
BABA MARTA CELEBRATE IN BG IMAGE FREE
If you join us for a tour at the end of February and the beginning of March you may receive a typical red and white bracelet and hear the story of the holiday or even make a martenitsa yourself! Here are some happy faces that got a martenitsa last year:įind out more on our daily Free Sofia Tour. Peolpe all over the world meet spring with joy and new hopes but in Bulgaria it is saved as an ancient tradition. By wearing the martenitsa our predecessors asked Baba Marta for mercy in the hope that she would bring spring faster. On the 1st of March Bulgarian people celebrate a traditional holiday called Baba Marta (or Grandma Marta in English) and it is related to welcoming the approaching spring. However, in case she gets angry, it turns cold and it snows. Those weather conditions were extremely dangerous for the crops. When she is happy the weather is sunny and warm. She was believed to be a grumpy old lady whose constantly swinging mood would result in the typical abrupt weather changes in March. They called the month of March “Grandma March”. One of the legends about the origin of the martenitsa comes from the fact that Bulgarians relied a lot on agriculture in the past. After that you hang it on a blossoming tree like this one: When you see the first symbol of spring you have to take off your martenitsa. The storks returning from the south and the blossoming trees are the symbols of the coming spring. You will also receive plenty of martenitsi and you’ll have to wear them till you see a blossoming tree a stork or a swallow. When you give them the decoration you wish them everything you want to happen to them during the year. On March 1 you exchange martenitsa with everybody that you know: family, friends, colleagues, acquaintances. The colors of the martenitsa symbolize Bulgarian beliefs: white is for good health and red is for fertility and to scare away the bad spirits. The other version is a bracelet, made of one red and one white thread, which you can put on your hand. You would usually pin this on your clothes.

On the first of March, Bulgarians wish each other health and happiness with 'Chestita. The traditional one consists of two little dolls – Pizho, the male, is white and Penda, the female, is red. March 1st is a very special holiday in Bulgaria when Bulgarians celebrate Baba Marta (Grandma Marta). The martenitsa is a piece of decoration in red and white, which has two main versions. The symbol of this tradition is the martenitsa. It is a pagan tradition and we celebrate it on the 1st of March. Then martenitsas are put onto a tree.One of the most ancient traditions in Bulgaria is called “Baba Marta” (literally – “Grandma March”). Martenitsas are supposed to be worn until the person sees the first stork.

This is an ancient Bulgarian tradition and symbolizes the end of the cold winter and the coming of the spring. The red colour, as people say, is to protect from disease and evil and the white colour makes you live longer.Īs her name comes from the month that she comes in, Baba Marta is believed to be either severe and cruel, making the whole country white with snow, or mild and kind giving health and strenth through her martenitsas. The martenitsa is a red-and-white woolen thread that is worn fastened either on the clothes or around the wrist. The tradition goes that they present relatives and friends with a martenitsa on March 1st. "Marta" comes from the word for March (Mart) in Bulgarian. On the first of March, Bulgarians wish each other health and happiness with "Chestita baba Marta" - (in English, "Happy Grandma Marta").

March 1st is a very special holiday in Bulgaria when Bulgarians celebrate Baba Marta (Grandma Marta). If you are in Bulgaria today and you haven't still bought martenitsas for your friends and relatives, do not forget to do that today.
