Transformation of the masking custom: from ritual to town entertainment

LTReikšminiai žodžiai: Kaukių nešiojimo paprotys; Persirenginėjimas; Ritualas; Transformacija; Šiuolaikinis miesto karnavalas; Masking; Modern town carnival; Ritual; Transformation.

ENThe article is delaying with the transformation of the functions and the content of the masking custom from the early beginning of the 20"1 century to the present days when the masking custom lost ritual functions and gained the new functions of the communal entertainment. Objectives: the research is intended for the problem of functional and com- ponential transformation of a custom. Subject: at the beginning of the 20,h century in the traditional Lithuania village we could find several forms of disguising. The acting of the individual characters was very popular in the evening-parties, assistances and weddings. We can also speak about wedding „gypsies“. But the main form of disguising custom without any doubt was the walking of the maskers. Methods: comparative-historical and comparative-typological research, functional and componential analysis, observation. Data: the first part of the research is based on the data collected by author in 1988 - 1997. The author tried to collect the ethnographical information throughout all territory of Lithuanian Republic. According to the questionnaire prepared by the author, two groups of presenters were questioned. 172 presenters were born till 1910 years, and 191 presenters were born from 1911 to 1937 years. The present day situation is analyzed according to the direct observation which was made by author in 1992 - 2002.Results: the distribution of the informants to age groups gave a possibility to form a conception about the different functioning of the calendar customs from the end of the 19'h century to the second decade of the 20lh century (in fact, till 1914 years) and in the third and forth decades of the 20'h century. The linking of the obtained information with the concrete age period of the informant let the researcher to establish the approximate time boundaries of the calendar customs' development processes or their separate stages in the first half of the 20lh century. In present day carnival tradition we also can sec two different tendencies. From the one side - enthusiasts of ethnic Lithuanian culture makes an attempt to revive the old customs, from another - we saw fast spreading the such elements of the global culture as Venice or Rio de Janeiro carnivals. [From the publication]