MINSK, 25 February (BelTA) – Minsk Oblast will celebrate Maslenitsa (Pancake Week) with knight fights and folk rituals, BelTA learnt from the Minsk Oblast Folk Arts Center

The celebrations started on 23 February. Borisov and Kletsk Districts were the first to say farewell to the winter. Other districts are joining the celebrations. The program features theatrical shows, performances by music bands, games, competitions for the best Maslenitsa treats and costumes, workshops, and traditional burning of the Winter puppet. Everybody is welcome to participate in the folk Maslenitsa rituals.

The Dudutki museum of folk crafts and technologies will celebrate Maslenitsa on 1 March. The organizers have prepared an entertainment program Liberation of the Spring. Visitors will have an opportunity to enjoy knight fights, archery, the tag-of-war game, riddles and treats from Granny Winter.

The Belarusian State Museum of Vernacular Architecture and Ethnic Heritage will present a unique exhibition of appliances for making cheese and butter on 2 March. The celebrations will continue with a workshop on the Belarusian polka dance, music program, and entertainment events near the Maslenitsa column.

The celebrations will last till 8 March.

Maslenitsa is an ancient Slavic holiday with roots in pagan culture. People celebrate the imminent end of winter and make pancakes at the end of February/beginning of March. Maslenitsa gives a reason to visit friends and relatives and to spend time together. The holiday used to be connected with the day of spring equinox. After the Christianization of the Rus Maslenitsa became a holiday before the Lent and depends on its dates.

People did not eat meat, dairy products, and fish during the Maslenitsa week. Pancakes were the main dish: they symbolized the sun and had sacral meaning.