Marțișor

Marțișor: the first day of spring. Today is a celebration of the rebirth of life after the hard winter. And Moldovans celebrate by giving loved ones marțișors. “Marțișor” literally means ‘little March’, and they are symbols of serenity and happiness. They are small pins with red and white thread sewn together. Some have flowers, others have something crocheted out of the red/white thread. Here is a picture of some of the marțișors I received.

The receiver of a marțișor wears it until the end of March. When March is over, the receiver puts his/her marțișors onto a blossoming tree as a way to acknowledge the onset of spring. Someone who gave me a marțișor also told me that putting the marțișor on a tree would guarantee me many healthy children in the future.

There is a legend behind marțișor. An old Romanian legend says that once in a fight with Winter Witch who didn’t want to give up its place, the beautiful Lady Spring cut her finger and a few drops of her blood fell on the snow. There, the snow melted and a snowdrop flower grew. In such a way, the spring won the winter.