Almsgiving Dance
Folklore, traditions
About
It is related to the celebration of Easter and represents a ritual dance dedicated to the cult of the dead. Custom with movable date, practiced in the past even in the whole area of Oltenia. In general, the almsgiving dance is held on the first or second day of Easter in the communes of Călărași, Gângiova, Gighera, Ostroveni, Mârșani, Orodelu, but also on the third (Afumati, Bulzești, Bârca) or a week after Easter (Pietroia) , Brabova).
Those who have had young deaths in the family or deaths without "light" (candle) haggle fiddlers, and invite the villagers to this ritual dance where they share cakes, funeral cake, red eggs, cups of wine. At Gighera, flowers and a white rooster are given for the dead without "light", for three years in a row.
For the young dead, the dance is made with a green tree decorated with apples, sweets, handkerchiefs. This is also the custom in Călăraşi, repeating the ritual for three consecutive years.
At Bârca, the almshouse is held on the third day of Easter, for seven years after the death of the aforementioned.