Užgavėnės

LTUžgavėnės - kilnojama šventė, švenčiama antradienį. Lietuvoje ji nebuvo išskirta kaip nedarbo diena nei XX a. pr., nei tarpukariu, sovietinės okupacijos metais, nei atgavus nepriklausomybę XX a. pab. Nors pastaraisiais metais būta diskusijų dėl šios šventės paskelbimo nedarbo diena, ji lieka tik atmintina. Tačiau neretai būna nukeliama į savaitgalį ar net švenčiama keliskart. Artimiausią šeštadienį ar sekmadienį ir antradienį rengiami šventiniai renginiai, iš kurių išsiskiria šventė Liaudies buities muziejuje Rumšiškėse - jos netgi vadinamos Užgavėnių sostine (Rumšiškės... 2013). Vilniuje ši šventė taip pat išskirtinė. Ji viešai pažymima net valstybės vadovų. Pavyzdžiui, 2013 m. ją su Vilniaus Žvėryno gimnazijos mokiniais šventė ir Lietuvos Respublikos prezidentė Dalia Grybauskaitė (Prezidentė... 2013). Pastaruoju metu mieste ypač akcentuojamos persirengėlių vaikštynės, Kanapinio ir Lašininio kova, pamėklės Morės sudeginimas lemia daugiau masinį ir viešą šventės pobūdį, tačiau akcentuojamas poreikis per Užgavėnes gausiai ir riebiai valgyti (dalis žmonių laikosi katalikams, stačiatikiams ir sentikiams būtino pasninko iki Velykų) skatina šią šventę švęsti ir namie - šeimos rate. Vilniuje vieši renginiai rengiami ir per rusų Užgavėnes1. [Iš straipsnio, p. 124]Reikšminiai žodžiai: Etninė kultūra; Kalendorinės šventės; Užgavėnės; Tradicijos; Šventimas; Persirengėliai; Patiekalai; Valgiai; Etninės grupės; Ethnic culture; Calendar holidays; Shrove; Traditions; Celebration; Disguisers; Dishes; Meals; Ethnic groups; Lithuania.

ENShrove (Lith. Užgavėnės; Pol. Zapusty) is a moveable feast prior to Lent. Even though there were some discussions in the recent years to make it public holidays, but for now it remains just a red-letter day. Therefore, this celebration is often moved to the weekend or even celebrated several times. Recently in the city the emphasis on walking around dressed up in costumes, the fight between the "Hempen man" and the "Porky" (Lith. Kanapinis and Lašininis), burning of the effigy of Ghost More influenced a more mass and public character of the festivity, however, emphasis on eating a lot and eating fat during Shrove also promotes celebration at home, in the family circle. Different timing, length and format of Shrove (Rus. Maslenitsa) for the Orthodox and the Old Believers determines certain peculiarities of this celebration among Lithuanians, Poles and Russians as well. The focus of this chapter is the objective to uncover ethnic and cultural peculiarities of Shrove, with the purpose of revealing the composition of the participants, locality of the celebration, the festive meal, and family maintained traditions and customs of Shrove. Respondents were asked to report the locality where they have celebrated last Shrove, also list thre members of the family and other people with who they were celebrating, and list the menu of the Shrove meal. They were also asked if they have attended a church with other members of the family, also about the customs of this feast and traditions that are maintained by the family. Even though the custom of dressing up in costumes during Shrove was known in the neighbouring lands - current territories of Latvia, Belarus and Poland, still along the border between Lithuania and the aforementioned countries the custom of dressing up for Shrove was not familiar.This allowed Lithuanians, situated in the borderlands of these states, to interpret these Shrove customs as being "Lithuanian", and for the non-Lithuanian locals - to recognize them as Lithuanian. In Soviet times this gave impetus to form socialist rituals of "expelling the Winter", and in the recent times this feast, modified in the Soviet period, is celebrated as "Lithuanian" by the emigrants in many foreign countries. Earlier, some research in Vilnius area allowed to presume that Shrove is more commonly celebrated by the people of Lithuanian nationality. However, research in Vilnius itself did not confirm this. Lithuanians in Vilnius city are the least to celebrate this holiday, thus they presented fewer related customs kept in the families. Shrove meal provides no surprise in its variety. Also, there are no specific dishes dedicated to this feast. Apart from the pancakes, common to all ethnic groups, the respondents did not report any other dishes or drinks common to this occasion. Very seldom meat dishes, which used to dominate the table in the period between the great wars, are consumed. Speaking of these three ethnic groups, with some stipulations we may argue that most of the culinary traditions of this feast have been preserved by the Russians, yet especially popular in Samogitia Shrove pancakes have become a dominating dish for Vilnians during Soviet times, when 'Celebration of Expelling the Winter' was popularized. More seldom than other ethnic groups, the Lithuanians maintain the tradition of dressing up in costumes, either dressing up themselves or giving gifts (treats) to the visiting groups of the dressed-up. Traditional Shrove foretelling is replaced with the new kind of beliefs: foretelling weather from the fight between the "Hempen man" and the "Porky", burning of the More, forming beliefs that along with the Ghost it is possible to destroy everything negative as well.At the same time, among the Russians there are still Shrove beliefs, related to the cult of the departed. Despite the fact that in recent years Shrove is looking more like a feast, unifying Lithuanians all of the world, in Vilnius traditions of Shrove are maintained by people of other nationalities as well, and people of Russian nationality give more prominence to Shrove than do Lithuanians. [From the publication]