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February 23 - Man's Day. March 8th - International Women's Day. Spring - Maslenitsa (Shrovetide, Pancake week). Spring - Russian Orthodox Easter (Paskha)
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February 23 - Man's Day
Until recently this holiday was known as the Soviet Army Day but nowadays it has become a holiday for all men by analogy with the similar Women's Day. All men and boys are praised as eventual defenders and helpmates.
March 8th - International Women's Day
Russian women adore this holiday, when attention and care of men is guaranteed. On this day, it is traditional for men of all ages to give presents and flowers to women. Particular attention is paid to women inside their families. Men also are supposed to do all the housework, this is pretty nice - at least once a year women can take a break and forget about all those dishes, cooking, kids, take a magazine and relax on the coach...
In a way, it is similar to such holidays as Valentine's Day and Mother's Day. It is a lovely holiday celebrating the beauty of women blossoming and nature awaking in spring.
Spring - Maslenitsa (Shrovetide, Pancake week)
By the end of winter, right before the Lent comes a Pancake week. It is a celebration of the sunlight and spring. A century ago Maslenitsa was a merry, wild and widely celebrated holiday similar to the carnival in Western countries. It was a time of games and contests especially horse racing and fistfights. A big doll of straw was burned as the final act of saying goodbye to the already passed winter. Through the whole week people cooked pancakes (bliny) served with honey, caviar, fresh cream and butter. Nowadays the celebration is not so diversified but people do treat themselves and their guests with tasty pancakes.
Spring - Russian Orthodox Easter (Paskha)
Paskha is the highest celebration of the Orthodox Church. At midnight the church service starts.
It is a good time for visiting friends and relatives. People greet each other with words " Christ is risen" and " Indeed risen... " and treat each other with brightly colored boiled eggs, a symbol of Easter. The holiday table is served with such specialties as paskha (rich mixture of sweetened curds, butter and raisins) and kulich (Easter sweet bread).
May 1 – Mayday
The Mayday holiday on the1st of May started to be regularly celebrated in Russia since 1890. Until recently this holiday was called the International Solidarity Day of Workers and was one of the major Soviet holidays, widely celebrated by people all over the country with Mayday parades with bright banners, balloons and spring flowers. During the Soviet rule demonstrations of workers and even military parades were held on the 1st of May on the Red Square, Moscow. On the second day of the holiday mayovkas – alfresco public merrymaking - traditionally took place. In the 1990s the holiday lost its ideological meaning in Russia and in 1992 it was renamed into the Holiday of Spring and Work.
May 9 - Victory Day
The 9th on May is a very significant nationwide holiday of the victory of the Soviet people over fascist Germany in the Great Patriotic War. Honouring the memory of soldiers who rescued the world from fascism, the Russians solemnly celebrate this holiday starting from 1945. There are both joyful and mournful moments in this holiday: meetings of veterans, laying wreaths to the monuments of Glory and beds of honour, the minute of silence, and the night salute in celebration of the victory over fascism.
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June 12 - Independence Day
The Independence Day of Russia or the Day of Russia is one of the " youngest" public holidays in this country. On the 12th of June 1990 in the course of sovereignization of the republics of the USSR the 1st Congress of People's Deputies of RSFSR adopted the Declaration of the state sovereignty of Russia. In 1994 this day was declared as the national holiday. Officially it is the most important modern public holiday in the country, but for most of the Russians it remains just a formality.
July 7 - Ivan Kupala
This holiday is equivalent to the Holiday of St. John the Baptist and relates to water. To celebrate this day young people gathered near river and ponds, sang songs and danced. Mass baths were taken in that day. In the evenings fires were burned and young people tried to jump over the fires holding each-others' hands. If after the jump hands were still together, it meant a sign of close wedding. People went deep into the forests in pairs and alone to find a fern flower, said to blossom at Ivan Kupala night only and to fulfill wishes.
It is not a public holiday, yet is still remembered and loved by some people. The same concerns Troitsa, another holiday manifesting the mixture of pagan and Christian traditions.
Troitsa (the Trinity)
On Troitsa (the 50th day after Paskha) the houses were usually decorated with fresh green branches. The maiden's clothes were put on young birch-trees and songs and dances round the birch-trees took place. The garlands made of birch branches and flowers were put into water for fortune-telling.
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