Svadbeni barjak
Wedding Flag

Summary/Abstract: The author considers the phenomenon of flag, which is an important part of wedding equipment and symbol in the whole area of Lika. Data analysis on the ensign, decoration and appearance of the flag, customs related to the flag, and removing of the decorations from the flag, point to numerous common characteristics of this phenomenon in Lika, but at the same time certain regional features are emphasized. The author particularly refers to the interesting data on the decoration of the flag without tricolor. The data about such a flag are very rare since they must have yielded the place to the flag with national symbol long time ago. Therefore, the question raises on when and why the tricolor started to be used almost as a trademark o f the flag and how the replacement of the plain and partly decorated cloth, i.e., bands, with a tricolor occurred. Other decorative things (towels, scarves, pavenka, and apple) have mostly been preserved as components of the flag. Since there are only scarce data on the former appearance of the flag, the issue of the change of its function, i.e. merging (or overlapping) of its meaning of the symbol of the wedding with the meaning of the symbol of ethnic identity, remains yet to be explored. Although the data about wedding flag in many sources are insufficient, the research has shown that the flag is an important element of wedding customs of Lika. In time it assumes new meanings, but at the same time keeps certain decorations which in earlier period had different symbolic meanings and function in wedding customs.

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