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In some parts of Serbia, the česnica is kneaded from unleavened dough, with just a little salt and oil, while elsewhere it is enriched with milk, eggs and yeast, and in some places it is even made as a sweet cake, with honey and walnuts U nekim krajevima Srbije česnica se mesi od beskvasnog testa, tek s malo soli i ulja, dok se drugde obogaćuje mlekom, jajima i kvascem, a negde se pak pravi kao slatka pita s medom i orasima
or Orthodox Serbs nothing symbolises Christmas like česnica, the ritual bread that is broken during the
the česnica would place a glove on his right hand, with which he pre- pared the bread, and cloak it with a sheet or animal hide, in order for the year ahead to be fertile. In some regions the česnica could only be kneaded by a woman who had giv- en birth to a male child, while in others care was taken to ensure this job was done by a young, healthy, diligent man. To make the česnica so-called “whole” water is always used, or wa- ter from a well or spring taken ear- ly on Christmas morning, and from which no one has drank. It is only the name of this ritual cake that is of Slavic origin, coming from the term čest – meaning part, share, which indicates the tradition of sharing the cake among all who attend the ceremony. The česnica is never cut, but rather is broken. Once upon a time it was broken only by men, with the oldest among them determin- ing which piece would go to whom in the household. That was during the time of large rural communities, which operated under a strict hierar- chy in every sense. At that time the česnica, which today contains on- ly a coin, was made with lots of so- called marks, or small objects sym- bolising crops and rural jobs. When the host divided the česni- ca , everyone would check to see what they had received in their part of the cake, and thus they knew which jobs would be their responsibility until the next Christmas.
Christmas breakfast. Although the Yule branch – as a particularly sym- bolic tree – and Christmas roast, or spit-roasted piglet, form the back- bone of Orthodox Christmas tra- ditions, česnica is the heart of this important ritual, as the cake that is awaited eagerly by everyone gath- ered around the festive table on 7 th January, when Orthodox Christians celebrate Christmas. The story of the česnica predates the collective memory. This is an an- cient ritual bread, like the kind peo- ple from time immemorial offered to the gods to ensure prosperity, pro- gress and, above all, the fertility of the crops they lived from. As an inseparable part of the in- tangible heritage of Serbia, the česni- ca reflects the colourful interweav- ing of local beliefs and customs. Although it is basically a round bread loaf made from white flour, the česnica actually has a thousand faces, metaphorically speaking, de- pending on the traditions of each in- dividual region of Serbia or part of the world where Serbs live. In the not-so-distant past, when most of the Serbian population lived in the countryside, the česnica was kneaded by male crop farmers. It was believed that the crops depend- ed on it, so the preparation process was accompanied by specific rituals. The host-ploughman who prepared
jedinog kraja Srbije ili dela sveta u kojem Srbi žive. U ne tako davna vremena, kada je većina srpskog stanovništva ži- vela na selu, česnicu su mesili muš- karci, ratari. Verovalo se da od nje zavise usevi, pa su proces pripre- me pratili naročiti rituali. Domaćin, orač, koji je pripremao česnicu, stav- ljao je rukavicu na desnu ruku, ko- jom priprema hleb, i ogrtao se po- njavom ili životinjskom kožom kako bi godina bila rodna. U nekim kraje- vima česnicu je mogla da mesi sa- mo žena koja je rodila muško dete, dok se u drugim vodilo računa da to čini mlad, zdrav i vredan čovek. Za česnicu se uvek koristi tako- zvana nenačeta voda, odnosno vo- da s bunara i izvora izvađena u ra- no jutro na Božić od koje niko nije pio. Samo ime ovog obrednog ko- lača je slovenskog porekla i dolazi od pojma čest – deo, udeo, što uka- zuje na tradiciju deljenja kolača na sve koji prisustvuju obredu. Česnica se nikada ne seče, lo- mi se. Nekada su je lomili samo muškarci, a najstariji među njima je opredeljivao koje parče ide ko- me od ukućana. To je bilo vreme velikih seoskih zajednica, koje su funkcionisale po strogoj hijerarhiji u svakom smislu. Tada je česnica, u koju se danas stavlja samo novčić, pravljena sa mnogo takozvanih be- lega, odnosno malih objekata koji simbolizuju useve i seoske poslo- ve. Kada domaćin podeli česnicu, svako bi proveravao šta je u svom delu kolača dobio i tako je znao ko- ji će poslovi biti u njegovoj nadlež- nosti do sledećeg Božića.
Sveže i suvo voće, orasi, slama i badnjak sastavni su deo božićne trpeze. Prizivaju rodnu i slatku godinu Fresh and dried fruits, walnuts, straw and Yule branches are an integral part of the Christmas spread, heralding a fertile and sweet year
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