Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2024 All Rights Reserved

Roma begin three days of New Year celebrations

Photo: BGNES

The Roma New Year celebrations begin tonight and will last for three days. For the Roma people, Vasilitsa, or better known as Bango Vasil (literally "limping Vasil"), is perhaps the most revered family holiday.

Families gather for dinner, the houses are locked and no one is allowed to go outside. On the table are roast chicken, cake, boule bread with a penny hidden in it (to bring wealth to whoever gets the piece with the coin) and sarmi (dolmas) with lucky charms of dogwood buds. At midnight, when the New Year begins, the doors of the house are opened to guests. But first the children have to greet the adults and wish them good health and happiness.

 According to legend, Bango Vasil is Saint Basil the Great - he came to the rescue and rebuilt a bridge destroyed by the devil so that the Roma could cross it. He became their saint and patron saint.



Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

More from category

Bulgaria's caretaker PM says no new talks with Skopje

I do not think that the tone that the Republic of North Macedonia has been using lately will help it become an EU country. It is not about any new negotiations either. We have made enough compromises with our national identity and they just have to..

published on 9/20/24 12:57 PM

Bulgaria will provide energy support to Ukraine

Bulgaria’s support for Ukraine in the context of the ongoing Russian aggression was the focus of a meeting between caretaker Minister of Foreign Affairs Ivan Kondov and Ukrainian Ambassador to Bulgaria Olesya Ilashchuk, the Ministry of Foreign..

published on 9/20/24 9:49 AM

A SANS investigation rejects "Bulgarian connection" with the detonated pagers in Lebanon

Following the checks conducted by the State Agency for National Security (SANS), in cooperation with the National Revenue Agency, the Ministry of Interior, and the National Customs Agency, it has been established incontrovertibly that no communication..

published on 9/20/24 9:30 AM