Kozani Traditions

Bonfires, Boubousaria and balloons

Kozani is a place with a long history, which has served through time as a meeting point where different peoples and cultures mingled. As a result, it boasts a variety of customs and traditions, which have survived and are a strong attraction for visitors. Most of these customs are related to the big religious holidays, such as the twelve days from Christmas to Epiphany Day, the Carnival Period, Easter and August 15 (Feast of the Dormition of Mary). There are also festivals in honour of the local patron saint or festivals with local products as their theme. Kozani town is famous for its Carnival festivities, which include dozens of events and games. It’s a twelve-day celebration, from Tsiknopempti (i.e. the Thursday before Carnival Sunday, when meats of all types are consumed, mostly grilled) to Clean Monday (the first day of Lent, i.e. the fasting period that ends on Easter Day).  

Highlights include the lighting up of fanoi (bonfires) on Carnival Sunday at crossroads, attracting crowds; there’s lots of revelry that includes dancing, teasing, and singing, with a liberal use of sexual innuendo and content. It’s an age-old custom that remains popular with the locals.

Lassaneia festival, organised for almost 40 years in honour of the local scholar and politician Georgios Lassanis (1793-1870), is another major event in the town. In fact, it is a series of various cultural and entertainment events, which span the period from mid-June to the end of September and include theatre, cinema, music and much more.

Among the customs associated with Christmas and New Year’s Day that are preserved in many parts of Kozani, are Kolianta, the carols with quaint lyrics, sung by young children. In older times, the children were tipped with koliantina, a bun that was baked for this purpose by the local housewives.

The Boubousaria or Rougatsaria tradition is held with slight differences in ritual and dates from place to place within the 12 day period from Christmas to Epiphany Day. The custom is about groups of people in disguise, dressed in traditional costumes or wearing improvised masks. The groups, which always include the “boula”' and “arapis”' characters, create a stir while entertaining or winding up those gathered with their songs and banter. Boubousaria takes place on New Year's Eve in Galatini town and on Epiphany Day in Siatista town. In Eratyra town, the festivities begin on New Year’s Eve and end with a parade on January 2nd. The Gamila custom is a similar tradition which is widespread in many parts of Greece, where it is mostly associated with the Carnival period. In Aiani town, it is celebrated on New Year's Eve.

The custom of Momogeroi is believed to have its roots in ancient Greece, and it is practised in the eight villages whose population is made up of Greeks originally hailing for the Pontus region by the Black Sea.

In the past, before Christmas, most rural communities practised Gournochara, which is the slaughter of domestic pigs grown and fed with great care in local households throughout the year. The custom entailed the preparation of sausages, kavourmas and a savoury gelatin called pichti, as well as separating the fat from the meat. A highlight was eating tsigarides, the small pieces of lard with minimal meat. The gournochara custom is practised usually in December, in Vlasti, Dilofo, Morfi, Avgerinos and elsewhere. Tsotili, Molocha, Eratyra, and several other villages organise the Tsigarida festivals.

Instead of following the kite flying custom on Clean Monday, the inhabitants of Pentalofos village create a unique spectacle on that day, by releasing colourful balloons in the sky, which they skilfully make themselves.

On Lazarus Saturday (a religious feast celebrated a week before Easter), in many villages, young girls, called Lazarines, dress in beautiful traditional costumes, and go out in groups to all the houses singing songs that suit the situation or the wishes of each household.

The Siatista Kavalarides present an impressive spectacle, as on the day of the Virgin Mary on August 15, they ride their horses to the Monastery of our Lady in Mikrokastro to worship the Mother of God. Their return to town marks the beginning of a great feast. The custom is similar with the Vlasti Kavalarides, who ride uphill to the Monastery of Agios Panteleimon, on July 27.

There are many festivals that honour local products, such as the Peach Festival in Velventos in August, the October Chestnut Festival in Pentalofos and further north in Damaskinia village, the Manouri Festival in Vlasti in early August, and many others. Since they are organised mainly by local government agencies they do not have fixed running times.