony also began with matchmaking, including a viewing of the bride and groom, viewing of the groom's house, and drinking.
However, after matchmaking, unlike the Russian wedding ceremony, the bride’s friends notified the village residents about the upcoming wedding, the groom’s relatives gathered at the bride’s house to set the wedding day, and on the eve of the wedding, the girls were invited to “girl porridge” - this ritual food was treated to the bride’s friends. In the morning wedding day the bride hid with neighbors, relatives, or rode with friends around the village, hiding from the residents, the bride was taken to them by the urvals who guarded her - young men from her family.
As the wedding train advanced to the groom's house, a stop was made at the cemetery, where the bride, loudly wailing, said goodbye to her deceased relatives. In some Mordovian villages, the groom was not present on the wedding train, but joined it only when the newlyweds were being taken to church. Sometimes the bride was delivered to the groom's house, and went to church only the next day or a few days later. This indicates the formal attitude of the residents of these villages towards church rituals. An interesting rite of naming the bride, characteristic of a Mordovian wedding, was that in the groom’s house the bride was dressed in women's clothing and given a new name.
All Mordovian wedding rituals, as well as Russian ones, were accompanied by songs of various genres, however, it is necessary to note the predominance of single singing genres in them, these include: traditional wedding lamentations of the bride after a binge, during a maiden bath (the custom of arranging such a bath is not typical for all Mordovian sat down), when saying goodbye to deceased relatives at the cemetery; lamentations of the bride's mother and individual relatives; “songs of the matchmaker, who began to sing in the groom’s house, going “to buy live goods,” and sang throughout the wedding, directing the events and commenting on them.”
Genres of communal singing included corilian songs, which were performed by friends and relatives of the bride and groom, as well as ritual chants that accompanied the baking of wedding pies in the groom’s house by selected cooks from his family, drawn-out and dance songs.
An important difference is the theme of wedding rituals and songs: in the Russian tradition, attention was paid to the disclosure of one’s own experiences, and in the Mordovian tradition - to “otherworldly power” (images of deceased ancestors), to pagan female deities with whom agriculture and fertility are associated. This apparently shows echoes of pagan beliefs and matriarchy.
In the wedding rites of the peoples of the Middle Volga region professing Orthodoxy (Russians, Mordovians, Udmurts, Mari), there are wedding rituals that are common or similar in purpose, but at the same time they differ in many characteristic details inherent in the traditions of each of these peoples. This can also be applied to the songs accompanying wedding ceremonies.
Udmurt wedding songs, performed during wedding feasts in the houses of the bride and groom, are divided into songs of the groom's clan and songs of the bride's clan, which are performed to their own traditional tune of this clan.
The Mari wedding ceremony was accompanied by the singing of wedding songs and playing bagpipes and drums; there were also songs performed only by men in the groom’s house, and wedding ditties- songs for seeing off the bride.
The most common song genres of the Chuvash wedding ceremony were the lamentations of the bride, the songs of the groomsmen, and the bridesmaids. The wedding train was accompanied by drumming, playing bubbles, bells and bells.
Many sources indicate the use of folk musical song and instrumental genres in the wedding ceremonies of the Muslim peoples inhabiting the Middle Volga region - Tatars, Bashkirs.
The Tatars traditionally dominated the family, based on patriarchal principles, with women avoiding men and elements of female seclusion.
In Tatar villages there were the following types of marriages: matchmaking; running away, i.e. a girl leaving for her lover without the permission of her parents; kidnapping of a girl.
The wedding was preceded by matchmaking, conspiracy, and engagement. At this stage, the parties agreed on the bride price, which the groom's side was supposed to give to the bride's side; the bride's dowry was not specifically specified. The main wedding rituals, as well as the religious ceremony of marriage, were accompanied by a special feast without the participation of the newlyweds and were held in the bride’s house. The young woman remained in her parents' house until the bride price was paid (in the form of money and clothes for the girl, food for the wedding). At this time, the young man visited his wife on Thursdays once a week. The young woman's move to her husband's house was sometimes delayed until the birth of the child and was accompanied by many rituals. The wedding feasts of various groups of Tatars had a specific feature: among the Kazan Tatars they were held separately for men and women, sometimes in different rooms; among the Mishar Tatars this division was not so strict, and among the Kryashen Tatars it was completely absent. In the wedding train of Tatar villages, musicians were always at the head of the procession. In folk song art, only traditionally monophonic solo singing developed. The Kryashens and Mishars had special wedding songs, and the Mishars had wedding laments for the bride.
The Bashkir wedding ceremony consists of several stages: choosing a bride, matchmaking, collusion; a wedding accompanied by a marriage ceremony (nikah); post-wedding ceremonies. All this is a multi-stage theatrical action: the first stage - bishek tuyi (lullaby wedding) is held when the girl and boy, whom the parents want to see in the future as wife and husband, reach forty days of age; the second khyrgatuy (wedding of earrings) is held when the “groom” is able to independently mount and control a horse, and the “bride” can carry water (in this case, the boy gives the bride earrings). After these symbolic weddings and young people reaching adulthood are settled real wedding- nikah tuya (marriage wedding). Until the groom pays the bride price, he is forbidden to take the bride away or show his face to his father-in-law and mother-in-law, so he comes to the bride late in the evening and only on the appointed days.
Researchers of Bashkir folklore point to the absence of actual wedding songs in it; only in some Bashkir villages of the Middle Volga region were there separate musical and poetic genres, for example, senglyau - wedding lamentations performed by one or more women before seeing off the bride to the groom's house. Two types of such wedding lamentations are known: “senglau-thoughts associated with the ritual walking of girls in the field, the bride’s farewell to the girl’s headdress, to her home; Senglau-appeals, which were sung when the bride walked around the houses of her relatives, when the wedding train departed."
Each nation, to the extent possible, has brought its traditions, rituals and customs to the present day. They reflect the best features in them, like in a mirror. national character. Traditional cultural features are refracted in folklore songs different nations, their moral and religious ideas.
Today our society is reviving forgotten ancient traditions, using folk experience, creating new forms of family rituals. It's connected with functional features genres of folklore, with deep spirituality and wisdom of folk art, with the continuity of the process of transmitting national culture from generation to generation.
On modern stage national revival, it is necessary to return to what was achieved by our ancestors, carefully preserve the history, culture, way of life, way of life of the people, and pass on folk traditions to future generations.
