„Задушница“ в системе болгарских народных обычаев
All Souls’ Day in the System of Bulgarian Folk Customs

Summary/Abstract: The paper presents in detail and on a territorial principle the specificities of the custom of the Bulgarians connected with All Souls’ Day. It involves commemoration of deceased relatives, which is performed every year on specific days at their graves. The author claims that the custom is a relict of the cult of the dead and that it plays a concrete social role, being performed at the cemetery where all deceased individuals from a certain territorial community are buried. The custom is assumed to have a dual nature. On the one hand, it is part of the burial rites and can be perceived as their continuation, in functional terms the custom is close to calendar rites and in most cases it is characterised by the spirit and specificities of the festive cycle to which it is attributed. A specificity of the Bulgarian All Souls’ Day is the abundance of food in honour of the dead and the food served at the feast.

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