Galicnik Wedding -
Holiday of Love – Symbol of Our Tradition
(Dnevnik, 15.07.2002) - The Galicnik Wedding was video recorded by UNESCO in order that the latter “nominate” the Wedding for protection as one Macedonia’s numerous master-pieces
This year, a traditional cultural event, the Galicnik Wedding, was held on St. Peter’s Day and during the weekend when Ivona Milovska and Ljubomir Josifovski joined in the wedlock. The wedding was attended by more than 2000 guests who enjoyed the beauty of the Galicnik wedding costumes and wedding customs, which were performed for a week in the past. The Galicnik Wedding was sponsored by the Macedonian Ministry of Culture, and it was video recorded by UNESCO in order to be proposed for protection as one of the many master-pieces in Macedonia. On St. Peter’s Day evening, Vesna Ginovska – Ilkova performed the Macedonian anthem on the plateau in front of the Upija public fountain and the guest went on to enjoy a concert by Dragan Dautovski Quartet. The party continued with the sounds of songs and dances accompanied with pipes and drums. The wedding customs started on Saturday at 7.00 with the banner being decorated and arranged with flowers in front of the Upija, when the wedding participants headed to the Villa Dosta, the son-in-the-law’s house. After the banner was raised, the banner carrier shot three bullets from a rifle (in the past, they shot on midnight to wake everybody and for everybody to learn that the son-in-the-law’s wedding party had arrived). Then, the son-in-the-law and his blood-brother went to welcome the pipers and drummers. The players were walking slowly and as they approached the middle of the village their music was becoming louder and louder to mark the beginning of the wedding and gather all the guests. On the platform in front of the Upija fountain, everybody sang Galicnik wedding songs. Mother-in-law Miljana Cerepnalkovska, with a sieve on her head and a jug in her hand, played the mother-in-law’s dance together with the members of Koco Racin Folk Ensemble. The custom of going for water was very impressive. All guests participated in this custom going from the Villa Dosta to the daughter-in-law’s home with jugs in their hands to take her to the three fountains to fill water. The ceremony continued the next day, when at dawn the bridegroom and some of the closest relatives visited the graves of the ancestors to get permission for the wedding ad invite them to participate, too. The custom of inviting the best man followed, as did bridegroom’s shaving that symbolized his separating from the family and bending towards the bride. Having performed these customs, they left for the bride on horses’ backs, while one of them hurried ahead to ask for permission for their coming. He took the bridegroom to Dragica Lukanoska’s front door, and the bride Ivona, looking at him through a ring, said: “I’m looking at you through the ring, let me enter your heart”. Father-in-law Trpe Cerepnalkovski endowed the bride with gifts, and afterwards the bride’s dowry caskets were loaded onto the horses’ backs. Mother-in-law greeted her with a sieve, bread and jug with wine and the bride entered her new home. The bride and bridegroom went to a wedding ceremony at Ss Paul and Peter Church and their love was crowned by Metropolitan of Kicevo and Debar G. Timotej. This year, the Galicnik Wedding was given a special beauty by Ratka and Branislav Lepceski, a couple married for 61 years, and Gape and Marija Adziovski, who had their gold wedding (50th anniversary of marriage) yesterday. After the wedding a wedding feast followed with the bride’s dance and other traditional dances. The wedding ended when gifts were delivered to the players, and Blagica Pavlovska sang a song dedicated to the Galicnik Wedding.
The wedding was attended by Minister of Culture Ganka Samoilova-Cvetanovska and Snezana Georgievska and on Saturday, the guest was Minister of Interior Ljube Boskovski.
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