Culture of Belarus

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This article is about the Culture of Belarus. For "The Belorussian Culture", an organization in Transnistria, see The Belorussian Culture.

Contents 1 Dress 2 World Heritage Sites 3 Food 4 Theater 5 Russian impact 6 Festivals 7 Sport

[edit] Dress

Traditional Belarusian dress originated from the time of Kievan Rus, and continues to be worn today at special functions. Due to the cool climate of Belarus, the clothes were made out fabrics that provide closed covering and warmth. The outfits were designed with either many threads of different colors woven together or are adorned with symbols called ornaments. The Belarusian nobles usually had their fabrics imported and chose the colors of red, blue or green. Males wore a shirt and trousers adorned with a belt and the females wore a longer shirt, a wrap-around skirt called a "paniova", and a headscarf. The outfits also were also influenced by the dress worn by Poles, Lithuanians, Latvians and other European nations and have changed over time due to improvements in the techniques used to make clothing. ^[1]

[edit] World Heritage Sites

Belarus has four World Heritage Sites, with two of them being shared between Belarus and its neighboring countries. The four are: the Mir Castle Complex; the Niasvizh Castle; the Belovezhskaya Pushcha (shared with Poland); and the Struve Geodetic Arc (shared with Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Moldova, Russia, Sweden and Ukraine). ^[2]

[edit] Food

The typical diet for the Belarusian includes bread, potatoes, cabbage and pork. The Belarusians also tend to eat small portions of food in the morning while they have very hearty meals for lunch and dinner. Some of the most widely served dishes in Belarus include "kotleta po krestyansky", a mix of chopped pork served in a mushroom sauce; a soup by the name of "shtchi" which includes sauerkraut, potatoes and fried onions; and "kalachi", a loaf of bread that has been formed into the shape of a padlock. When guests enter into Belarus from a foreign country, they are usually served rye bread with a pinch of salt on the side and it is presented to them on a traditional cloth, called a "rushnik".

[edit] Theater

Belarusian theater also began gain popularity in the early 1900s. One of Belarus's most famous plays, Paulinka (written by Yanka Koupala), was performed in Siberia for the Belarussians who were being be sent to the region. ^[3] Documentation of Belarusian folk music stretches back to at least the 15th century. Prior to that, skomorokhs were the major profession for musicians. A neumatic chant, called znamenny, from the word 'znamia', meaning sign or neume, was used until 16th century in Orthodox church music, followed by two hundreds of stylistic innovation that drew on the Renaissance and Protestant Reformation. In the 17th century, Partesnoe penie, part singing, became common for choruses, followed by private theaters established in cities like Minsk and Vitebsk. Popular music groups that came from Belarus include Pesniary, Dreamlin and NRM. Currently, there are 27 professional theater groups touring in Belarus, 70 orchestras, and 15 agencies that focus on promoting concerts.

[edit] Russian impact

After the Partitions of Poland, the Imperial Russia had a policy of de-polonisation of the Ruthenian people. However even after many cases when the Belarusian peoples were subjected to what some call Russification, it was clear that this created a destinct ethnicity and a destinct culture that was neither Polish and Russian. In 1897 census most of the population reffered to their language as Belarusian rather than Ruthenian (and wrongly interpreted as Russian by Tsarist authorities), as they did during Polish rule.

It was the 20 th century that fully allowed Belarus to show its best destinct talent to the world. Poets such as Yanka Kupala, Vasyl Bykau and many others showed the beauty of Belarusian language. Also helped was the korenizatsiya policy of the Soviet Union which encouraged local level nationalism. The Belarusian language was numerously reformed to fully represent the phonetics of a modern speaker. However some contemprory nationalists find that the Russian influence has taken its toll too much. At present the Russian language is still being used in official business and in other sections of Belarusian society. Although President Lukashenko has introduced laws that force radio and television stations to show case a percentage of Belarusian talent daily in an attmpt to counterbalance the trend.

[edit] Festivals

The Belarusian government sponsors many annual cultural festivals: Slavianski Bazaar in Vitebsk; "Minsk Spring"; "Slavonic Theatrical Meetings"; International Jazz Festival; National Harvesting Festival; "Arts for Children and Youth"; Competition of Youth Variety Show Arts; "Muses of Niesvizh"; "Mir Castle"; and the National Festival of the Belarusian Song and Poetry. These events showcase talented Belarusian performers, whether it is in music, art, poetry, dance or theater. At these festivals, various prizes named after Soviet and Belarusian heroes are awarded for excellence in music or art. Several state holidays, like Independence Day or Victory Day draw big crowds and include various displays such as fireworks and military parades. Most of the festivals take place in Vitebsk or Minsk.^[4]

[edit] Sport

From the 1952 Helsinki Games until the end of the Soviet era, Belarus competed in the Olympic Games as part of the Soviet Olympic squad. During the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, Belarus competed as part of the Unified Team. The nation's athletes competed in an Olympic Games as Belarusians for the first time during the 1994 Lillehammer Games. Belarus has won a total of 52 medals; 6 gold, 17 silver and 29 bronze. The first Olympic medal for the Soviet Union was won by Belarusian Mikhail Krivonosov at the 1956 Summer Games held in Melbourne, Australia.^[5] Belarus's National Olympic Committee has been headed by President Lukashenko since 1997; he is the only head of state in the world to hold this position.^[6]

Receiving heavy sponsorship from the President, himself, ice hockey is the nation's most popular sport. Team Belarus finished a surprising fourth in overall competition at the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics. Belarusian players have become commonplace in the NHL and international competitions.

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