Bulgarian Traditions & Name Days

ILINDEN (St. Elias` Day) - July 20

Name day of everyone named Iliya, Iliana, Iliyan, Ilko, Ilka.

St. Elias is one of the traditional feasts celebrated to preserve from hail or thunder. According to the traditional beliefs, St. Elias is the lord of thunders. The legends describe him as moving up in the skies in his gold chariot drawn by strong horses, looking to kill the dragon eating the wheat fields. When he throws arrows of fire at the dragon, thunder and lightning appears on the sky.  When there is only lightning without a thunder, that means that fire is getting out of his horses’ nostrils.

The feastday is believed to be connected to the Slavic god of thunder and lightning – Perun. Folk tradition requires that in order to honor St. Elias, the Thunderer, the oldest rooster in the house must be votively killed. This way roosters in the house would become younger and stronger. Same thing happens with the “roosters” in the village – the inauguration of new marriageable lads is on that day. It takes place on the village square, in front of everyone, young and old. When a lad decides that he is old enough to keep house and raise a family, then, at the `horo` dance in the evening, the oldest bachelor in the village takes from the lad’s mother or another female relative, a new red sash and ritually girds it on the lad.

The bachelor holds one end of the sash, the lad takes the other end, puts it under his breast and turns round until the sash is girded on. Meanwhile the old bachelor blesses: “E-hey! As this sash is winding round, so the lasses wind round you!” . “Amen!” say the others and the wisted horo dance starts. The old bachelor introduces the lad into the `horo` and he acquires the status of a bachelor who can flirt with the lasses without being funny in the eyes of the other young men.  Then people go to the church and eat together at table. Young women don’t wash themselves on that day because the Dragon will fall in love with the one that has washed herself.
 
It is the professional feastday of curriers, furriers, and producers of pack-saddles and tiles.