November is the time of the traditional Slavic holiday "Autumn Kuzminki" or "Kuryi name days". And if you haven’t heard anything about him, then for you is the material of "NatsAkcent" - about goat-modemyan beer, stealing chickens and indecent games on Russian Kuzminki.

Autumn kuzminki or Chicken name day(as well as Kuzma and Demyan, God's blacksmiths, Chicken gods, Chicken death, etc.) are celebrated on November 14 (November 1 according to the old calendar). The names of Kuzma and Demyan are associated with this Slavic holiday, or Cosmas and Damian- brothers, healers, miracle workers, unmercenary saints. They were popularly revered as patrons of the family hearth and weddings, were depicted as sacred blacksmiths forging crowns and weddings for newlyweds, and were patrons of poultry ("fertile chicken").

Kuzminki among the Slavs were considered a girl's holiday and were part of the traditional period of weddings, and in some regions they were the beginning of the wedding season.

On this day, the bride-girl (who had reached marriageable age) became the mistress of the house and cooked food for the whole family. By the evening, the youth gathered in "bought off"(otherwise - removed) a lonely old woman's hut. Food was brought from home (sometimes secretly) or collected around the village, after which festive dishes were prepared, the main of which were chicken noodles and porridge, fried chickens and roosters: cooking food from poultry was a sacrifice to the patrons of chickens Kuzma and Demyan. Often the girls brewed goat-modemyan beer.

In a number of regions, for example, in the Nizhniy Novgorod province, girls in groups walked around the yards with a decorated broom and asked for flour and millet and other products. They were given to the hostess of the rented hut, and she cooked porridge, baked loaves and pancakes. In Novgorod, the girls, having collected cereals and butter, cooked porridge in several pots and ate it together. In some settlements, porridge was sold to the guys, and the money received was divided among themselves.

When the meal was over, the youth moved on to songs, dances and games ("Kuzmin's parties", "pussies", bratchins).

Among the games were those where you have to kiss in public, which at other times was reprimanded and considered indecent. For example, when playing Spinning Top, the participants stood in a circle and sang songs, and the guy and the girl circling in the dance kissed, after which they yielded to another pair.

In some villages on Kuzminki, the game "Neighbors" was popular, during which a girl was taken to a guy and asked the latter if he liked the girl. For a negative answer, the young man was kicked out the door and invented a punishment for him, and if the answer was positive, the couple was taken to the center and "checked" their relationship with the help of dance. The guy was supposed to take the girl in his arms and toss her to the mother ("so that he touched her feet"), here the young people were supposed to kiss.

In general, in Russian Kuzmin rites there are similarities with autumn holiday Finno-Ugric peoples "Udyrsiy" ("Maiden's Feast") - girls also brewed beer for it and bought "Pivan kudo" (hut), where they walked.

The party at Autumn Kuzminki sometimes lasted all night, and when the treats ended, the guys could steal chickens from neighbors with impunity - such "holiday" thefts were usually not condemned by the peasants - after which the fun continued.

In some regions, the wedding and funeral ceremony of Kuzma-Demyan was held. A stuffed animal (an anthropomorphic image of Kuzma) was prepared from straw, which was dressed up in men's clothing... He was seated in the middle of the hut and jokingly married to one of the girls. When Kozma-Demyan "died", he was carried on a stretcher through the village as if at a funeral, and at the edge of the village or in the forest he was torn to pieces.

They danced on the straw remains and burned them. The nature of the ceremony is also contained in its name: "Kuzminki - in the autumn commemoration."

On this day, chickens were sent to relatives as a gift. In the Voronezh and Penza provinces, on chicken name days, prayers were held in or near chicken coops - birds were sprinkled with holy water, chickens and chickens were brought to church. In some places, women with chickens came to the lord's courtyard and, with a petition, brought them to their lady on a red life, and she in return gave ribbons on the head towel. Complaining chickens were not killed, and the eggs they laid were considered healing and were given to those suffering from biliary disease.

After Kuzminki, the forty-day Filippov fast began before Christmas - the time of girls' gatherings with needlework and the preparation of a dowry.

