Bulgaria's Orthodox Church recommends 13 different foods for the Christmas Eve meal (salt, pepper and sugar are seen as separate foods). The foods are vegetable and odd in number for luck. Beans are the traditional Christmas Eve dish in Bulgaria, as families gather that evening for a meatless holiday meal. There are always walnuts on the table. Traditionally, wheat is boiled and dishes such as boiled haricot beans, leaves stuffed with rice or grouts, and stewed dried fruit are cooked. Wheat grains and the Ignazhden Kolaks (Saint Ignatius’ Day ring-shaped cake) are also put on the table and there are Kravai (round breads with holes in them) carried on long sticks (Rkoledaris).

    At the Christmas Eve table, fortunes are told. To predict what the year is going to be, everyone cracks a walnut. If it is good and delicious, the year is going to be lucky, if the walnut is empty, you can expect a bad year. Predictions are also made for the weather in each month of the new year, the expected crops, each family member's health, and for the coming marriages of the girls. As you can understand, the Christmas Eve requires much time and the efforts of each family member. The women-folk arise very early in the morning and are busily preparing the festive meals during the whole day. They spare no effort to be ready with everything and observe the tradition when Christmas Eve comes. It is believed that the way Christmas Eve goes is the way life goes during the following year. With no work to be done in the fields, everyone's efforts become home-centred. Certainly, a festival as important as Christmas Eve deserves to be celebrated in the proper manner.  Legends connected with Christmas say that if you borrow salt and don't return it, you will have trouble with your eyes. If your ear aches on Christmas this is an indication that an angel has passed by you. You make the sign of the cross three times and whatever you think of will come true.

 Christmas Lights in Varna City

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        Carol Singing (Koleduvane).

    Only boys participate as major figures in the ritual known as Koleduvane. Its purpose is to wish health, good luck and fertility to the heads of households, to their houses, livestock, land, etc. The koledari, as those participating in the ritual are called, are divided into two age groups.  Each group may consist of 10 or more koledari who separate  the homes of their villages or neighbourhood among themselves, to be sure each will be blessed. The preparations include the learning of songs and dances, and the decoration of costumes, which include the kalpaci (fur hats) decorated with bouquets of boxwood and wild geranium, carved wooden staffs, yamurluci (hooded cloaks) which are made to size, sandals, and new fancy leggings. The fancy embroidery on the white shirts is especially beautiful. The koledari songs are characteristically lively, happy and festive, and are performed antiphonally. The group divides into two subgroups, then one groups begins, and the second group repeats what the first group has just sung. The songs can be divided into several themes: those which are sung on the road from one house to another, those which are sung while entering or leaving a house, those devoted to the head of the house, those for the women, those for small children, those for unmarried girls, those for soldiers, those for the livestock, those for the fertility of the fields, and so on. At the end of the performance, the head of the household gives stedro (from his heart) - so called Koledni gevreci (round buns), Banitza (a multi-layered pastry filled with feta-like cheese, fruits, walnuts, popcorn and other traditional delicacies).

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        The Survakane
   Today, Christmas is still a very special family holiday in modern Bulgaria. In the cities, the Koledari tradition is not followed as strictly as in the villages. However, city dwellers should not be surprised if kids (Survakarcheta) knock on the door after midnight on Christmas to sing a song, wishing happiness, love, health and wealth during the coming year.  The Survachka is a richly-decorated wooden stick used in Bulgaria's most popular Christmas ritual - Survakane. Children, mostly young boys, use the sticks to lightly beat relatives and friends on the back, while reciting or singing verses of ritual good wishes for health and wealth. The vivid Survachka sticks must be made of cornel-tree wood (a bush, actually) and decorated with popcorn, dried fruits, small coins and coloured threads.

     On December 25, after the festive mass starting at 12:00 am , all should drink a sip of wine so that the divine blessing should come upon them as fasting ends. A place at the table is left vacant for the deceased (relatives or other dear people). The table is not cleared for the night because people believe that the deceased will come to dinner.

    December 26 in Bulgaria is celebrated as the second day of Christmas. It is officially a non-working day. It is a day to pay tribute to Jesus' mother Virgin Mary. Bulgarians believe that Virgin Mary will bring their prayers to Jesus, as she is the person closest to Him.

      December 27, the third day of Christmas, is Stefanovden (St. Stefan's Day). The ones who have this name day are given gifts, people sing songs and play the Bulgarian Horo dance. They dance for the last time in the square the “Christmas Buenek dance”.

      On to the New Year..

   On January 1, New Year's Day, (Vasilovden - St Basil), the traditional ritual of 'Survakane' (Surva, Survaki) takes place and is very popular even today because this is when the Bulgarian boys receive their New Year's presents after tapping people on the back with decorated Cornel-Twig to wish them well.

   On this day the Christians celebrate the day of St. Basil the Great – a Christian saint, thinker, philosopher and writer.  This is the name day of people called Vasil, Vasilka, Veselina, Vasa, and Vasilena.

     Let there be as much health in this house as there is wild geranium in the mountains, is a blessing- quote from a Christmas song, accounting for the tradition of fixing a small posy of wild geranium on one’s dress on festive days. The evergreen geranium plant is the paramount symbol of good health and vitality in Bulgarian traditions.

       Also on January 1, there is Laduvane when the young girls get together to tell fortunes about their forthcoming marriages. The purpose is to ensure the realization of the most cherished dream for a happy family life through the magic of the word and the use of Pogacha bread at women only rituals. The Laduvane (Daylada, Taylada, ring dipping) also takes place on St. George's Day, Midsummer and St. Lazar's day. With this ritual the young girls foretell who the lad they are going to marry will be and they ask Lada, the goddess of love and marriage to show them what he will be like.

  On this day the girls bring water from the spring or the well in a white cauldron. This water has different names depending in the day in which the ritual is performed - quiet, untouched or colourful. After they bring the water the girls gather in a house and each of them leaves her ring or a bunch of flowers with a ring around them, or a bracelet in the cauldron. They leave the cauldron under the roses or some other kinds of flowers during the night under the stars. In the morning one of the lasses or a young child dressed as a bride takes the rings and the flowers out of the water and the rest of the girls are singing short songs. They sing about a fore-coming marriage, happiness in the marriage, social status and qualities of the future husband: "a ripe and over-ripe quince" (the girl will be old when she gets married); "alone you are on a stone" (she will marry an orphan); "a yellow veil gathers splinters" (the girl will get married). Each girl takes some oats from the cauldron and puts it under her pillow. They believe that whoever the boy they dream about that night is that will be the one they are going to marry. Their health during the next year is foretold by whether or not the water is freezing in the cauldron. The celebration ends with a big Horo dance.

      January 2 is Sylvester Day, which is the day of all cattle, according to a particular myth. Stables and cattle-sheds everywhere are cleaned specially by the boys who are sent from house to house, tapping families with the Survachki and receiving items of food in return. Villagers leave wine, bread and meat in the cattle-sheds as a gift for the boys, who are known as koledari.