Publisher:

Institute of Archaeology and Ethnology Polish Academy of Sciences

Place of publishing:

Warsaw

Description:

ill. ; 24 cm

Type of object:

Journal/Article

Abstract:

This article aims to highlight the dominant position of women within the symbolic space of Belarusian rural culture from the 19th to the early 21st century, and show the specific features of women’s ritual practices known among Belarusians as abrok (a votive offering) and abydzennik (ritual fabric woven in one day). The cultural anthropological analysis of these practices is based on the author’s long-term field research and ethnographic literature. The study takes an ethno-sociological approach, and draws on concepts from gift and ritual theory, as well as gender studies. The first part of the article examines the status of women in rural society and their social responsibility within the symbolic field of relations among humans, ancestors, and the sacred, as well as the connection between women’s rituals and traditional activities, such as spinning and weaving. The second part describes and interprets the votive ritual of offering textile gifts (abroki) at roadside crosses, other sacred sites and in churches, a practice which is still carried out today. The following section analyses the practice of making abydzennik and its associated rituals. The article emphasises that this ritual was revitalised in Belarusian villages during the Second World War and in Minsk in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. A conclusion is drawn about the significance of traditional women’s socio-cultural experience and the need to consider its existence in culture and collective memory when assessing the social potential of modern Belarusian society

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Relation:

Ethnologia Polona

Volume:

46

Start page:

89

End page:

114

Detailed Resource Type:

Article

Format:

application/octet-stream

Resource Identifier:

oai:rcin.org.pl:248534 ; 0137-4079 ; eISSN 2719-6976 ; doi:10.23858/ethp.2025.46.3961

Source:

IAiE PAN, call no. P 366 ; IAiE PAN, call no. P 367 ; IAiE PAN, call no. P 368 ; click here to follow the link

Language:

eng

Rights:

Creative Commons Attribution BY-NC-ND 4.0 license

Terms of use:

Copyright-protected material. [CC BY-NC-ND 4.0] May be used within the scope specified in Creative Commons Attribution BY-NC-ND 4.0 license, full text available at: ; -

Digitizing institution:

Institute of Archaeology and Ethnology of the Polish Academy of Sciences

Original in:

Library of the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnology of the Polish Academy of Sciences

Access:

Open