Ivan Kupailo's Night

Ivan Kupailo's Night. A traditional summer festival in Ukraine. It is on July,7th. 1 On this night young people go to the forest to look for the fern flower which they believed to break into blossom only once a year. The flower was thought to bring happiness and good luck for the person who found it.

2 On Ivan Kupailo's Night young boys and girls make bonfires.They dance and sing round the fires, jump over them and bathe in the rivers. Fire and water were thought to be sacred things able to purify people.

3 The girls make wreaths of summer flowers and other plants and put them on the water. They expect their future husband to pick it up, find the girl and ask her to marry him.

4 The name of the festival comes from the god of plants in Slavonic mythology-Kupailo.

5 The legend says people held this festival when summer is at its prime, begging him to give them a rich harvest.