en

Traditions in Țara Oașului

Satu Mare county Traditions

Țara Oașului became famous through its folk costumes, art, music and specific dance, especially on the occasion of special events: weddings, dances, meetings, traditional gatherings, „lăutul torturilor”, holidays. The people of Oaș have succeeded or are trying their best to pass on from generation to generation what is most precious to a country: the ancestral language, costume and customs, sacredly preserved by grandparents whose souls never seem to grow old.

In order not to let these customs die, traditional meetings are organised in Oaş, either at the house of Floare Finta, a living human treasure, or at the Museum of Țara Oașului, with all the „aunties”. "Auntie" Floare Finta says that when she was young, "girls and boys came to the meetings to get to know each other. The vast majority of those who got married when we were girls met or formed relationships in these meetings”.In these meetings, the girls also learned the work of the women in the house, including the spinning, the combing, the weaving, the unwinding, and others.

News author
News 1st banner

The Easter and Christmas holidays bring to the surface the multitude of very well-preserved customs and traditions, both of which are conducive to the magical practices of marriage, prosperity, and fertility.

Easter expresses peace, kindness, forgiveness, unity; marks the miracle of the Resurrection, the eggs are "decorated" (reddened), the "cakes" and the bread are made, the poor are given alms in remembrance of the dead. According to popular tradition, evil on earth will not be able to prevail as long as the Resurrection of the Lord is celebrated and they will continue to paint red eggs in remembrance of the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ. "In Cămârzana - Ţara Oaşului, the craftswomen are preparing this holy week to decorate eggs with wax and with the archaic insignia of the universe from Oaș in which they live" says Mihaela Grigorean, who identified keepers of these almost forgotten traditions, and brought them back to light.

News 2st banner
Christmas is another holiday in which everything that is done is under the sign of hope, of good. It is the time of carols, most of which are learned from the elders. On the eve, the boys and girls meet, dressed in their traditional costume, brightly coloured and richly adorned - and start caroling each house, accompanied by the ‘band’ (ceteră) and the shouting of the girls. The children, most impatiently waiting for the Christmas holiday, start caroling in the evening with bags where they put their rewards after caroling - apples, hazelnuts, walnuts, and today almost exclusively money and candy. On Christmas night, in the whole village, in all the houses, the light is kept on (formerly the lamp) as a sign that carollers are waited. The village is full of carollers and everything takes place in a fairytale atmosphere. Remus Ţiplea, a National Geographic award-winning photographer, captured all these holidays and does not let young people lose the dowry left to them by their ancestors.
News 3nd banner

Living stories

Nature experience

In the Lap of Slovak Paradise

Handicrafts

Hutsul Handcrafts Exhibit by Strynadiuk Family

Nature experience

Noble land, noble metals

Traditional liquides

Discover the taste of beer

Handicrafts

Ancestral Rivers

Handicrafts

The Crafts of Gemer

More stories