Kuzminki. Kuzma and Demyan. Kuzminki - autumn commemoration, meeting of winter. By folk calendar autumn time is allotted from the second Savior to Kuzminki. On Kuzminki, the last weddings were played out - they forged happiness for the young. Saints Cosmas and Damian were considered as masters and patrons of the family hearth, blacksmiths, and therefore it was a great sin to work that day in the forges.
From Kuzma and Demyan, who were considered the patrons of all handicrafts, women sat down to winter yarn and, turning to the saints, asked to help them keep up with those who started spinning earlier: Father Kuzma - Demyan! Compare me, the late one, with the early ones.
Kuzminki was also a girl's holiday. On this day, the girls got together and prepared the table, and in the evening they invited single guys to visit. Porridge was an obligatory dish. Kuzminki continued "until light", and then the guys, having dealt with the treat, went to steal other people's chickens.
Slaughter time for chickens. Usually the chicken was kept in the peasant's yard for two years. During this period, she laid almost 400 eggs - two-thirds of her productivity assigned to her by nature for her entire short, on average, six-year life. Therefore, every autumn the hostesses tried to replenish the chicken coop with "pullets", and the "overcoop" went to the table.
The beginning of winter, the first frosts, Kozma - Demyan with a bridge, Nikola (December 19) with a nail. If Kuzma - Demyan will chain the river, then Mikhailo (November 21) will dig it out. Cold on Kuzma - Demyan - warm on Mikhail. Kuzma - Demyana's way is not a way, but a crossroads of winters. Do not chain the river in winter until today. On Kuzma and Demyan, a leaf on a tree - frost in a year. If the leaf remains on the tree, then the next year there will be a pestilence.

Day of Kuzma and Demyan. Do not chain the river in winter until today.
Usually, there are moderate frosts on this day.
By the evening, the frost weakens - by cloudy weather the next day.
The rooster stands on one leg - to frost.

Other folk signs of November.

Frost on trees - to frost, fog - to thaw.
Mosquitoes in November - be mild in winter.
Many ducks stay for the winter if the winter is expected to be warm.
In November, the snow will blow up - bread will arrive.
If the snow falls on the damp earth and does not melt, then in the spring, snowdrops will bloom early and in unison.
If snow falls on the frozen ground, then, probably, we can expect a good grain harvest next year.
If the ice on the river becomes heaps, there will be heaps of bread.

Russian folk signs and superstitions.

It is sinful to extinguish God's fire (fire from a thunderstorm).
Bark, bark, dog, where is my betrothed (girls are wondering about Christmas time, knocking with a spoon at the gate).
The brownie (grandfather, near) curled the horse's mane.
The horse came to the court: the warrior chatted next to each other.
A cuckoo cuckoo on a dry tree - to frost.
It knocks in the sky - you can hear it on the ground.
An evil eye looked at us (don't look at us).

On July 14, Orthodox believers remember two unmercenary brothers - Cosmas and Damian of Rome. They lived in the 3rd century in Rome under King Karin. The brothers treated sick people and animals, helped poor people. And for all this they did not ask any payment. With their teachings, they converted many people to Christianity.

The brothers were called "free doctors." But still, there were people who did not like their work, and they disgraced and killed the brothers with particular cruelty.

On the day of Kuzma and Demyan, people from Cosma and Damian asked for help so that they could save them from various diseases. The brothers were the patrons of doctors, so those who somehow related to medical activities prayed to them, lit candles and asked for knowledge, protection and strength.

This day is called:

• "Kuzma and Demyan"
• "Day of Kozma and Demyan"
• "Babi holiday"
• "Women's holiday"
• "Kuzminki". The holiday received this name on behalf of one of the brothers, who is honored on July 14 - Cosmas. This name was little known among the people, so people picked up a very close one to it.

Haymaking at that time was at the very top, that is, everyone went to mow the grass. They said among the people: "Kozma and Demyan came - we went to mowing", "Kuzma-Demyan never dawn, women are being mowed."

Also at the very peak was the weeding of the beds, since it was necessary to remove all the weeds and already begin to harvest the first crop of root crops for sale. They used to say: "The vegetable garden is a woman's income."

On this day, it was already necessary to collect raspberries and gooseberries, from which compotes and gooseberries were then cooked. It was believed that raspberry jam was the most delicious during this period. But the gooseberry itself was also added to meat dishes, especially to stewed chicken.

