New Year festivities with a pagan twist

14 January, 2009, 11:23

Traditional toasts and ancient pagan rituals have marked the 'old' New Year in Abkhazia. The day is celebrated 13 days after the official New Year, in line with the Julian calendar.

This ancient ritual is something that Abkhazians pass on from one generation to another. As night falls, they gather in the smithy with sacrificial offerings. People light candles that symbolize the beginning of a new year, and the passing of all old worries and fears.

The elders then usually address the Supreme Being.

The Vanabas are an old Abkhazian family. In the entire republic, there are just over a hundred people who bear this last name. Most of them live nearby, in the small village of Otkhara, and visit each other during the festivities.

As shots are fired from an old hunting rifle the whole village knows that this family has finished prayers, and will now be carrying on with the rest of its New Year celebrations.

The Vanabas' young and old watch the fireworks, and congratulate each other.