Paper short abstract:

The report analyses calendar festivals celebrated in public and private areas in Soviet Lithuania. The conclusion is deduced that the festival that was celebrated in a family, in a private area was perceived as “one‘s own“, transferred from generation to generation and has survived till present.

Paper long abstract:

Anna Lubeckaʼs analysis of Polish ritual year of the post-communist period of time has proved the existence of a double life. At home, traditional Polish values were cherished and religious and patriotic rituals were celebrated, while in the public new holidays and celebrations enacting the communist ideology were observed. A gap between festivals celebrated in private and public areas was distinct in Soviet Lithuania as well.

Soviet, nonreligious festivals celebration in a private area was excluded. A festival had to be public and, thus, proper conditions for controlling the content of the festival were established. Time has showed that public and massive festivals, celebrated not at home, did not become popular.

On the other hand, constant ritual year of the family was present. There was no doubt that Christmas and Easter were celebrated in a family even in the Soviet period of time. The fact can be proved by the reminiscences of people: "In my childhood, Christmas Eve was celebrated with the curtains drawn down, but it was a festival which united all the family. Our relatives used to come, dishes were prepared as well as presents and all this is still alive in my memory". Such reminiscences are told by quite a lot of respondents who took a responsible post in Soviet period. Festivals "at home" preserved their ritual value even in a secular society and were transferred from generation to generation. This process will be analysed in my report on the ground of the personal fieldwork data.