Bibliography:
- Ananicheva T., Sukhanova L. Song traditions of the Volga region. - M.: Music, 1991, - 176 p.
- Minkh A.N. Wedding ceremonies of peasants. Knee of the Saratov province. Russian volosts, 1873, No. 75.
- Khokhlacheva M.V. On the issue of the culture of wedding crying in the Saratov Volga region // History, theory and practice of folklore: Collection of scientific articles based on the materials of the IV All-Russian scientific readings in memory of L.L. Christiansen. - Saratov, 2013. - 370 p.
- Shishkina E.M. Wedding music of the lower Volga region: Diss. Ph.D. claim M., 1989. - 199 p.
- Shulgin V.S. Culture of Russia: IX-XX centuries: Tutorial/ V.S. Shulgin, L.V. Koshman, M.R. Zezina. - M.: Prostor, 1996. - 390 p.
Wedding customs peoples of the Volga region
Presentation for a history and local history lesson.
Teacher of history and local history, Municipal Educational Institution-Secondary School. Podlesnoye, Marksovsky district, Saratov region
Proverbs
Calm down your child from a young age, your wife from the first time.
Bashkir proverb
No matter how far it is, go along the road; no matter how old you are, take the girl.
Kalmyk proverb
A treacherous wife is the whip of Satan. Tatar proverb
Beauty is needed only at a wedding, intelligence is needed every day. Tatar proverb
You can't put beauty in a bowl. Tatar proverb
The unloved is always the odd one out. Bashkir proverb
While the beauty is preening, the wedding ends.
Tatar proverb
A girl's heart is a boiling cauldron, it doesn't take anything into account. Tatar proverb
A man's word is always the same. Tatar proverb
A smart man praises his horse, a crazy man praises his wife, and a fool praises himself.
Bashkir proverb
The most important ritual among all peoples is the wedding. It is necessarily preceded by meetings and acquaintances during agricultural work and at parties. The time of weddings did not come at the same time for different nations. For example, Russians had a wedding in the fall. The Chuvash held weddings in June, after sowing. The decision to marry was made by the parents; what was valued in a future wife was not beauty, but hard work and spiritual qualities. At the same time, the love and reciprocity of the young was not excluded. Marriages of close relatives were prohibited. The betrothed girl no longer went to gatherings, but was busy preparing a dowry and gifts for the groom and his relatives. She went to someone else's house and therefore for several evenings (for the Mordovians up to fifteen evenings) she wailed and cried.
All Volga peoples had a bachelorette party before the wedding,
at which songs were performed, the bride gave gifts to her friends.
The Kalmyks also received gifts from the bride.
In Slavic mythology, the apple was a symbol of fertility, health, love, beauty; was an emblem of a marriage union and healthy offspring. By accepting an apple from the wooing guy, the girl seemed to be giving consent to the marriage.
Apple tree branches decorated the wedding banner and the bride's wreath, and were also used in decoration festive table. So, Belarusians and Ukrainians stuck an apple tree branch into a loaf, and Russians - into a wedding chicken. Newlyweds were given apples, wishing for large offspring. The apple is an ancient Slavic symbol of the bride’s chastity: it was left on the wedding shirt. Southern Slavs traditionally shaved the groom before the wedding under an apple tree. And when performing the ritual of changing the headdress from a girl’s to a woman’s, the first one, with the help of an apple tree branch, was removed from the bride’s head and thrown onto the apple tree.
Ryabushkin Andrey Petrovich.
Peasant wedding in Tambov province 1880
- Previously, a Ukrainian wedding began to be celebrated in the bride’s house after the groom paid a ransom for her. There was also a feast and some traditional events. After observing all the traditional rituals, the newlyweds went to the groom’s house, where the bride covered the tables with her tablecloths and hung her towels. The tradition of greeting young people with a loaf of bread has survived to this day. As a rule, loaves are baked only by women whose family life has worked out very well. This is believed to bring good luck to the newlyweds in their family life. There is a very characteristic difference between a Ukrainian wedding- on the table near the loaf place of honor takes Giltse. Giltse is a gorgeous tree branch that is decorated with flowers and ribbons. It symbolizes girlish beauty and innocence. The head of the Ukrainian bride is decorated with a wreath with long multi-colored ribbons. At the end of the celebration, the bride throws this wreath unmarried girls, it is believed that the one who catches it should marry next. .
Communication among Chuvash youth was free, which, however, did not lead to licentiousness. In economic interests, the Chuvash encouraged the early marriage of sons and the late marriage of daughters, so the bride was often 8-10 years older than the groom. The wedding lasted 4-5 days, it took place in the houses of the bride and groom and retained many traditional elements: the senior groomsman greeting the bride’s parents, “buying the gate” at the entrance to the bride’s yard, covering her face with a head veil perpenchek, ritual walking of the newlywed for water, etc.
Mordovian wedding
The largest and most important pie was called luksh; it was presented to the bride’s father in exchange for his daughter. It is baked on the eve of the wedding from the best, whitest wheat flour and must be round in shape. Its preparation among the Mordovians was a rite of fortune-telling: if the pies rose during baking, it meant that the bride would give birth to a son; if the pie spreads, then the bride will be barren and angry. The top crust of this pie was necessarily taken back to the groom's house, which symbolized the return of the bread, i.e. well-being. If it is crumpled or damaged, it is Bad sign for newlyweds. The dough figures that are on top of the pie should only be eaten by women and girls - friends of the bride and relatives of the groom. But the filling of the pie - chicken, eggs and porridge - is eaten by the bride and groom together. This is the key to their future family happiness, wealth and great love.
- WEDDING TRADITIONS OF BASHKIR- Weddings among the Bashkirs were traditionally timed to coincide with the summer and lasted three days. In accordance with tradition, weddings were held twice: first at the bride's relatives, and then at the groom's. Weddings are traditionally accompanied by refreshments, horse races and wrestling performances are organized.
Mari wedding
The Mari wedding was usually held in the summer, before the hay season began. In the old days, in wedding rituals, great importance was attached to the wedding fun itself. Only after the wedding did they get married in church. At the wedding there was a spirit of competition between the groom's side and the bride's side. Both of them tried to “sing” and “dance” each other. The ability to sing songs loudly and dance provocatively was valued. Gifted bagpipe and drum players were prized. The authority of the newlyweds and their relatives was determined by how fun the wedding was, with singing and dancing. Even a whole village would become famous if the music and dance part of the wedding was performed with artistic skill.
