It is difficult to imagine a Ukrainian girl in traditional clothing whose head would not be adorned with a wreath. This detail of the image was not only an ornament and a sign of her unmarried status, but also a strong amulet that protected from evil. What were the wreaths and their meaning?
From the history of wreaths
In Ukraine, this decoration has a long history. Even in pre-Christian times, a wreath was the main decoration of a girl's head, protecting her from bewitchment and ensuring well-being. Over time, the wreath underwent certain changes and variations, but it did not lose its original meaning.
In different regions, this girl's ornament had its own name: korobulya, lubok (Podillia), teremok (Chernihiv region), kapelyushinya, fez (Bukovyna), crown, perta (Transcarpathia), tsvitok, klvitka (Naddnipryan region), kositsya, pletin (Hutsul region), koruna (Lemkiv region), gibalka (Pereyaslav region, Poddniprovya). A wreath could be not only decorations made of flowers. For example, Hutsuls covered their heads with a wreath-shaped chelts - copper plates in the form of petals strung on a wire or strap, and Bukovynkas - with codes - wreath-shaped decorations that were attached to the crown of the head and rose magnificently upwards, while the hair was let down.
They began wearing wreaths at the age of three. The daughter received her first wreath from her mother (the nanny wove it from marigolds, which relieved headaches, forget-me-nots and periwinkle, which developed eyesight, and chamomile, which calmed the heart). It was kept in a chest and worn on the Savior's Day (Honey). At four years old, another wreath was woven: the petals of all its flowers were cut, immortelle, bog leaves or apple trees were woven into it. For a six-year-old girl, poppy seeds (which added sleep and calmed thoughts) and cornflowers were woven into the wreath. For a seven-year-old girl, a decoration of seven flowers (with apple blossom) was woven. The girl wove the following wreaths herself (she was often taught by her sisters or older friends).
Types of wreaths
According to researchers' rough estimates, there are over 80 types of wreaths (age-old, magical, ritual, custom, etc.). The most common age-old wreath was the love wreath , which a girl wove from the age of 13 until marriage. It was woven from daisies, which were diluted with apple and cherry blossoms, hop tendrils, and a bunch of viburnum above her forehead. A betrothed girl wove a love wreath from periwinkle, mint, sage, and other medicinal herbs. Girls also wove wreaths for their lovers (a wreath of devotion ): from lovage and cornflowers. They were given to lovers who were setting off on a long journey, as a symbol that they were waiting for them at home, remembered, and loved. Those girls who were unlucky in love made wreaths of hope from cornflowers and field poppies (it was believed that love would come when the girl put a wreath on the head of her chosen one, and the girl could also use this wreath to propose to her indecisive lover). A wreath of separation from primrose and heather was woven by a girl whose lover had left her for another. If the initiative came from the girl, she gave the young man a wreath of willow tassels, periwinkle, and asters (it carried the message: "I'm sorry, but I love someone else"). A girl who was taking monastic vows prepared a monastic wreath from white lilies, which symbolized the purity of God's bride (she gave this wreath to her best friend after making a vow). White lilies were also woven for a girl who had passed away unmarried (it was woven for the deceased by her friends - as for the bride). The most magnificent and beautiful was the wedding wreath , which was supposed to protect the bride from the evil and envious eye. It was woven at the hen party by the bride's girlfriends from periwinkle, fresh flowers, and medicinal plants (if the bride was from a wealthy family, the wreath was purchased: from wax flowers, cigarette paper, which was interwoven with periwinkle and lovage; if the bride was an orphan, viburnum was not woven into the wreath).
Rules of wreath weaving
A classic wreath was supposed to consist of 12 types of flowers. Each flower had its own symbolic meaning:
- poppy - a symbol of fertility, beauty and youth;
- chamomile - love, tenderness and fidelity;
- sunflower - devotion and loyalty;
- cornflowers are a symbol of humanity;
- rose, mallow and peony – hope, faith and love;
- mint – health;
- mother-in-law – motherly love;
- lily – girlish charm, purity and chastity;
- divyasil and immortelle – strengthening health;
- cherry and apple blossoms - devotion and love;
- viburnum – beauty and maidenly grace;
- hops – flexibility and intelligence;
- field bells - gratitude.
"Potions" were also often woven into wreaths:
- wormwood (from the evil eye);
- burkun potion (can unite those who are not together in a quarrel);
- oak leaves (gives strength);
- periwinkle leaves and blossoms (a potion of love and maiden beauty - it is not for nothing that it can be seen in many wedding wreaths, each petal of the flower had its own meaning: the first - beauty, the second - tenderness, the third - forgetfulness, the fourth - harmony, the fifth - fidelity).
The material for the wreath was collected on certain days or hours (depending on the purpose of the wreath). Before weaving the wreath, the potion was purified with well water. During the “work”, the girls sang songs and told instructive stories. Traditionally, the girl wove the wreath herself, but for children, a mother, sister, or other older relative could weave a wreath-amulet.
Depending on the season, wreaths could be woven from herbs and flowers (in spring and summer), from leaves and viburnum stalks (in autumn), from artificial and wax flowers (in winter). Wax wreaths and wreaths made of artificial flowers were traditionally purchased (wax wreaths were usually made by nuns and sold in Kyiv bazaars) before the wedding. Brides would additionally weave artificial wreaths with periwinkle or decorate them with bird feathers (peacock, chicken or drake tail feathers).
Ribbons: their colors and meanings
Ribbons (ribbons, bindis) were an important attribute of each wreath. Their color, quantity, and length were important. Like flowers, there should also be 12 ribbons. The length of the ribbon should exceed the length of the girl's braid (ribbons protected the girl's treasure from the envious eye). The ribbons were knitted in a certain sequence: in the center there should be brown (a symbol of the earth), on both sides yellow (the sun), light and dark green (beauty and youth), blue and blue (sky and water, symbolizing strength and health), yellow-hot (a symbol of bread), purple (wisdom), crimson (soulfulness and sincerity), pink (prosperity). They also knitted a white ribbon embroidered with silver and gold (the sun at the left end, the moon at the right), an unembroidered ribbon was not knitted - it symbolized the memory of the dead. If a poppy was woven into the wreath, it was tied with a red ribbon as a sign of mourning and remembrance. An orphan girl wove blue ribbons into her braids and wreath (people she met gave her gifts, wished her happiness and wealth, and she gave them a ribbon from the wreath in gratitude).
Territorial differences in wreaths
There were a number of "wreath" features inherent only to certain localities. For example, in the Middle Dnieper region, the size of the flowers decreased towards the back of the head, and in Podillia , the "flowering" was the opposite. In Western Ukraine, wreaths were decorated with braids, garlands, and gilded periwinkle. Hutsul women wove wreaths-karabuli from glass beads and ribbons, from artificial flowers and peacock feathers. In the Vinnytsia region , girls decorated their heads with wreaths of volochki on holidays: multi-colored tassels, beads, buttons, and threads were sewn onto a black braid, and in some places a "flower" was common - a ribbon with a double flower sewn onto it from ribbons decorated with beads and beads. In Polesie, the wreath could be used to determine the financial status of a girl's family: the more magnificent the wreath, the wealthier she was (sometimes it consisted of so many intertwined hoops that it resembled a hat of flowers that covered the entire head). Girls from simple families had a wreath in the form of a woven hoop. In this region, ribbons were rarely woven into wreaths (the exception was wedding wreaths).
Now the wreath is more of a festive decoration, the magical power of which few people know or remember, but this does not prevent it from gradually "occupying" more and more girls' heads, emphasizing their beauty and... granting protection.
Write a comment