The shepherding traditions of the Carpathian highlanders were the leitmotif of the 42nd Lemko Watry in Zdynia. The three-day event combines cultural traditions with a modern form of recreation. Lemko Watra is exceptional thanks to intercultural dialogue in the Poland-Slovakia-Ukraine triangle.
photo: MKiDN
Zdynia is a small town in the Low Beskids, which gathers the Lemko community from all over the world during the annual Lemko Culture Festival each July. The festival is accompanied by exhibitions, competitions and demonstrations of traditional crafts. Several hundred performers of folk, rock, folk, jazz music and various theatrical stage forms perform on the stage of the Zdynia amphitheatre.
This year, the Lemko Festival focused on the cultural traditions of shepherds. Old farming activities, whip cracking, demonstrations of the folk costumes of the Carpathian highlanders, pastoral musical instruments, the Carpathian redyk and traditional cheeses were presented. Various aspects related to the role of the male – Lemko in culture, tradition and the present day were also shown.
The idea of organizing a joint Lemko Festival was the initiative of Władysław Graban and people associated with the Representative Song and Dance Ensemble of Lemkowyna from Bielanka. The first Watry took place as artistic workshops of this very group. In 1983-84, Łemkowska Watra reached the town of Czarna (near Uście Gorlickie), a year later to Hańczowa, and then to Bartne. Initially, these were small, informal meetings, which over time evolved into today's large festival.
Since 1990, Łemkowska Watra has been organized by the Lemko Union in Zdynia. It takes place on a 2.5-hectare area with extensive catering and sanitary infrastructure, an amphitheater, a stage with a stage background, and a mini open-air museum.
source: Ministry of Culture and National Heritage
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