Muslim religious ceremony of marriage in the house of the bride's parents;
Absence of the bride and groom during the performance of rituals legalizing marriage;
The first wedding night in the house of the bride's parents.
- For some period, a young husband visiting his wife at her parents’ house was a characteristic feature of the wedding rituals of a significant part of the Volga-Ural and Siberian Tatars.
- During this period, newlyweds did not have the right to appear in society together.
- Newlyweds were allowed to take a walk in the forest in early spring or summer. Usually several couples went there. Young husbands hung their wives' scarves on trees for their wives to retrieve. Their business qualities were judged by the speed of their actions.
- The young woman's move to her husband's house was usually timed for July.
- The husband came to pick up his wife in a covered wagon, accompanied by his younger sister He arrived at the bride’s house at night, fearing obstacles and trying to drive up unnoticed. Sometimes offended rivals would lock the gates to the village or lay down logs to stop the horses. Young men and young men from the bride's side held the closed gates and did not allow the groom to enter the yard, demanding a ransom. The groom gave them money, and the groomsmen scattered nuts, gingerbread and coins, which the children rushed to collect. The doors of the hut and the room in which the bride was were held by teenagers, who also demanded a ransom from the groom. At the same time, they said: “A door hinge costs one altyn, our sister costs a thousand altyn.” The wedding train consisted of a covered carriage drawn by a pair of horses, in which the newlyweds sat. Behind her was a cart with a dowry and gifts for relatives.
- The young woman, getting out of the cart, leaned on some animal (sheep or calf). They always placed a pillow or a fur coat under her feet, or laid a rug or white cloth.
- Entering the house, she hung up the towel, touched the stove with her hand and plunged her hands into a bowl of flour.
- -The young woman was brought under the canopy and treated to a honey drink, butter and honey. Then she was given a spoon to stir the soup in the cauldron.
- This ritual introduced the young woman to life in her husband’s family.
- She presented women with bibs, and boys with tassels-amulets made of multi-colored threads. -The bride's wedding was held on the same day. The mother-in-law removed the veil from the bride's face,
The development of morality and its education are most directly related to the morals, rituals and customs of peoples. Among them, especially significant for moral education children and their socialization, family rituals and customs. Let's consider one of the rituals as the most interesting - wedding ceremony.
Wedding rituals among the peoples of the Volga and Urals regions were very diverse, but also had many common features, which is explained by life in the same natural conditions, general types economic activities, close communication between ethnic groups. The wedding of each of them also had its own special rituals, sometimes characteristic only of certain territorial groups. And of course, religious ideas and beliefs had a significant influence on the wedding ceremony.
In all cases" traditional wedding- a complex set of customs and rituals that had social, legal, ideological, religious-magical and other meanings.”
She, emphasizing the importance and social significance of the family, determined in future newlyweds a set of human qualities that was optimal for creating and strengthening a family and its well-being.
For all the peoples of the region, the wedding cycle took place in three stages - pre-wedding (from the bride's party to the wedding), the actual wedding and post-wedding - each of which had its own rituals and its own symbolism. The decision on the issue of a son's marriage was made in the same way - this was done by the parents, it was they who determined when it was necessary to find a bride and which of the girls to choose. Often the groom met his bride for the first time during the wedding. Different peoples of the region also had similar ideas about a future wife: she should, first of all, be healthy and hardworking, have a good reputation, and preferably material wealth. The young people lived with their husband's family. Marriages between close relatives were prohibited.
Creation new family necessitated the incurring of certain expenses by relatives of both parties: the groom was obliged to pay a bride price (full- among the Mari, yyrdon- among the Udmurts, bride price- among the Bashkirs, kalyn- among the Tatars), and the bride - to bring a dowry to her husband's house.
The Tatars' kalyn included clothes, shoes, and hats for the bride; several dresses, a fur coat (usually made of sheepskin), shoes, ichigs, shawls, kalfak, etc. All this was put into a special chest. Often a calf or a cow was given as kalyn, as well as a certain amount of money. The bride's dowry certainly included feather beds, towels, gifts for the groom's parents and for himself, which the bride had been preparing since childhood.
As a ransom from the groom, the Bashkirs received a specified amount of livestock, items of clothing, and gifts for the future father-in-law and mother-in-law. For a rich bride, a large dowry was given, which included horses, cows, sheep, bedding, curtains, rugs, clothes and much more. The girl was preparing gifts for the groom and his relatives.
Weddings were held during free time from field work: among the Mordovians - usually in autumn, winter or early spring; among the Mari and Chuvash - in the summer, during the flowering period of the crops and before the start of haymaking, among the Udmurts - on Maslenitsa, Peter's Day (in summer) or Christmas. Among all nations, wedding ceremonies were accompanied by many jokes, jokes, fun of the newlyweds, and theatrical magical performances.
Pre-wedding rituals included matchmaking, bridesmaids, and conspiracy.
When the son turned 16–17 years old, the parents looked after his bride; often she was (among the Mari, Mordovians, Chuvash) several years older than him: they tried to marry the son early so that he would bring a worker into the house, and for the same reason keep the daughter longer in my house. The desirable qualities of the bride and groom can be judged from the lyrics of wedding songs. Thus, the wedding song of the Mari groom speaks about the ideal bride:
Getting up at sunrise,
You go get water before everyone else.
Get up early, stay up late.
Then you will fit into our family.
In the wedding song of the Mordovian bride, the groom is characterized:
Oh, nurse, oh, mother.
Why did you break up with me?
Why did you give it to your husband?
A clueless boy?
He can’t even weave a bast shoe,
He doesn't know how to tie ropes.
The ideal of the Mordovian bride is expressed in the verse:
What a treasure we have brought!
It is thicker than doors,
She is taller than half a century.
Her face is so shining
What can burn down a wall?
Having looked at the bride, they sent one of the groom’s relatives to match her. The custom required that the girl’s parents did not give consent to the marriage immediately, but only after multiple visits by matchmakers. After obtaining the consent of the parents for the wedding, negotiations were held about the dowry, ransom and the number of gifts, then preparations for the wedding began, the dowry and gifts were collected.
