Culinary Traditions | Blinis

The most famous Maslenitsa dish—blinis—was originally part of the memorial feast table. While commemorating deceased ancestors, peasants asked for their support during the upcoming sowing season. They would carry the pancakes to graves or leave them on a windowsill, saying “First pancake to the departed,” to enlist the ancestors’ help in agriculture. On the last day of Maslenitsa—Forgiveness Sunday—people would go to the cemetery to “say goodbye.”

In many regions a communal drinking tradition existed: for the feast, large groups or even whole villages brewed beer together in bulk. The entire village would then drink it. In the northern provinces they brewed “on high linen,” while around Kharkiv they brewed “so that cattle might be born.”

On Maslenitsa one was supposed to bake and eat as many blinis as possible. They were served with a wide variety of fillings: fish, cabbage, honey, and, of course, butter and sour cream. Baking blinis became a kind of ritual to attract the sun, prosperity, abundance, and well‑being. The more blinis prepared and eaten, the sooner spring would begin and the better the harvest would be.

Town Fairs & Festivities

In towns and villages fairs were organized where people could buy treats, souvenirs, and watch performances by skomorokhi, Slavic jesters.

Holiday fairs operated, offering fragrant hot honey-brewed sbiten', pies, and blinis; rides on swings‑carousels; and displays by circus performers, jesters, and puppet makers.

Sleigh Riding

During mass rides, trains of dozens of sleds and carts were assembled; young people packed themselves into the “transport” at will and, singing, traveled around the countryside. The whole district gathered in the largest village or town, where a fair was held. Preparations for the “gathering” began in advance: boys looking for a bride bought new sleds, decorated the horses with elaborate tack, and girls borrowed sleds from relatives and arrived dressed for the communal event.

Most often these “gatherings” were organized starting on Thursday of Maslenitsa week. The main event took place on Forgiveness Sunday. Here's how a correspondent of the "Ethnographic Bureau" described it at the end of the 19th century:

In the evening of Forgiveness Sunday preparations for the fast began; the first bell strike signaled the end of Maslenitsa.

Sliding Down Ice Slides

Sliding down ice slides is another ancient Maslenitsa tradition. This custom was meant to ensure a good harvest: “the farther you slide, the longer the flax will grow.” Ice slides were built in every village, and sometimes a separate slide was constructed on each street. People usually slid not alone but in a whole troupe, sitting on sleds, skins, or coarse canvas.

People made “ice‑slides” by watering a woven net or basket and leaving it out in the cold. Daring youths could glide on skates, or even stand on their feet, holding onto each other like a “train.” This was called “sliding in the Yura.” Instead of sleds and ice‑slides, benches were often used, and to make them glide better they were soaked with water and frozen. Special “boats,” “sleds,” and “small boats” were carved out of wood.

The slide was a meeting place for young people who had not yet started families. In old times, bachelors were mocked and scolded, and on Maslenitsa the youth were reminded again that it was time to get married. A boy who slid a girl down the hill on his knees earned the right to kiss her publicly. It was not considered improper for a boy to slide down the hill with two girls at once—one on each knee.

Taking the Snow Town

It is believed that this pastime originated in Siberia and then spread to some central provinces. It appeared relatively late, at the beginning of the 18th century. Cossacks, the oldest Russian population of Siberia, staged a kind of “historical reenactment” in memory of the conquest of distant lands.

A snow fortress with gates was built in advance. For strength, logs were driven into the foundation of the town; to ice‑over the walls and gates, they were doused with water. On Forgiveness Sunday the participants divided into two teams: foot soldiers defended the fortress, cavalry attacked. Another variant was also practiced.

The taking of the snow town was described in the 19th century by ethnographer Alexander Tereshchenko:

Sometimes the hero of the assault—the first to break into the fortress—was doused with water or forced to bathe in a hole in the ice. Around Krasnoyarsk the “town” consisted of a gate without walls. One of the attackers had to break through the gate and destroy its upper crosspiece.

