Suzanne Moscow: Maslenitsa

Maslenitsa is the Russian Sun Festival – a celebration of the end of winter chills and the start of Spring, of warmth, of hope, of growth. Not surprisingly, it is a particularly big deal in Russia!

Maslenitsa is the oldest surviving Russian holiday; archeological evidence suggests it may have been celebrated as early as the 2nd century A.D. The week-long celebration marking the beginning of spring was one of the most important and elaborate for the pagan culture Blini (pancakes) were eaten as symbols of the sun.

At Maslenitsa blinis (pancakes) are cooked in very large quantities to and are given to friends and family all through the week. Pancakes are served with caviar, mushrooms, jam, sour cream, caramel, sugar and of course, lots of butter.

During the week of Maslenitsa children take take in a variety of outdoor activities e.g. sledging, building snowmen, outdoor games and dancing.Children and grown-ups assemble a Maslenitsa doll out of straw and old woman’s clothes. They place it on a pole and go dance and sing. Afterwards the doll is carried to the top of a snow hill, while at the same time people enjoy sliding down it. On the final day of Malenitsa (Sunday), people gather to see the Malenitsa doll burned. The burning of the doll symbolises that as the doll is disappearing into ashes, Winter will also soon disappear. Russians celebrate Malenitsa as the end of the long Winter and looking forward to the Spring.