The Udmurts took snuff with them to matchmaking and during the conversation offered it to the bride’s father; if he praised tobacco, it was considered consent to his daughter’s marriage. The presence of the groom was optional.
In a Mordovian family important part The wedding tradition was prayer. Having chosen the bride, the groom’s parents gathered their relatives for advice on an “easy” day (Tuesday, Thursday). If the parents’ choice was approved after careful discussion, they began to pray, asking for help from the highest god (Vereshka Paz), the home god and the god of their ancestors. During prayer, they covered the table with a white tablecloth, put a loaf of bread on it and put a salt shaker with salt, after making sure that the door, windows, chimney, and stove were carefully closed, otherwise someone could enter the house. devilry, and lit a candle in front of the icon.
Having finished praying, the groom's relatives went to the bride's house with prayer bread and salt, putting them in a pouch. If the matchmaking negotiations ended successfully, the groom's bread and salt were exchanged for the same for the bride. Then prayers began again, they prayed separately - each family in their own home, eating a piece of prayer bread, after which it was impossible to refuse the wedding.
Matchmaking among the Mari was carried out by the groom's father, matchmaker and matchmaker. While waiting for the groom, the bride's father placed a loaf of bread on the table and a dish with cow butter. The matchmaker started talking about the supposedly lost heifer, and gradually they found out the amount of the marriage dowry, if the bride’s father agreed to the wedding.
After discussing all the terms of the marriage contract, the bride was invited, praised her and the wedding day was set. The groom took a slice of bread with butter and served it to the bride; She, having bitten the bread, passed it to her father, then the Bread again passed to the bride, and the rest to the groom. Such a ritual meant the girl’s consent to marriage, which, however, meant little, since she still would not have dared to go against the will of her parents. At parting, the bride gave everyone present towels embroidered by herself.
It was not customary to go to the bride’s house empty-handed, so the matchmakers brought bread and pies with them, and the Mari, Mordovians, and Chuvash also brought moonshine. In some Mari and Mordovian villages, all gifts were packed into a large leather bag, tied with a ribbon, and were given to the girl’s parents after receiving consent for marriage.
Before the wedding, the parties agreed on the size and composition of the kalyn (kalym), the groom’s material expenses and gifts, and the bride’s dowry. All details upcoming wedding discussed by parents with the participation of relatives and matchmakers.
Since the marriage was concluded by agreement between the parents, sometimes the Bashkirs betrothed children from the cradle. When announcing them as future spouses, the parents agreed on the size of the bride price long before the wedding.
In addition to marriage through matchmaking, all nations also had cases of kidnapping (kidnapping) of the bride. Sometimes, especially in poor families, a girl was abducted with the consent of her parents, who in this way sought to avoid wedding expenses.
The matchmaking ritual, in principle, was the same among all the peoples of the Volga and Urals regions; Of course, local customs and rituals were introduced into it, but there was a lot in common. As a rule, relatives were involved in wedding preparations: among the Tatars they helped with money, food, and gave gifts; among the Mari, they allocated their best horses, harness and wedding carriages, and could help assemble one for the groom. The bride's family helped prepare the dowry and gifts, the girls - relatives and friends - did a lot of embroidery (shirts, towels, scarves for gifts from the newlywed).
After the agreement, meetings with future relatives began, and families became acquainted over refreshments in the houses of the bride and groom. The meetings were accompanied by the performance of various rituals. Thus, the Tatars invited their relatives and the future mother-in-law and her relatives to the bride’s house. The mother-in-law faced a humorous exam: she had to recognize the bride among several girls who were sitting covered with only a shawl. After the “exam,” the bride served tea to the guests with various treats, the future mother-in-law handed her a cup of tea with a ring dipped in it, and the girl, after drinking the tea, returned the cup with her gift. The bride's relatives visited the groom's house in order to find out the size of the groom's clothes, the size of the windows, etc., so that the bride would sew a suit as a gift for her husband, curtains for the house; The girls in this house were in for a treat.
The Bashkirs, like the Tatars, did not have alcoholic drinks at matchmaking feasts, but only tea, pies, and sweets.
During the pre-wedding period, the groom's relatives held viewings of the bride, and the gifts sent by him were displayed. Relatives took an active part in discussing the wedding ceremony and provided all possible financial assistance to carry it out.
Despite the large role of parents in deciding family issues, young guys (Tatars and Bashkirs) took part in determining their fate themselves. They could look for a girl at joint holidays (Sabantuy, Dzhien), fairs, pomokhs, etc. Girls' holidays and games in a forest clearing allowed young men, who were secretly watching them, to choose a girl after their hearts. The parents might have agreed with their son’s choice, but the main criterion for them was the girl’s health and hard work, as well as her reputation.
The chastity of a girl is one of the most important requirements of folk morality. And if the young woman found herself deprived of it before marriage, then the newlywed was treated very harshly. So, among the Mari, the young woman kneaded salma (soup with pieces of dough) and served it on the table after the wedding night, and if she got married properly, the dish was eaten willingly, otherwise no one ate salma, and they even spat on it. Therefore, Mari girls were afraid of such shame and even though they often married young boys late (at 25 or more years old), they took care of their honor. All other peoples of the region viewed the chastity of girls in exactly the same way.
The lamentations of the bride, which could last from 3-4 to 15 evenings, were considered an obligatory part of the pre-wedding ritual. The fate of a peasant girl given away to someone else's family often turned out to be difficult. Therefore, in her lamentations, the bride compared the maiden freedom in her parents’ house with the lack of rights of women in her husband’s house. Life in “someone else’s house” seemed difficult to her, and other people’s relatives seemed unkind. This is how the Mordovian girl mourned her future:
Someone else's father, mother, sister-in-law,
They speak like birds;
They point a finger and send it.
They blink their eyes and beckon.
At the end of the needle they give you a loaf of bread,
Salt is sprinkled on the end of the knife.
They open the door with their toes.
They close the door with their heels.
You won't understand their language.
You don't know their words.
Among the Kryashen Tatars, the ritual of mourning the bride's maidenhood turned into a kind of theatrical performance. It began with the lamentations of the bride:
Is it dawning or not?
Does dawn have stars?
Until dawn I cry -
Does anyone feel sorry for me?
The mother got up, lit the lamp and lit the stove, the bride went to her friends’ bed and woke them up:
Get up, girlfriends, get up,
Say "tan kuchat" for me.
