Not only Śmigus-dyngus and egg painting
photo: PAP/Artur Reszko
“Pucheroki”, “turki”, “dziady Śmiuśne” or “Śmiergust” are Easter traditions that occur only in some regions of Poland. “When observing them, at first glance it is difficult to realize that it is Easter. We are dealing with caroling, which is associated with Christmas and winter time," said entographer Amudena Rutkowska from the State Ethnographic Museum in Warsaw. She explained that it, like the Christmas ones, involves people visiting houses in costumes. Depending on the region, this happens on different days of Easter week.
It starts with Palm Sunday. In the south of Poland we have "pucherówka". Carolers in costumes visit homes and in exchange for wishes and orations they receive a gift, usually in the form of eggs.
There is a tradition of "Turks" in Podkarpacie. "Turki" in costumes resembling oriental uniforms guard the Lord's Tomb. On Easter Sunday, they go from house to house with wishes. “There are also figures of the so-called doctors with pointy hats, sunglasses and beards. During the procession, they jump and harass children and women. They are comic characters," said the ethnographer.
According to a theory often repeated mainly in Radomyśl nad Sanem, the custom of "Turks" guarding the tomb of Christ arose when Polish soldiers returned home after the relief of Vienna.
The second day of Easter is the most abundant in this type of rituals.
In the vicinity of Limanowa, e.g. in the town of Dobra, we can meet "dziady smigustny", also known as "smiguśnioki". They have straw hats, leather masks and are tied with straw ropes. They stop cars and pedestrians asking for donations. “When you don't make such a donation, you may get splashed or hit with something. You could say that they are even dangerous, of course in the ritual sense," explained Amudena Rutkowska.
In Wilamowice in the province In Silesia, instead of the name "śmigus", the term "śmiergust" is used. On the night from Sunday to Monday, Śmiergustniks go from house to house, asking for donations and giving orations and songs. They accost girls who are at home and pour water on them. The next day, Sunday, they wait for people leaving the church. Careless people often end up in a bathtub placed in the middle of the Wilamowice market square.
Source: PAP
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