Summer Kuzminki is considered a women's holiday. After the work done for the whole day, young girls and women gathered in the evening for a walk. At the feast, they cooked porridge, or as it was also called, "mixed porridge", to which they added everything that everyone brought with him (cereal, flour, milk, egg), drank beer. Also, women sang songs, shared useful tips and just talked. They prepared a lot of food so that neighbors and the poor could be treated.

They believed in omens about Kuzma and Demyan:

If by the evening the crescent moon is slightly red - there will be wind, and if the edges are a little dull - showers will begin.

They believed: that in a dream that night, it will soon be fulfilled; it was not worth starting something new - it will not come true anyway; before sunset, you need to ask each other for forgiveness.

Birthday people on this day: Alexey, Angelina, Arkady, Vasily, Demyan, Ivan, Konstantin, Kuzma, Lev, Nikon, Pavel, Peter, Tikhon

Tkachuk Lyudmila Sergeevna, technology teacher
Naumova Olesya Borisovna, teacher of technology

The project was implemented in the classroom and out-of-class hours by students in grades 5-9, their parents, teachers.

In Russia, on November 14, a holiday was celebrated, which was called "Kuzma-Demyan - artisans, chicken coops". This is old Russian folk holiday, harvest festival, family holiday, the first winter holiday, the beginning of winter. On this day, the first fragile winter path is established, as evidenced by sayings and proverbs:

• "Demyanov's way is not a way, but only a crossroads of winters",
• "Kuzma-Demyan will order, until spring will not be unleashed",
• "Demyan, water fossils".

The people called this day simply Kuzminki, and they also said:

• "Kuzminki - about autumn funeral",
• "Kuzminki - the meeting of winter".

This holiday is in honor of the holy brothers Kuzma and Demyan - the patrons of fertility, marital happiness and protectors of chickens.

In Russia, the holiday was celebrated after the end of the harvest. Heavy suffering behind. The bread is removed, the flax is pulled. Long winter gatherings begin, during which the girls not only spun, weaved, embroidered, but also sang songs, told fairy tales, solved intricate riddles, sometimes the work was interspersed with games and dances.

On the day of Kuzma and Demyan, a brother was arranged. The girls organized a "download" and invited the guys.

The ceremonial food was porridge and chickens. The rooster and hen, in the minds of our ancestors, have always had the magical power to bring happiness and fertility. Therefore Kuzminki is sometimes called "chicken holiday", "chicken name days". No wonder the people say:

• "Father Kuzma-Demyan is a chicken god",
• "Kuzminki - chickens name day, girl's holiday",

"On Kuzma-Demyan - chicken on the table."

Despite the fact that the Kuzminki holiday (November 14) is named after the men of Kuzma and Demyan, it is considered female, girlish. These holy brothers, whose names have long merged together and become Russified, are called in the villages amusingly and illogically - "Mother Kuzma-Demyan".

Many rituals of Kuzminki are associated with an interesting Christian history. The brothers who lived in the third century near Rome had the gift of healing from God. They healed, expelled evil spirits with just the name of Christ. Only for faith, without payment and reward, in full accordance with the commandment: "Freely you received, freely give." One day, the brothers brought a dying woman back to life, and she, in gratitude, asked them to take three eggs. The doctors refused. Then the woman came secretly to Damian and God conjured him to accept the eggs in the name of the Holy Trinity.

For the sake of such a great oath, Damian agreed. Kosma heard about this, thinking that his brother had broken a strict vow, was so sad that he bequeathed not to bury him with Damian. When, after the simultaneous death of the saints at the hands of an envious pagan doctor, people were deciding what to do with the bodies, a camel suddenly appeared, once saved by healers from rabies, and spoke in human language so that they would not doubt and buried the brothers together. Like, Damian is to blame, since he took three chicken eggs for the sake of the name of God.

That is why the ritual food on Kuzminki is chicken noodles, chicken (the heart of a kochet from Kuzmin's dinner goes to the weakest in the family). So Kuzma-Demyan began to be revered not only as givers of fertility, organizers of marriages and teachers of women's work, but also as patrons of chickens. Hence, chickens are indispensable companions wedding ceremonies... Kurnik is a ceremonial cake that is served to young people.