We've been crying since dawn.
Will there be happiness in marriage?
Having woken up everyone in the house, the bride continued to lament loudly. Her mother was preparing a table with refreshments for her friends; honey, millet porridge and unleavened cakes, but the bride did not sit down at the table, continuing to mourn her fate.
Then the friends sat down next to the bride, covered themselves with a large scarf and wailed in one voice. The bride expressed her resentment to her parents, whose will determined her fate:
You hung up the cauldron for katlama.
Did you think it wouldn't boil?
I was given away too early.
Did you think I wouldn’t leave at all?
The wedding ceremony also took place in several stages:
- festivities in the house of the bride and groom, in the houses of relatives;
- wedding among some peoples or conducting a marriage ceremony by a mullah;
- return of the young to the parental home;
- young woman moving to her husband's house.
One can find many similarities in the wedding rituals of the peoples of the region: the groom “ransoming” the bride, washing the bride in the bathhouse, her visiting a spring, etc.
Among the Udmurts, the wedding ceremony consisted of two parts, taking place in the bride’s house (suan) and in the groom’s house (yarashon). On the appointed day, the groom's relatives went to pick up the bride without the groom. At her house they were already waiting for the wedding train and went out to greet the guests with bread, butter, egg scones with honey; after this the feast began. An obligatory component of the wedding feast was the singing of wedding songs, which were performed continuously. The wedding festivities, having begun in the bride's house, continued alternately with all her relatives, but the bride and groom did not participate in them. Only the next morning, after feasts had been held in several houses of the girl’s relatives, the groom arrived and had fun with everyone, and then it was discovered that the bride had “disappeared.” The groom found her, the girl said goodbye to her family in tears, sang a sad song, and she was taken with her dowry, feather beds and pillows to her husband’s house.
An important point was the removal of the dowry, which led to a small, cheerful brawl. The groom had to “buy off” the bride and chest, feather bed with pillows from his brothers and friends; It was also necessary to pay for the gates, otherwise they would not be opened for the bride.
The wedding was not part of the Udmurt wedding ritual, so they immediately went from the bride to the groom’s house, where the guests were met by his parents and relatives. A pillow was thrown at the bride’s feet to “live softly in the new family,” so that the bride would be “soft and flexible.” The mother-in-law brought bread and butter to the bride with wishes for a prosperous life. Leaving the young ones first wedding night, the commuters went home. The next morning they gathered for the ceremony of bathing the newlyweds, looked at and assessed the dowry hung for display, dressed the girl in women's outfit. The mother-in-law gave the bride in disguise a yoke, and everyone went to the spring for water, where the young woman threw a piece of bread and butter to the waterman. Fun tests were carried out on her economic skills and ability to treat guests, and the bride was introduced to the groom's closest relatives.
The final day of the wedding was celebrated with dressing up. The mummers amused the people with their antics.
Several weeks could pass between the festivities in the house of the bride and groom, and the girl remained in her house all the time.
The main thing for newlyweds among the Chuvash, Tatars, Bashkirs and other peoples of the region was not the official registration of the marriage, but its consolidation in the eyes of fellow villagers.
Among the Chuvash, the groom was accompanied to the bride's house by a large wedding train. Meanwhile, the bride said goodbye to her relatives. She was dressed in girl's clothes and covered with a blanket. The bride began to cry and lament. The groom's train was greeted at the gate with bread and salt and beer.
After a long poetic monologue, the eldest of the friends was invited to go into the courtyard to the laid tables. Refreshments, greetings, dances and songs of the guests began. The next day the groom's train was leaving. The bride was seated astride a horse, or she rode standing in a wagon, which the groom struck three times with a whip to “drive away” the spirits of his wife’s clan from the bride (Turkic nomadic tradition). The fun in the groom's house continued with the participation of the bride's relatives. The newlyweds spent their wedding night in a cage or other non-residential premises. According to custom, the young woman took off her husband’s shoes. In the morning, the girl was dressed in women's attire with a special headdress. First of all, the young woman went to bow and make a sacrifice to the spring, then she began to work around the house and cook food.
The young wife gave birth to her first child with her parents. The umbilical cord was cut: for boys - on the ax handle, for girls - on the handle of a sickle, so that the children would be hardworking.
In the Chuvash family, the man was dominant, but the woman also had authority. Divorces were extremely rare. The youngest son usually stayed with his parents.
The wedding (tui) among the Tatars was also carried out in several stages.
The main wedding was held in the bride's house, where the main guests were the groom's parents. They brought kalyn (or part of it) and treats: a couple of geese, several kalachi, flat cakes, sweet pies and the obligatory wedding sweet delicacy chak-chak. The bride's side was attended by close relatives with gifts.
Usually the wedding began with a marriage ceremony, which was performed by a mullah. He wrote down the agreed conditions for marriage - kalyn, gifts, etc. - then asked about the consent of the young people to the marriage, but since all this happened in their absence, his father was responsible for the groom, and two witnesses, who were sent, were responsible for the bride ask the girl behind the curtain about consent. Then appropriate passages from the Koran were read.
The feast began with a certain set of wedding treats- noodle soup, a big pie, meat, - they brought out gifts brought by relatives, and then prepared and served tea, pies for it and chak-chak. Traditionally, the wedding took place without alcoholic beverages. The young people were presented with gifts, gifts were given more than once to everyone present (although the young people themselves were still not at the table). The wedding in the bride's house lasted 2-3 days, during which time the arriving guests were taken away by the bride's relatives, in whose houses feasts were also held, and the bathhouse was heated every day. This is how the relatives got to know each other and the bride. The wedding ended with a farewell dinner, at which they were treated to dumplings.
During feasts, women and men were usually kept separate: either the women were treated to food after the men had left, or they were placed in different halves of the house.
After the departure of the relatives, preparations were made in the bride's house to welcome the groom. Most often, this was the first meeting of the young people. The groom drove up with two or three groomsmen or relatives to the bride’s house and, before entering the house, had to pay a ransom to the boy who was blocking the entrance: little present, some money. Entering the yard or house, the groom scattered nuts, coins, and candies - then those who met him would let him through.
The newlyweds were left alone in a pre-prepared room with a bed made by a relative of the bride, who was successful in her family life. She set the table for tea for the young people and left, leaving the young people to each other.
