Slovenia Weekly: Time for Pust carnival fun

After the carnival celebrations were moved online for the past two years due to the coronavirus epidemic, this year, Pust is back. At the end of this week and the beginning of the next, many carnival events and processions will once again take place in all their glory all over Slovenia.

The tradition of celebrating Pust – Slovenia’s Shrovetide – with masks and carnivals dates back to ancient pagan times. Slovenian masks worn at this event are brightly coloured, and its customs are in many ways unique, reflecting the local customs of specific villages from the past. One of the most recognisable carnival characters in Slovenia are the Kurenti, whose door-to-door rounds are inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Starting in February this year, when the House of Kurent was opened in Ptuj, it will be possible for visitors to see the Kurent character and learn about its traditions at any time of the year.

On 11 February, the 63rd Kurentovanje festival began in Ptuj, Slovenia’s oldest city, and will culminate on Sunday, 19 February. The organisers expect tens of thousands of people and around 2,500 Shrovetide masks from Slovenia and abroad to take part in the main event of the biggest carnival in Slovenia and the wider region. The festival will end with the traditional burial of Pust.

Other well-known Shrovetide festivals in Slovenia are held in Cerknica and Cerkno. In Cerknica, this year’s driving away of winter will be dedicated to the Dragon, while the town streets will also be occupied by Jezerko the Water Man, the Giant Pike, Ursula the Witch, the Butalci and other carnival characters. In Cerkno, there will be the traditional laufarija, named after the laufarji – carnival characters dressed in moss, ivy, straw and animal skins.

Shrovetide events and processions will take place not only in the hotspots of Ptuj, Cerknica and Cerkno, but also in many other towns and villages across Slovenia, featuring both traditional carnival characters and masks that are created to reflect current events. Come join in the carnival revelry!

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