Christmas
Description:
Christmas is celebrated in Bosnia in a special way. In the rite of the holiday there are even pagan elements, preserved from the time of Saint Sava, the first Archbishop of Serbia, revered in the Balkans (in Russian writing - Savva). Saint Sava once deliberately preserved folk customs (rethinking them!) in order to attract more people to the Orthodox faith.
The Nativity of Christ (the so-called God) is the feast of parents and children. He is all imbued with care for the safety of the family hearth and the well-being of the house. It is no coincidence that the cycle of Christmas holidays lasts, together with preparation for it, more than a month.
It begins on the day of St. Nicholas of Myrlicia on December 19, and ends on January 27, the day of St. Sava (Russians celebrate the memory of Archbishop Sava of Serbia two days earlier, January 25).
Two days before Christmas, January 5, a pig or lamb is slaughtered, and in some places a turkey or goose is slaughtered. On this day, children should not be punished - there is a belief that otherwise they will behave badly throughout the following year. This day is called "Tucindan".
Christmas Eve, January 6, is called “Badni Dan” by the Serbs.
On this day, before sunrise, the head of the family and his eldest son with a shotgun in front of the house announce a trip to the forest for the “bad man”. The family members who remain in the house at dawn start a fire and start roasting a specially fattened piglet for Christmas, the women prepare Christmas cake, cakes and other dishes.