Rose Festival, Bulgaria

The tradition & historical record

The Rose Festival (Bulgarian: Фестивал на розата) is an annual festival of the Bulgarian rose, taking place from late May to mid-June. Celebrations are organised in various cities in Bulgaria, including Kazanlak, Karlovo, and Gurkovo. It's also an official holiday in these cities, as well as Pavel Banya and Strelcha. The festival program includes various rituals and events, including rose picking, the crowning of the Rose Queen, folklore performances, and traditional dances. The celebration attracts thousands of visitors who come to participate in the events, join the march, and watch the parade. ¹

The very first Rose Festival was organised in 1903 by the citizens of Kazanlak, celebrating beauty, flowers, and raising funds for charity. The festival gained more popularity in 1930, with special trains arranged to encourage more visitors to attend the festival. Discounted tickets were also issued, inviting citizens from various parts of Bulgaria to visit the Rose Valley. Over the years, the festival continued to grow, gaining global popularity and attracting thousands of tourists. ¹

The rose-picking ritual takes place in several villages around the town of Kazanlak during the harvest season, including Yasenovo, Rozovo, and Kanchevo. The rituals in Rozovo village start with singing and dancing in the morning. The roses are picked early in the morning, usually between 5 am and 10 am, when the roses are still moist with the morning dew. The process is very labour-intensive, requiring the petals to be carefully plucked by hand to preserve their oils. ¹

One of the highlights of the festival is the Rose Queen Contest. Thousands flock to the street where the Rose Parade is held to witness the new queen's coronation. Music, dancing, and participants wearing traditional costumes announce the queen's arrival. The Rose Queen receives her crown from the previous year's queen, greets the guests, and invites them to pick rose petals to participate in the celebration. The queen enters on a throne carried on a stretcher and showers the audience with pink rose petals. The ritual ends with a big dance known as the ‘Horo’, a traditional Bulgarian folk dance in which all the participants join. ¹

The street parade and processions are also highlights of the Bulgarian Rose Festival. The final parade is over an hour long and takes place on Sunday to end the festivities. The participants include members of clubs, students, and even children dressed in colourful costumes. The newly crowned queen and the runners-up also march in the parade. ¹

The Rose Festival in Kazanlak is usually held in the first week of June. Thousands of locals and visitors from other villages from Bulgaria and foreign countries attend the festivities. The programme includes the selection of the Rose Queen, the harvest ritual, and a parade in the streets. The festival in Kazanlak is the most visited in Bulgaria, but similar rituals and celebrations are also held in other cities. ¹

The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Rose Festival, Bulgaria”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence. ¹

Rose Festival, Bulgaria is Rose Festival in Bulgaria, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition. ²