Day of Slavic writing as a symbol of the unity of fraternal peoples

2024 Author: Priscilla Miln | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 00:21

Day of Slavic Literature is a holiday celebrated by many peoples of Slavic origin (Russians, Ukrainians, Belarusians, Bulgarians, etc.). It is dedicated to the memory of the creators of the famous Cyrillic letter - Equal-to-the-Apostles brothers Methodius and Cyril.

Cyril and Methodius, originally from Byzantium, from the city of Thessaloniki (Thessalonica). Their father Leo was a noble and we althy officer. Michael (the future Methodius) was the eldest of the seven sons, and Konstantin (the future Cyril) was the youngest. Since Thessaloniki was a bilingual city, the brothers spoke not only Greek well from childhood, but also Slavonic, the so-called Thessalonica dialect.

History of the holiday

Initially, the Day of Slavic Literature began to be celebrated in Bulgaria due to the deep veneration of the holy brothers in the Bulgarian church. This holiday reminded the representatives of the Bulgarian ethnic group, persecuted at that time by the Turks, of their historical roots, elevated them above the harsh reality, expressing the desire of the people for national self-determination andcontinuation of cultural traditions. In connection with close contact with Bulgarian culture (and, as you know, it was the Russian people who freed the Bulgarians from Turkish rule after the 50s of the XIX century), this holiday also came to Russia. In 1863, a decree was promulgated in our country on the veneration of the memory of the Equal-to-the-Apostles holy brothers Cyril and Methodius, in which the date was also set for this - May 11 (i.e. May 24 of the new style).

By the way, the memory of the outstanding enlighteners of the Slavs lived in the hearts of those peoples who adopted the Cyrillic alphabet. For example, in Russia, the memory of St. Cyril is dedicated to February 14, and St. Methodius - April 6. However, the emergence of a new holiday in honor of both saints and the glorification of the alphabet they created, which contributed to the unification of the Slavs and the spread of the Christian faith among them in its Orthodox course, contributed to a deeper assessment of the feat of the enlighteners.

In modern Russia, the Day of Slavic Literature is celebrated annually on May 24 in different cities - Moscow, Vladimir, Kostroma, Saratov, Orel, Ryazan, etc. Since 2010, the main celebrations have been held in Moscow. The Orthodox Church organizes religious processions, pilgrimages and prayers for the glory of the great brothers.

At the philological and historical faculties of various universities and institutes, the Day of Slavic Literature is also celebrated every year in May. The scenario of the celebration includes theatrical performances based on the plots of TalesBygone Years” and “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign”, competitive readings of excerpts from them in Old Church Slavonic, performances by folklore ensembles and much more. In addition, festive events include meetings with famous writers, historians, composers, exhibitions of folk art, book festivals. The Days of Slavic Literature call for the unification of fraternal peoples, for the preservation of the historical past, without which the further development of the cultural and political life of the Slavic countries is unthinkable.