Koliada (deity)
Koliada or Koleda is a Slavic mythological deity, that personalizes the newborn winter infant Sun[1] and impersonates the New Year's cycle.[2] It is connected with the solar cycle, passing through the four seasons and from one substantial condition into another. The four personifications of the Sun according to the ancient Slavic religion are:
- Koliada - the small, weak winter Sun, reborn at the morning after the winter solstice
- Yarilo - the strengthened Sun, that has turned into an adolescent at the morning after the spring equinox
- Kupala - the mighty Sun, that appeared at the morning after the summer solstice
- Khors - the aging and enervating, but wise Sun, that rose at the morning after the autumn equinox.[3]
In the different Slavic countries at the Koliada winter festival were performed rituals with games and songs in its honour - like koleduvane. In some regions of Russia the ritual gifts (usually buns) for the koledari are also called "kolyada". In the lands of the Croats it was symbolized by a doll, called Koled.[4] In the ancient times Slavs used to sacrifice horses, goats, cows, bears or other animals that impersonate fertility. Koliada is mentioned either as male or a female deity in the songs.[2]
In modern culture
Although the ancient Slavic paganism is extinct today, there are many remainings that recall both the deity and the ritual Koliada. All of them are on or around Christmas Eve:
- Koleduvane is a ceremony with pagan roots that is still performed on Christmas Eve in many Slavic countries.
- Koleda is the modern Bulgarian word for Christmas.
- Kolyadka or Kolyada is a traditional song usually sung in Eastern Slavic countries (Belarus, Russia and Ukraine) only on Orthodox Christmas holidays, between the 7 and 14 of January
- Crăciun is the Romanian and Karácsony - the Hungarian word for Christmas. They are both derived from Korochun/Krachun - one of the names of the pagan holiday Koliada, although both Romania and Hungary are not Slavic countries.
- Kalėdos is the Lithuanian word for Christmas.
There are Slavic neopagan communities in most of the Slavic countries whose goal is to popularize ancient pagan belief and practice in present-day society.
Some Slavic (mainly Russian) pagan rock and folk rock bands have songs about Koliada:
- Song of the Russian folk band Ivan Kupala, called Kolyada [5]
- Song of the Russian pagan metal band Arkona, called Kolyada [6]
- Song of the Belarusian pagan metal band Kolo Pravi - Goy Kolyada [7]
- Song Kolyada of the Russian band Veter vody
See also
References
- ↑ България, славянски богове in Bulgarian
- 1 2 Мифы народов мира (второe издание)/изд. "Советская Энциклопедия"/Москва/1987, том 1/стр.665
- ↑ Краткие седения о славянских Богах in Russian
- ↑ Мифологический словарь/Гл.ред. Е.М. Мелетинский - М.:'Советская энциклопедия', 1990 г.- 672 с.
- ↑ List of the songs from the album Kostroma from the official site of the band Ivan Kupala
- ↑ List of songs from the album Noch' Velesova (The Night Of Veles) of the Russian band Arkona in Encyclopaedia Metallum
- ↑ Demo album of Kolo Pravi from 2009
External links
- Koliada // Russian mythological calendar
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