Historically, the narratives describe how women with chickens gathered around the church of Kosma-Damian on November 14 in Tolmachevsky Lane in Moscow. In the villages, the hostesses called the priest to serve a prayer service in front of the chicken coops, to sprinkle the chickens with holy water. Then they sent chickens as a gift to their relatives, the girls carried the birds to the boyar yard with a petition to the lady. Such "petition" chickens were held in high esteem. They were fed oats and barley and were never killed. The eggs they carried were considered medicinal.

On Kuzminki girls are wondering about marriage with the help of a rooster and chickens. Scatter on the floor woven golden rings made of straw interspersed with grain, note where whose. The birds peck at the rings of precisely those girls who are destined to get married soon.

Parents used to arrange maturity tests for their daughter-fiancées. On November 14, her mother gave her the keys to all the pantries and allowed her to take whatever she wanted from the edible supplies. The daughter herself prepared meals for the family and covered festive table... On this site, the father and mother judged whether the girl was ready to get married, whether she was zealous, whether she knew how to greet the guests.

The proverb said about the house in which the holiday was celebrated: "Whoever lets Mother Kuzma-Demyan celebrate, he will have grace in the house."

In front of Kuzminki, the girls gathered a pool of piles for a feast, dressed up, waited for the guys and sang:

Mother Kuzma-Demian
I walked along the Senechkas,
Collected nails
Forged a wedding!
Forged tightly,
Up to the gray head,
Until a long beard!

According to popular belief, Kuzma and Demyan are reputed to be masters of blacksmithing. People believe that they are the ones who forge plows and chains, and distribute them to those who especially respect them.

• "You can't untie Kuzma, you can't untie it."

According to legend, saints and wedding rings are forged.

• "Kuzma-Demian comes to our wedding with a holy hammer."

The marriage chains (bonds) that connect the two precisely on November 14 cannot be broken, since the holy brothers have a light hand.

Students are of great interest folk signs related to this day.

• "Snowy day on Kuzminki - big flood next spring",
• "If on" Kozma and Demyan "the leaf remains on the tree, then the next year it will be frosty",
• "Kuzma will chain, and Mikhailo (November 21) will uncover (Mikhailovskie thaws)",
• "The smithy of Kuzma-Demyan is not great, but ice chains are forged in all Holy Russia."

Project goals:

1. Increasing the social significance of the school and the socialization of children. School is a place where children, their parents and teachers come. We want to arrange lessons so that students, their parents and teachers can not only actively communicate. But everyone can find something to do with their interests in the process of studying the material and organizing the holiday. Moreover, choose the type of activity and become the organizer of this activity.
2. The introduction of elements of the national-regional component into the curriculum within the framework of the standard of basic general education in technology (service labor) for the Krasnoyarsk Territory.
3. Implementation of the author's program by O.B. Naumova and Tkachuk L.S. "Labor training and productive work in grades 5-9 with in-depth study of arts and crafts of the peoples of the Siberian region."

Tactical targets:

1. Realize an idea - through knowledge folk traditions to the restoration of family foundations.
2. To fulfill the mission - to increase the social significance of the school as a center of educational, leisure activities, uniting into a single educational process activities of students, parents and subject teachers (technology, history, literature, music, rhetoric).
3. Increase the relevance educational area"Technology" in the educational space of the secondary school № 91.
4. Coordinate and organize everything parties concerned in the organization of the educational and cognitive process, socially approved and emotional-value leisure.

Target group:

1. School students and their parents.
2. Residents of the microdistrict.
3. School and district teachers.

Literature

1. I. V. Babunova "Technology" class 56, " Lesson plans”According to the textbook edited by V.D.Simonenko. Volgograd, ed. "Teacher" 2003
2. Barlina Z.I. “Russian House”, Nizhny Novgorod, 1994.
3. Eremenko T.I. "Album of patterns for embroidery", Moscow, "OLMA-PRESS" 2001.
4. Journal "School and production", No. 1 2001, No. 4 1994.
5. Gold placers. Russian folk proverbs and sayings. Krasnoyarsk, “Krasnoyarsk production and publishing plant“ Offset ”, 1993.
6. The history of the costume. Textbook for students of lyceums, schools, colleges. Rostov-on-Don: "Phoenix" 2001.
7. Kaisarov A.S., Glinka G.A., Rybakov B.A. “The myths of the ancient Slavs. Veles's book ”. Saratov, "Hope", 1993.
8. Krupskaya Yu.V. "Technology" Methodical recommendations, grade 5. Moscow, "Venta-Graf" 2005
9. A.V. Marchenko "Handbook of a technology teacher", Moscow, "Astrel" 2005.
10. Pavlova M.B. and Pitt D. "Technology Education". Theoretical approaches and guidelines.
11. Pavlova M.B., Pitt D., Gurevich M.I., Sasova I.A. “Technology”. Method of projects in technological education of schoolchildren ”, Moscow,“ Venta-Graf ”2003
12. Pankeev I. “From christening to commemoration. Customs, rituals, traditions of the Russian people. Moscow, "Eksmo", 1997.
13. Sasova IA "Technology" 5th grade. Collection of projects. A guide for the teacher. Moscow. "Venta-Graf", 2004
14. Collection of normative and methodological materials on technology. Moscow, "Venta-Graf" 2004.
15. Simonenko VD "Textbook" Technology "5-9 grade. Moscow, "Venta-Graf" 2001
16. L.V. Sycheva "Embroidery", Gorno-Altaysk, MP "Alternative", 1991.
17. Furletova O.I. “Encyclopedia“ Machine Embroidery ”. Moscow, Scientific publishing house “Great Russian Encyclopedia”, Moscow, 1999.

The popular Christian holiday Kuzminki autumn is traditionally celebrated on November 14. On this day, the Orthodox Church honors the memory of the holy unmercenaries and miracle workers Cosmas and Damian of Asia, as well as their mother, Reverend Theodotia. The people also call the holiday Kuzma and Demyan, Meeting of Winter, Feast of Girlhood, or Chicken Death.

Cosma and Damian (among the people Kuzma and Demyan) were brothers. Their mother raised them as true Christians, so they also preached the faith in their city. V adolescence the brothers were sent to study with a healer, after which they began to heal people from deadly diseases. People were surprised at the miracles they saw, especially since the healers did not take payment for their services.

Once, from a fatal illness, the brothers managed to heal a woman. As a token of gratitude, she asked Kuzma to take 3 eggs from her, in the name of the Lord. He could not refuse her and accepted the gift, which greatly upset his brother. Demian said that he had broken their vow and forbade them to bury them nearby.

After the death of the brothers, Christians thought for a long time about fulfilling the will, but suddenly a camel appeared in the crowd, which the healers had once saved. He spoke in a human voice and ordered to bury the brothers together, since the gifts were not accepted by Kuzma out of selfish motives.

Autumn Kuzminki holiday traditions and beliefs

The main tradition of the holiday was considered to be parties, the end of the wedding season and spinning.

Since Saints Cosmas and Damian were considered the patrons of the family hearth and blacksmiths, on this day work in the forge was considered a grave sin. The people believed that the saints themselves were engaged in the blacksmith business. On Kuzminki, traditionally, the last weddings were played out - they forged happiness for the young.

On November 14, a courtyard was fed - a spirit who watched over livestock. If he was “bad,” a special ceremony was performed to expel him from the court.

Another tradition on this day was the completion of threshing. On November 14, porridge was prepared from the new crop, the men brewed beer and arranged a brother-in-law with various treats. For this fun, a separate hut was allocated, while food was collected by the whole village. On this day, a girl of marriageable age became the mistress of the house, who prepared food and treated everyone to it. Traditionally, on Kuzminki, they ate a hard-boiled egg, because it was believed that it protects against infertility. The second treat of the day was chicken noodles.

Chicken name days were also celebrated on Kuzminki. Wealthy families sent chickens as gifts to their poor relatives. If peasant wives brought chickens to the boyars, they gave ribbons in return. Such chickens were held in high esteem, were not killed and fed deliciously, and their eggs were considered medicinal.

Autumn Kuzminki holiday signs

Many signs associated with the holiday of Kuzma and Demyan have long been preserved:

• warm weather on this day predicts a mild winter;
• Kuzminki heralds the arrival of winter;
• father Kuzma-Demyan - chicken God;
• Kuzma and Demyan "forge" happiness for the young;
• if the rooster stands on one leg, it will be frosty;
• by the evening the frost becomes weaker - the next day it is worth preparing for cloudy weather.