Slavic Mythology

Slavic Mythology

As part of our inquiry into Mythology, in Polish MT lessons we have been exploring Slavic mythology. Poles are descendants of the Slavs. It is not entirely clear where they came from. We know about their origins from legends and oral accounts. Polish tribes settled between the Vistula and the Oder river about 1300 years ago. The name Poland comes from the word Polanie, which means people working in the fields.

Lech, Czech and Rus Legend

One of the legends telling about the emergence of the Polish nation is the 'Lech, Czech and Rus Legend'

Slavic gods and godesses

According to Slavic mythology Slavic people worshipped many gods and godesses. Nature was the centre in the life of the Slavs, therefore the mythological gods were the personifications of nature phenomena.

Trees in Slavic Mythology

Trees had a special and magical meaning in the Slavic mythology and they represented the symbol of life

Swaróg

god of the sun

Perun

god of the sky, lightning, water and fire

Weles

god of the underworld

Mokosz

Mother Earth

Jarowit

god of youth, vitality and fertility

Marzanna

goddess of winter and death

Rituals and traditions in Slavic mythology

As part of our inquiry into Slavic mythodology we explored some of the Slavic rituals and traditions. One of the most popular Slavic rituals are related to the slavic goddess - Marzanna - symbol of death and winter. On the first day of spring, people used to make big dolls out of straw and sticks to represent the Marzanna goddess and burn it or throw in into water. This ritual was to symbolically end winter and welcome spring. In many Slavic countries this traditions survided to this day. People make a Marzanna doll and they walk along the river in a parade.

Other rituals related to welcoming spring

The ritual of welcoming spring through parades with Marzanna was accompanied by other rituals.

On the hills, people lit fires to encorage warm days to arrive faster

Slavs loved wearing wreaths made from branches and and field flowers

During spring celebrations, young people made head wreaths.

Before the spring celebrations people cleaned their houses and refreshed the fragrance of their homes with special herbs

During spring celebrations they made a special cake, called kołacz.

During spring celebrations people painted and decorated eggs, a symbol of life, vitality and fertility.

During spring celabrations, Slavic people used to throw feasts where people enjoyed traditional food and dance parties.

During spring celebrations, people were washing themselves in water to gain strenghts, vitality and energy. In some Eastern European countries this tradidtion is still present today, although in a different form, where people throw buckets of water at each other or sprinkle each other with water guns. It is called; 'Śmigus dyngus'

Before our spring holidays, Polish MT students had an opportunity to try out some of the old Slavic ritulas related to spring celebrations. We walked to our local park, carrying a doll made of natural materials, which represented the mythological goddess Marzanna. According to the beliefs of Slavic people this ritual was to end winter and welcome spring. We also had an opportunity to explore some Polish Easter traditions, which find their roots in Slavic traditions such as painting and decorating Easter eggs.

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