April  17, 2020

The main goal of the Center for Tatar Culture “Nur” is to preserve the identity and development of the national culture, traditions, customs of the Tatar people in our region.

Specialists of the Tatar culture center of the  “Friendship House” of the city of Tara annually  holding   folk calendar holidays. Today we would like to introduce you to one of them – Karga Botkasy.

The holiday “Karga Botkasy” (translated from the Tatar language into Russian means “Rook’s porridge” or “Crow’s porridge”) is one of the most popular spring holidays among the Tatars.

In the old days, people believed that rooks bring spring on the tails  of their wings, therefore, as soon as the snow began to melt and the first streams appeared, a children’s holiday of Karg Botkasy was organized in honor of the arrival of the birds. This ancient ceremony was carried out before the sowing: its meaning was to appease, feed the birds, so that there was a good and rich harvest.

It began with the fact that on this day, smartly dressed children gathered from each house a compulsory gift – cereals, milk, butter, sugar, eggs and called  by poems and songs for everyone on holiday. The people gathered in the highest place of the village, the villagers brought treats with them: sour cream, cottage cheese, balesh, baursak, pancakes, gubadiya, honey, chak-chak, a fire was lit, and women cooked porridge in a large cauldron.

Competitions and games were held at the festival. Everyone tried to show their skill, talent, dexterity and strength, led round dances, sang songs and funny ditties. There was another tradition of this holiday, boys and youths climbed trees and imitated the cries of birds, as if inviting them to visit. After games and fun everyone was invited to the table, and the distribution of porridge began. The first portion was surely given to the earth, wishing everyone peace, tranquility and a rich harvest. The second – water (stream), so that the water retains living creatures on earth. The third – to heaven, so that there are many sunny days and rains on time, and the fourth – to the rooks with gratitude for the fact that they brought spring. After that, the porridge was distributed to everyone present, and when people dispersed, flocks of birds flew to the porridge left by them – “They brought tasty porridge, help yourself, rooks! Wish you rain so that the fields are full! ”

This is such an interesting, fun holiday we spend with children in order to preserve it in our modern life and so that the younger generation knows the traditions and customs of their people.

G.M.SATYSHEVA,

Tara, Omsk region