1. Old New Year in Chernivtsi,Ukraine (Malanka)

2. Every year on Jan. 14, Ukraine celebrates “the old New Year” – the New Year by the Julian Calendar, by which the country lived until This old holiday also coincides in Ukraine with Malanka, a traditional carnival-like holiday from pre-Christian times.

3. Ritual and characters
The Malanka feast name comes from St. Melania Day, celebrated on Dec. 31, which by the old Julian calendar falls on Jan. 13.
The Malanka celebrations mark the arrival of the New Year and begin after sunset on the evening of St. Melania day on Jan. 13, which is also called the Generous Evening (Shchedryi Vechir) in Ukraine. The celebration’s participants dress as the characters involved in the ritual – Malanka, Vasyl, the She-Goat, the Old Man, the Gypsy, the Doctor, the Cat, and others – and hit the streets of Ukrainians villages and towns.

4. Malanka is usually portrayed by a young man dressed in a woman’s clothes. His makeup is bizarre – the face is whitened with chalk, the eyebrows are darkened with soot, and the cheeks are painted red with beet juice. Malanka is portrayed as a clumsy housewife whose housekeeping efforts make everybody laugh.

5. The She-Goat
While the Malanka character is prominent in the masquerade, the She-Goat character also stands out: the goat is a symbol of wealth and prosperity.

6. Thank you for your attention!