Sacred Places and Ritual Movement. Notes on the Impact of Space in Bulgarian Folk Customs
Sacred Places and Ritual Movement. Notes on the Impact of Space in Bulgarian Folk Customs

Summary/Abstract: The following study deals with several key points concerning the ritualised usage of space and place in some of the more indicative Bulgarian folk customs and ceremonies. Although the paper only points out a few examples in which spatial dimensions are examined separately, the overall review shows the consecutive processes in which the intimate symbolic place is achieved and created through social and religious experience. Therefore, the main task is to designate the stages in which space and place acquire their sacred and ritualistic symbolic significance. Another part of the subject matter is the roles of space and place in the process of ritual-building. Ritualised and sacred space and time are the backbone of some of the most significant aspects of social interaction, and even of social structure itself. Furthermore, this study is concentrated on the objective of outlining a research paradigm which will allow a form of constructive analysis to be applied in the isolated study of space in Bulgarian pre-modern culture – a method that has been somewhat lacking within the field of Bulgarian ethnography. The accurate theorising of the ritual aspects of space will contribute to a more complete viewpoint of Bulgarian folk culture.The following study deals with several key points concerning the ritualised usage of space and place in some of the more indicative Bulgarian folk customs and ceremonies. Although the paper only points out a few examples in which spatial dimensions are examined separately, the overall review shows the consecutive processes in which the intimate symbolic place is achieved and created through social and religious experience. Therefore, the main task is to designate the stages in which space and place acquire their sacred and ritualistic symbolic significance. Another part of the subject-matter are the roles of space and place in the process of ritual-building. Ritualised and sacred space and time are the backbone of some of the most significant aspects of social interaction, and even of social structure itself. Furthermore, this study is concentrated on the objective of outlining a research paradigm which will allow a form of constructive analysis to be applied in the isolated study of space in Bulgarian pre-modern culture – a method that has been somewhat lacking within the field of Bulgarian ethnography. The accurate theorising of the ritual aspects of space will contribute to a more complete viewpoint on Bulgarian folk culture.

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