In the morning, a bathhouse was heated for the newlyweds, from where the young husband came out in a new outfit made for him by the bride (that’s why the girls took measurements), and the wife came out with a gift from her husband: a ring, a shawl, a scarf, etc. A table with tea and special, very small pancakes (“pancakes for son-in-law”) awaited them.
The young couple spent all subsequent days alone in their room. They were invited to joint tea parties by the bride's relatives, where her parents presented gifts to their son-in-law. The husband stayed in his wife's house from two to six days, after which he was taken back; then he arrived on Thursday evening and left in the morning. Before the wife moved to her husband's house, i.e. Before the wedding continued, she could stay in her parents' house for several weeks, or even a year - some people had already had a child by this time.
The next stage of the wedding - in the husband's house - was accompanied by its own rituals: the bride's farewell to her parents' house, the sprinkling of hops, rice, raisins upon the newlyweds' arrival at the husband's house, the meeting of the daughter-in-law with her mother-in-law, etc. The parents met the newlyweds on the porch, and the mother laid a fur coat under the daughter-in-law's feet fur side up, while saying good wishes. The young wife had to eat a crust of bread with butter and honey so that she would be soft and sweet (accommodating, flexible), and her hands were dipped in flour - so that she could live in abundance. The next day after her arrival, the young woman was taken to the spring, and she presented gifts to the young relatives who accompanied her.
During the wedding feast in the husband's house, everything went the same way as before at the bride's parents. At the same time, different groups The Tatar daughter-in-law was either behind a curtain, covered with a wedding veil, or was absent altogether. Among the Kazan Tatars, the bride was more free: she decorated her husband’s house and, if necessary, covered her face with a veil. The wedding included feasting with the husband's relatives, who invited the newlyweds; the daughter-in-law always brought gifts. At wedding feasts, singers and dancers performed in succession.
Among the Bashkirs, a young woman, having moved to her husband, had to bow not only to the elders of the clan and tribe, but also to the mountains, forests, and rivers, which, of course, was reminiscent of mythological consciousness (the deification of nature), but was also a kind of expression of fidelity to these places.
From the time the wife moved in with her husband, his home became home, and she remained there forever. Therefore, respect for new relatives and the entire environment was mandatory.
Traditional wedding rituals in all their sequence were observed among all the peoples of the Volga and Urals regions; deviation from it violated established social foundations. Public registration of marriage, i.e. following folk tradition, was considered mandatory, otherwise the marriage was declared invalid. The wedding, that is Church recognition of marriage was not always carried out, often after a year or later. Marriage contract always included bride price and dowry. Even in the poorest family, a wedding was celebrated and the bare minimum of bride price and dowry were prepared.
The active participation of parents in the organization of the family of their son or daughter is understandable: it was believed that the marriage of young people was for life, and therefore their organization required responsibility, and parents took it upon themselves. It was rare that any relative did not want happiness for their child and acted out of self-interest; Most fathers and mothers arranged their families in the name of their children’s happiness. Celibacy and childlessness were universally condemned, so parents tried to organize, to the best of their ability, family life children without relying on chance.
Indeed, most young people found love and happiness in their family, which served as a guarantee of their well-being. There were also unhappy marriages, often unequal: an old or rich husband and wife from a poor family, and simply if the young could not become one. One way or another, the marriage was concluded forever, and it was difficult to predict its success. It often happened, as in the Mordovian folk song “Mother failed to marry me off”:
Oh, I did it, I did it
Mother to raise me.
Mother failed
Marry me.
Oh, you gave me away
For the bad guy
For the bad guy
For the unloved.
I just can’t, mother.
To please him.
I just can’t, my dear,
Deal with him.
And the sun to me, mother,
It does not shine.
And food for me, mother,
It can be assumed, that wedding ceremony, in which children were involved from an early age, had significant educational potential. It was during the wedding that the ideal of wife and husband developed among the people was revealed and proclaimed, and the moral criteria that guided parents when choosing a groom or bride for their children were revealed. They began to prepare the girl early for life in her future own family; they raised in her modesty, bashfulness, hard work, restraint, patience, respect and reverence for elders. Watching weddings and participating in them as an assistant, the girl gradually mastered and wedding customs, learned about her intended role in her husband’s family and by the time of marriage she was psychologically ready to fulfill it. At first, she usually found herself the most powerless in the new family and obediently obeyed the rules established there.
The boy also learned from childhood what kind of bride he could count on in adolescence, which largely depended on his willingness to take responsibility for his family, on his moral principles. The teenager learned about all this when the bride’s relatives discussed the advantages and disadvantages of the groom during matchmaking.
Both the example of the behavior of adults in the parental home and the bright, emotionally charged spectacle of wedding events that took place before the eyes of the children gradually laid in them the foundations of family ethics: respect for the relatives of husband and wife, strengthening family ties, mutual assistance, norms of behavior towards the opposite sex.
At the wedding, children and teenagers were subjected to a strong emotional impact: listening to the bride’s cries, majestic, lyrical songs evoked both sad and joyful feelings and involved them in experiences that overwhelmed the young people. Compassion, anxiety, and hope for happiness were transmitted to the little man and developed his spiritual world.
So, the creation of a new family among the different peoples of the Volga and Urals regions has traditionally been a long-term and crowded event; parents, relatives, and usually all fellow villagers were involved in its process. This tradition had a deep meaning: the issue of the entire life of the young people was being resolved, because divorces were not provided for, which means thoroughness and thoughtfulness of decisions were required. This attitude towards the wedding ensured the stability of the family and convinced the younger generation of the strength of family ties, no matter what problems the husband or wife might have complicated their relationship.
Among the Volga peoples, as we have seen, daughters did not immediately break away from their families, continuing to live in their home and gradually becoming involved in new ones. family relationships, which made it easier for a woman to transition from the old way of life to a new one, and building trusting relationship with her household, she set an example for children and teenagers to behave as a newlywed.
Of no small importance was the practical participation of teenagers in wedding preparations and rituals: assistance in making gifts distributed to guests at the wedding, preparations for the wedding feast, notifying relatives and fellow villagers, etc.
Traditions, customs, and oral folk art, through their vivid demonstration in wedding rituals, contributed to the development in children and adolescents of ideas about human moral values, about the qualities that a husband and wife should have. The husband is the breadwinner and protector of the family; he must be strong, strong-willed, skillful, wise, and hardworking. The wife is the keeper of the home, the teacher of the children. The ability to fulfill their role in the future family developed in children and adolescents precisely through their participation in various family rituals, especially the wedding ones described here. This is how folk traditions were consolidated and passed on.
