Mărțișor (the spring token of 1 March)

The Mărțișor is the celebration of the beginning of spring, through which, on 1 March, people give one another a small talisman made of a cord braided from two threads — one white and one red. Worn on the breast or on the wrist, the mărțișor announces the rebirth of nature and the entry into the new agricultural year, which in olden times began precisely on 1 March. It is one of the best-loved customs on both banks of the Prut.

Origin and meaning

The custom has ancient roots, transmitted from Antiquity onwards, springing from the agrarian beliefs and practices of the ancestors and connected with the traditions of the old New Year. The two colours carry a clear symbolism: white means the purity of the beginning, while red means vitality, but also the victory of the sun over the cold of winter and the rebirth of nature. The traditional mărțișor was often an amulet with a small silver coin fastened to the cord, meant to bring health, good fortune and prosperity to the one who received it, while also protecting them from illness and from the evil eye.

How it is practised

The mărțișor is usually made by hand and given as a gift on 1 March, especially to women, girls and children. It is worn during the first days or weeks of spring, then tied to the branch of a blossoming tree or kept until the first buds appear, according to the belief that it brings fruitfulness and abundance. At the mărțișor fairs, folk craftsmen exhibit creations of the most varied kinds, from the simple cord to painstakingly worked ornaments.

UNESCO recognition

On 6 December 2017, the UNESCO Intergovernmental Committee inscribed on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity the multinational file "Cultural practices associated to the 1st of March", submitted jointly by the Republic of Moldova, Romania, Bulgaria and North Macedonia. The custom is known among Bulgarians as "martenitsa", and among Macedonians as "martinka". In the Republic of Moldova, spring is also welcomed through the "Mărțișor" music festival, one of the country's oldest cultural events. Thus the mărțișor has become a shared symbol of a living tradition, held in common by several peoples of south-eastern Europe. In schools, children learn to make mărțișoare, and the custom of giving them has remained just as alive and just as loved, announcing every year, with its white-and-red thread, the arrival of spring and the triumph of light over winter.