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BULGARIA AS IT IS!
On Ignazhden, the first person to enter a home is the polaznik. Folk tradition reads signs of the coming year in this visitor, who is welcomed with wishes for prosperity.
Ignazhden falls in the days before Christmas. Folk tradition gives special significance to the polaznik, the first person to cross the threshold. People believed this visitor indicated how the new year would go. This is a ritual belief rather than a proven prediction.
In some local variants the first visitor approaches the hearth, puts sticks or straw into the fire and recites wishes for fertility. Hosts welcome the visitor and offer gifts. Ethnological accounts recorded by Bulgarian National Radio show different participants and actions from one settlement to another.
Ignazhden prepares the household and community for Christmas. In some places caroling groups also gather at this time. The first-visitor custom remains a separate household tradition, although it stands close to Christmas caroling in the calendar.
Historical information, local examples and current practices were checked against these publications.
Created with ImageGen for СБОРЪ.БГ. An artistic interpretation of the custom, rather than a documentary photograph.