Wedding Traditions & Games for Newlyweds

Maslenitsa has always been regarded as an auspicious time for matchmaking, and the main participants during the celebration were the newlyweds. It was believed that having a wedding in spring promised a happy life. Special amusements were organized for the couple to test their cohesion, ingenuity, and readiness for marital life.

One popular tradition was riding the newlyweds in painted sleds. It was thought that if the husband skillfully controlled the horse, he would have a successful and strong household. Other trials included joint rope‑pulling and the “pancake test”: the groom had to eat a pancake without using his hands, while the bride assisted him in doing so.

In addition, during the Maslenitsa week the newlyweds received guidance: older relatives recounted family traditions, offered blessings for a long and harmonious marriage, and presented symbolic gifts such as wooden spoons, which symbolize abundance and well‑being.

Fist Fights

During Maslenitsa, fistfights were organized where men tested their strength and endurance. The fights were not hostile but ritualistic acts, which folklorists interpret as a tribute to paganism: the fighters’ strength was meant to be transferred to the earth. This display of physical power and health among young people was linked to fertility and prosperity, so that the participants’ strength would pass on to the wheat.

The most convenient venue for the fights was the river ice. Deliberately inflicting serious injuries on each other or seeking revenge for personal grievances was prohibited. The combat had to be fought “with bare hands,” i.e., without sticks, knives, or other heavy or sharp objects. A rule was observed that the lying (downed) person and the “muzzle” (blood on the face) were not to be struck. The strongest men did not take part in the fights; instead, they acted as “observers” and “rescuer‑s,” intervening in the bout only when necessary.

Fistfights most often took place “wall‑to‑wall.” Each team had its own “ataman” who positioned the “fighters” and devised strategy. First, two groups of boys aged ten and older gathered on the ice, then young men (grooms), and finally older men. In the Nizhny Novgorod province, married women fought “wall‑to‑wall” “so that the flax would be born.”

The oldest type of fight was the “clasp‑tumble”, or stseplyalka-svalka. Here each participant chose an opponent based on height and strength and fought until total victory or defeat. Then the victor “clasped” a new opponent. This form of fistfighting was not very widespread: it was considered the most brutal and often provoked participants to settle personal scores.

Burning the Effigy & Seeing Off Maslenitsa

The symbol of the holiday is the Maslenitsa effigy, made of straw and dressed in bright clothing. Burning the Maslenitsa effigy is one of the most spectacular and significant rites of the celebration.

As a mythological figure, Maslenitsa represented winter and death, so the effigy symbolized the departing winter, giving way to spring, while the fire represented a purifying force that helps eliminate everything unnecessary and harmful. At the beginning of Maslenitsa week a huge straw “woman” was greeted with lofty songs, carried in a sled, and rolled down hills. On the last day of the festival—Forgiveness Sunday—Maslenitsa was seen off: the effigy was “buried,” torn apart, or burned.

Often Maslenitsa passed without any effigy at all. For example, in the Poshekhonsky district of the Yaroslavl province, throughout the whole Maslenitsa week the people collected firewood for a gigantic bonfire; this practice was called “burning Maslenitsa.” The burning was meant to ensure the rebirth of a young, new world.

In some places participants jumped over the “farewell” fire; elsewhere they burned all the trash gathered in the village or tossed pancakes, butter, and other fast foods into the flames. The coals and ash from the Maslenitsa fire were buried in the snow or scattered over the fields. It was believed that this would warm the soil more quickly and improve its fertility.

According to folklorist Vladimir Propp, the “funeral” rite for Maslenitsa was closely linked to ritual laughter. Therefore the burning was accompanied by a procession of costumed participants, and folk comedies were performed. Peasants wove into the story of the main characters—Maslenitsa, the Pancake, and the Voivode—real events, mocking well‑known misdeeds of fellow villagers. On Maslenitsa one could even “pull the strings” of the landowner, the police, or the governor.

After the effigy was burnt, it was customary to scatter the ash over the fields, as it was thought to bring fertility and a good harvest. Some housewives kept a little ash at home, considering it a talisman against evil spirits. In old times people believed that the brighter and stronger the effigy burned, the sooner spring would arrive and the more prosperous and wealthy the year would be.