visit their ancestors in the cemetery, tend to their gravestones, and often hold prayer services, offering intercession for their salvation.
5. Rosh Hashanah
Of course, Ukraine has been a center for the development of many ethnic and religious traditions, not the least of which is Judaism. One of the most visible Jewish branches is Hasidism, an ultra-Orthodox and mystical sect of Judaism known for conservative, dark dress. Hasidism, in fact, traces its origins to Ukraine.
Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, is a major holiday for all Jews; and many of the world’s Hasidic Jews are obliged to make a pilgrimage to the gravesite of one of their movement’s founders in the Ukrainian city of Uman. Every September, as many as 30,000 Jews descend on Uman to pay their respects to the grave of Rabbi Nachman of Breslov. It’s not a somber celebration though — Jews spend the week dancing in the streets, feasting in tents and rejoicing. The city’s population grows by nearly 40 percent during the holiday — the effect is so extensive, that much of the signage is posted in Hebrew, and even the city’s commerce partially switches to the Israeli Shekel
6. Ukrainian Unity Day
Ukrainian Unity Day, celebrated every January 22nd, marks the historical act of unification between the Ukrainian People’s Republic and the West Ukrainian People’s Republic in 1919. The two states, which constituted Ukraine’s brief foray into independence after the collapse of the Russian Empire, did not last very long, but the effect of their unification remained for decades. The highly symbolic and administratively significant act that united Ukraine’s East and West reinforced a common identity among all Ukrainians — a sentiment which prevails to this day.
The celebration of Ukrainian Unity Day in 1990, on the 71st anniversary of the Unity Act’s signing, is credited with inspiring Ukrainian independence the following year. Three hundred thousand Ukrainians linked arms to form a human chain connecting the cities of Kyiv and Lviv, some 300 miles apart.
Today, Ukrainian Unity Day has been amended by Presidential decree to honor the participants of the Euromaidan revolution. As such, Ukrainians take the opportunity to also reflect on sacrifice, dignity, and human rights.
The celebration of Ukrainian Unity Day in 1990, on the 71st anniversary of the Unity Act’s signing, is credited with inspiring Ukrainian independence the following year. 300,000 Ukrainians linked arms to form a human chain connecting the cities of Kyiv and Lviv, 300 miles apart. Today, Ukrainian Unity Day has been amended by Presidential decree to honor the participants of the Euromaidan revolution. As such, Ukrainians take the opportunity to also reflect on sacrifice, dignity, and human rights.
For most Ukrainians, Christmas is celebrated on January 7th, in accordance with the ancient Julian Calendar. Though some Roman Catholics, Protestants, and Ukrainian Greek-Catholics opt to celebrate according to the Western date of December 25th, the ethnic customs surrounding the holiday largely remain the same.
Before issues in the calendar’s timing arose, the date of Christmas was intended to correlate with the winter solstice, and incorporated many Ukrainian pre-Christian customs in the celebration. The Christian symbolism around the solstice involves the looking forward to days getting longer, or light being born out of the darkness. A major hymn sung in church for Christmas refers to Christ as the “Sun of Righteousness,” which was born out of the stars to be a “Light of Wisdom.”
Similarly to Pascha, Christmas is also preceded by a 40-day period of fasting. However, instead of the feast happening at the end of the fast, it is held during, on Christmas eve. Twelve meatless and dairy-less courses are served at the appearance of the first star in the sky. The number of courses corresponds to both the number of months in the year and the number of Jesus’ Apostles, and the star represents the star over Bethlehem.
The meal is steeped with other symbolism too, like the empty plate which is kept out for the spirits of 