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“НАШЕ ЖИТТЯ”, ЧЕРВЕНЬ 201 3 WWW. UNWLA.ORG 31 One of the displays on Ukrainian folk art and trad i- tions, prepared by Branch 108 of New Haven, C T , for the Ethnic Herit age Center. __________________________________ Fragments from the Exhibit Panel “Ukrainian Easter Traditions” on Display at the Ethnic Heritage Center in New Haven, CT EASTER ACTIVITIES AND GAMES Easter in Ukraine was a time of community celebr a- tion — the beginning of spring and the end of the Lenten per i- od. Children enjoyed all aspects of the Easter traditions, e s- pecially the activities. One of the oldest customs of Easter was performance of the vesnyanky (spring songs) and the hahilky , the song - games which date back to Ukrainian pagan times, in the fourth century A.D. or earlier. The ancestors expressed their joy of nature by creating a variety of songs, dances and games that imitated and celebrated nature. After Christianity was adopted in Ukraine, these ancient dances and songs continued. The first activity to be expected after Easter brunch was the sound of the church bells being rung by one of the village boys. It is said that whoever first rang the bells after eating was predicted to b e the first in many things during the coming year. The krashanky (dyed hard - boiled eggs) were used in many games played by the children of all ages. In one, krashanky were rolled towards each other in the grass. Another variation is the game Trial of the K rashanka ( chokannia krashankamy ) where two eggs would be tapped together. Young boys would sit in a square and roll an egg to the opposite corner; if their egg cracked, their place was taken by another boy. Older boys played more active games. They would t oss their egg high in the air and see if it survived the fall to the grass. In Kranakohuta , a krashanka was tossed between two boys who had to both avoid breaking the egg and avoid throwing it to a third boy, the Kohut (rooster), who would try to catch the egg. If he succeeded, the one who last held the egg became the new Kohut . The winners of all the games were those who finished with whole eggs. COURTING CUSTOMS AT EASTER TIME After Christianity was accepted, many rituals were discontinued; however, th e courting customs remained, since weddings were restricted during the Advent and Lenten periods. The courting custom that took place on Easter Monday, or “Spri n- kling or Dousing Monday,” represented an earlier time when water was regarded as life - giving. On that day, the most popular young women would be sprinkled with water by the eligible young men. Young maidens prepared pysanky to distribute to all admirers, a ransom paid to stop the dousing. A distinctive pysanka would be given a young man of special i n- terest. If accepted, an engagement and marriage might be expected in the months to follow .
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