The population of the Samara region was formed over a number of centuries. Since ancient times, the Middle Volga region has been a borderland of ethnic massifs of different origins.
Once upon a time, beyond the Samara River, in the direction of present-day Novokuybyshevsk, foreign lands stretched - the nomadic lands of the Bashkirs and Nogais, and the state border of Rus' ran right along the river. In 1586, Samara was founded as a border post to protect Russian lands from Nogai nomads. Time passed, the once warring peoples began to cooperate, and the fertile Volga lands attracted settlers here. Russians, Chuvash, Tatars, Mordovians, Germans, Kalmyks, Ukrainians, Bashkirs, and Jews began to live nearby. Different cultures, life, traditions, religions, languages, forms of management... But everyone was united by one desire - to create, build, raise children, develop the region.
The same economic conditions and close contacts in the process of developing the region were the basis for the development of international features in the traditional culture of peoples. A notable feature of the Samara region is the absence of interethnic conflicts and clashes. Many years of peaceful cohabitation, the use of everything valuable in the life and economy of neighbors had a beneficial influence on the creation strong ties between the Russian population and other peoples of the Volga region.
According to the 2002 census, 3 million 240 thousand people live in the region. The ethnic composition of the population of the Samara region is multinational: 135 nationalities (for comparison, in Russia there are 165 in total). The national composition of the population is as follows:
Russians make up the majority 83.6% (2,720,200);
Tatars – 4% (127,931);
Chuvash – 3.1% (101,358);
Mordovians – 2.6% (86,000);
Ukrainians – 1.8% (60,727);
Armenians – 0.7% (21,566);
Azerbaijanis – 0.5% (15,046);
Kazakhs – 0.5% (14,918);
Belarusians – 0.4% (14,082);
Germans - 0.3% (9,569);
Bashkirs – 0.2% (7,885 people);
Jews – 0.2% (6,384);
Uzbeks – 0.2% (5,438);
Roma – 0.2% (5,200);
Tajiks – 0.1% (4,624);
Mari – 0.1% (3,889);
Georgians – 0.1% (3,518);
other nationalities (Udmurts, Koreans, Poles, Chechens, Ossetians, Kyrgyz, Moldovans) - 0.7% (25,764)
Besermyane(self-name - beserman; udm. beserman) - a small Finno-Ugric people in Russia, dispersedly living in the north-west of Udmurtia in 41 settlements, of which 10 villages are mononational.
The number, according to the 2002 census, is 3.1 thousand people.
They speak the dialect of the Udmurt language of the Finno-Ugric group of the Ural family, generally close to the southern dialects of the Udmurt language, which has an explanation in the ethnic history of the Besermyans [ source not specified 1550 days ] .
Believers of Besermians are Orthodox Christians; The folk religion of the Besermians is very close to the folk religion of the Udmurts, also including some elements of Islamic origin.
Kerzhaki- ethnographic group of Russian Old Believers. The name comes from the name of the Kerzhenets River in the Nizhny Novgorod region. Carriers of culture of the North Russian type. After the defeat of the Kerzhen monasteries in the 1720s, tens of thousands fled to the east - to the Perm province. From the Urals they settled throughout Siberia, to Altai and the Far East. They are one of the first Russian-speaking residents of Siberia, the “old-timer population”. They led a rather closed communal lifestyle with strict religious rules and traditional culture. In Siberia, Kerzhaks formed the basis of Altai masons. They contrasted themselves with later migrants to Siberia - the “Rasei” (Russian) ones, but subsequently almost completely assimilated with them due to their common origin.
Komi-Yazvintsy (Komi, Yodz, Komi Yoz, Permyaks; Komi-Yazvin. Komiyoz, Permyakyuz, Komi Utyr; Komi yozwa komiyas, yazvinsa; k.-p. Komi Yazvinsa) - an ethnographic group of Komi-Zyryans and/or Komi-Permyaks, or a separate Finno-Ugric people in Russia.
Kungur, or Sylven, Mari(Mar. Köҥgyr Mari, Suliy Mari) - an ethnographic group of Mari in the southeastern part of the Perm region of Russia. The Kungur Mari are part of the Ural Mari, who in turn are part of the Eastern Mari. The group received its name from the former Kungur district of the Perm province, which until the 1780s included the territory where the Mari had settled since the 16th century. In 1678-1679 In the Kungur district there were already 100 Mari yurts with a male population of 311 people. In the 16th-17th centuries, Mari settlements appeared along the Sylva and Iren rivers. Some of the Mari were then assimilated by the more numerous Russians and Tatars (for example, the village of Oshmarina of the Nasadsky village council of the Kungur region, former Mari villages along the upper reaches of the Ireni, etc.). The Kungur Mari took part in the formation of the Tatars of the Suksun, Kishert and Kungur regions of the region.
Nagaibaki (nogaibaki, Tat. nagaibәklәr) - an ethno-religious group of Tatars living mostly in the Nagaibak and Chebarkul municipal districts of the Chelyabinsk region. Language - dialect of the middle dialect of the Tatar language. Believers are Orthodox Christians. According to Russian legislation, they are officially small people .
Nenets(Nenets. Neney Neneche, Khasovo, neschang ( obsolete - Samoyeds,yuraki) - Samoyed people in Russia, inhabiting the Eurasian coast of the Arctic Ocean from the Kola Peninsula to Taimyr. The Nenets are divided into European and Asian (Siberian). European Nenets are settled in the Nenets Autonomous Okrug of the Arkhangelsk Region, and Siberian Nenets are settled in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug of the Tyumen Region and in the Dolgano-Nenets Taimyr Municipal District of the Krasnoyarsk Territory. Small groups of Nenets live in the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug, Murmansk and Arkhangelsk regions, and the Komi Republic.
