Annual holidays in Lithuania : discourse in the press and the reality in daily life

ENThis article discusses the features of envisioning annual holidays in Lithuanian periodicals from the mid-nineteenth to the end of the twenty-first century. The reasons for a particular discourse are analyzed, along with the links of holiday discourses with Lithuanian identity. The holidays presented in public discourse and their features are compared to common practices of celebrating popular holidays by Lithuania's people. This work summarizes the results of research conducted from 2012 to 2014. The research results indicate that calendar holidays, as constituent parts of ethnic culture, were drawn into a developing national self-awareness and public discourse relatively late: the beginning of the twentieth century. Discussions in periodicals about holidays during the interwar period become more widespread and especially multifaceted. They associate closely with the actual practice of commemorating holidays. The discourse on annual holidays changes radically during Soviet times. A cycle of holidays forms, but does not correspond with their actual popularity. After 1990, the public envisioning of holidays becomes similar to what it was during the interwar period, both reflecting and forming the popularity of a holiday in reality, as well as the features of celebrating it. [From the publication]