The birth of Christ celebrated by the Orthodox Christians who follow the old church calendar on January 7 was once observed during three days. The women prepared traditional food and cooked small pieces of knotted bread called ”Craciunei”. These are the symbol of this feast. Ethnographer Maria Ciocanu has told IPN that the ethnic-folkloric traditions related to the winter holidays continue to be observed, even if they underwent transformations.
Maria Ciocanu, who heads the Ethnography Section of the National Museum of History and Ethnography, said that the Christmas traditions changed in time, but some of the elements remained the same. “Such traditional foods as meat jelly and roast meat continue to be prepared. They used to put all types of food on the table on Christmas and had to keep it there in abundance during three days,” she stated.
The ethnographer noted that Christmas cannot be imagined without “Craciunei”. In the past, the first pieces of this decorative bread that were cooked were put at icons. A piece of this bread had to be given to a bull that pulled the plow to be eaten, while another peace was put under the furrow so that the harvest was good. When a woman started to knead the dough, she went to the orchard and touched the trees with the hands in flour so that these yielded many fruits,” stated Maria Ciocanu.
On the night of January 7, the birth of Christ is announced by groups of carolers who go from home to home. Caroling is one of the oldest traditions which continues to be observed. Earlier the carols were typical of each region of the country, but now they joined together.
There are also many superstitions related to Christmas. It is said that if there is snow and it snows on Christmas, the harvest the coming year will be rich.
