Vyshyvanka Day
| Vyshyvanka Day | |
|---|---|
 Young girl wearing a vyshyvanka dress | |
| Official name | World Vyshyvanka Day |
| Observed by | Ukrainians worldwide |
| Type | Cultural |
| Celebrations | wearing vyshyvankas |
| Date | 3rd Thursday of May |
| Frequency | Annual |
| First time | 2006 |
| Started by | Lesia Voroniuk |
Vyshyvanka Day is an international holiday that aims to preserve the Ukrainian folk traditions of creating and wearing ethnic embroidered clothes called vyshyvankas. It is celebrated every third Thursday of May.[1] Vyshyvankas are, along with pysankas (traditional Ukrainian Easter eggs), one of the best known symbols of Ukrainian culture.[1]
The holiday is not tied to any state, ethnicity or religion.[2] It is not a public holiday.[1]
History
The idea of Vyshyvanka Day was suggested in 2006 by Lesia Voroniuk, then a student of Chernivtsi University.[3] Voroniuk suggested that her classmates and students choose one day and wear vyshyvanka shirts all together. Initially, several dozen students and several faculty members wore embroidered shirts. But in the following years, the holiday grew to an all-Ukrainian level. Later it attracted the Ukrainian diaspora around the world, as well as supporters of Ukraine.[4][5] The day of celebration was intentionally set on a weekday and not in the weekend to emphasise that the vyshyvanka is "a component of the life and culture of Ukrainians, and not an ancient artifact".[1]
The fifth anniversary of the holiday in 2011 was marked by setting the Guinness World Records for the largest number of people dressed in embroidered shirts and gathered in one place. More than 4,000 people in vyshyvanka shirts gathered on Chernivtsi's Central Square. The same year, a huge embroidered shirt (4 × 10 metres) was sewn for the central building of Chernivtsi University.[6]
Vyshyvanka Day in 2015 was celebrated under the slogan "Give the vyshyvanka to a defender". It was a campaign launched to raise the fighting spirit of Ukrainian soldiers in the Russo-Ukrainian War. The holiday was marked on a global scale, about 50 countries of the world joined the action.[7][8]
References
- ^ a b c d "Ukrainians celebrate Vyshyvanka Day". Ukrinform. 20 May 2021. Retrieved 19 May 2022.
- ^ "Our vyshyvanka unites the country - President during the flashmob on Vyshyvanka Day in Dnipro". president.gov.ua. Presidential Administration of Ukraine. 17 May 2018. Archived from the original on 20 May 2018. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
- ^ "Ukraine marks Vyshyvanka Day on May 18 (Video)". Ukrainian Independent Information Agency. 18 May 2017. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
- ^ "На День вишиванки у Чернівцях хочуть встановити рекорд" (in Ukrainian). Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. 5 May 2011. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
- ^ "День вишиванки в Чернівцях". vyshyvanka.net (in Ukrainian). 1 May 2012. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
- ^ "У Чернівцях всі одягли вишиванки (ФОТО)". Molodyy Bukovynets (in Ukrainian). 5 May 2011. Retrieved 19 May 2022.
- ^ "День вишиванки: історія свята та цікаві факти". Vysoky Zamok (in Ukrainian). 20 May 2021. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
- ^ ""Подаруй вишиванку захиснику"" (Press release) (in Ukrainian). Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine. 16 May 2015. Retrieved 20 May 2021.