VOLGA REGION:
The Kalmyks' home corresponded to their way of life. Roaming with his herds from place to place, the Kalmyk had a portable dwelling - a yurt - a kind of felt hut on a wooden base. The decoration of the yurt consisted of a low bed with several felts; next to it was placed a box where “burkhans” (idols) were kept. In front of the burkhans they placed a small wooden table, decorated with carvings, paints and gilding, with silver or copper cups in which donations were placed - oil, wheat and spices. The necessary accessory of the yurt was the tagan, which occupied its middle. This hearth, in which food was cooked, was considered a sacred place. The outerwear of the Kalmyks consisted of a robe or single-breasted beshmet, borrowed from the Caucasian highlanders. The beshmet was tied at the waist with a belt; among the rich, the belt was decorated with iron plates with silver notches. In winter they wore a sheepskin or fox fur coat. Hats of the national Kalmyk cut with a quadrangular crown were very popular in Russia. Headdresses for Russian coachmen and coachmen were cut in their likeness. Kalmyk women's clothing consisted of a wide blouse and trousers. On their heads they wore low yellow caps with a black pattern, decorated with gold thread and thick red fringe. The main food of the Kalmyks was goat and lamb meat. A strong broth from lamb was even considered healing. Instead of bread, crumpets were baked from rye or wheat flour in hot ashes from steeply kneaded dough. In addition to them, budan was prepared from flour - milk mixed with flour and boiled in a cauldron. Wheat dough balls fried in lamb fat were also a special delicacy. Germans(natives from various regions of Germany) at the beginning of the 20th century. constituted a colony of approximately 400 thousand people and lived in the territory of what is now the Samara and Saratov regions. The first colonists appeared here after the manifestos of Empress Catherine II, which called on everyone in Europe to freely settle in “the most beneficial places for the population and habitation of the human race, the most useful places that have remained idle to this day.” The German settlements of the Volga region were, as it were, a state within a state - a completely special world, sharply different from the surrounding Russian population in faith, culture, language, way of life, and the character of the people. After the start of the Great Patriotic War, the national formations of the Volga Germans were liquidated, and their inhabitants were evicted to different areas countries, mainly Kazakhstan. Many of the Germans who returned to the Volga region in the 60s and 70s left for Germany after the collapse of the USSR. Tatars profess Islam Sunni sense, i.e., along with the Koran, they recognize the Sunnah - the Muslim Holy Tradition about the deeds of the Prophet Muhammad. The main part of the Sunna arose at the end of the 7th - beginning of the 8th century. For many centuries, the mullahs and their numerous assistants educated boys and their wives educated girls, as a result of which literacy was much more widespread among the Tatars than among the Russians. Kalmyks profess Buddhism, preserved by them since their migration from the east. The beliefs are based on the Ten Commandments about good and evil deeds, much like the Christian religion. Evil deeds include taking a life, robbery, adultery, lies, threats, harsh words, idle talk, envy, malice in the heart; good deeds - to have mercy from death, to give alms, to maintain moral purity, to speak kindly and always the truth, to be a peacemaker, to act in accordance with the teachings of the holy books, to be satisfied with one’s condition, to help one’s neighbor and to believe in predestination. Volga Germans - mostly Lutherans. Russians - Christians Orthodox persuasion.
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From generation to generation, what is dear and sacred to the people is passed on - their native language, rituals, songs, games. And a wedding is main holiday in the life of any family!
Since ancient times, the wedding ritual has been accompanied by many traditions, some of them have been forgotten, others have survived to this day and reflect the best features of the national character. After all, they concentrated the centuries-old wisdom and creativity of the people.
The Russian wedding ceremony originated in the 13-14th centuries. In the minds of our ancestors, a wedding is a game, which is why in Rus' there was a stable expression “play a wedding.” A wedding is a performance that includes the bride's viewing, matchmaking, bachelor party and bachelorette party. The groom sent his betrothed a box with a veil, ring, and wedding candles. Then the “Bride Ransom” began. This ritual has been going on since pagan times and has been preserved to this day. And, of course, the wedding loaf! They baked it married women, happily married and with many children. And I put this bread in the oven married man. Thus, the elders shared family happiness with the young.
The folklore festival “In the name and glory of love!”, dedicated to the wedding traditions of the peoples of the Volga region, took place in the Syzran Central Library named after. E. I. Arkadyeva. A fragment of the Russian wedding ceremony was presented by artists of the folk music ensemble “Syzran-Gorod” (director Irina Utenkova).
A lot of interesting things about the Chuvash wedding traditions participants folklore holiday learned from documentary film. And the artists of the Atal ensemble (Alexandra Kazakova) supplemented it with their story and ritual songs. For example, Chuvash parents collected information about the future bride. First, they met her friend, treated her and asked her questions. The next stage is a meeting with her family. During such preliminary acquaintances, it became clear whether the girl was hardworking and whether her family was decent. And the Chuvash have the concept of collusion (matchmaking), during which the bride price, dowry, and wedding date are discussed. Many traditions are preserved in three Chuvash villages of the Shigonsky district - Taidakovo, Baideryakovo, Malyachkino. To this day, in the groom’s house, new elegant curtains, donated by the bride, are hung on the windows.
Mordovian wedding rituals, which were discussed at the festival by the artists of the ensemble “Narmon Moritsya” (Nadezhda Atamanova), also have their own characteristics. Although here too there is matchmaking - chiyamo, negotiations - lyadyamo, setting the wedding day - chin putoma, and preparations for the celebration - wedding onokstamo. The girl is escorted to the wedding by her friends and parents with tears and sadness. But in the groom’s house, on the contrary, cheerful chaos reigns.
The artists of the ensemble “Chishmya” (director Rustam Tuktarov) introduced the participants to the rituals of the Tatar wedding. Newlywed Tatars still believe that observing the customs of their ancestors will bring prosperity to their family and happy life, and therefore stick to them.
Members of the German national-cultural autonomy “Nadezhda” (Rasima Salavatova) spoke about their wedding traditions. To this day, guests sprinkle grains of rice on the heads of the newlyweds, wishing them health and strong offspring. And breaking porcelain dishes in front of the bride’s house and cleaning up the fragments by the newlyweds symbolize the removal of everything bad from life and a barrier from the invasion of evil spirits.
As it turned out, many wedding traditions among different nations turned out to be similar, but the most important thing is that love and mutual understanding reign in the future family.
2018-02-15About the wedding traditions of the peoples of the Volga region Reviewed by About the wedding traditions of the peoples of the Volga region on Feb 15 . From generation to generation, what is dear and sacred to the people is passed on - their native language, rituals, songs, games. A wedding is the main holiday in the life of any family! Happy Birthday Rating: 0
