Part 7 of 9 · 2 min read
Serbian traditions
In short The Serbian Orthodox Church shares the same faith as every other Orthodox church. It just has its own saints, customs, language and calendar. Here are the ones you’ll notice first.
St Sava
A medieval prince who ran away to become a monk on Mount Athos. In 1219 he became the first Archbishop of an independent Serbian Church, and he founded schools and monasteries. He’s the most loved Serbian saint, and many parishes are named after him. His feast day is 27 January.
The Old Calendar
The Serbian Church uses the Julian calendar for its feasts, which runs 13 days behind the everyday calendar. That’s why Serbian Christmas is on 7 January.
Slava: the family feast
Every Serbian family has a patron saint, passed down through generations, and celebrates that saint’s day each year. It’s unique to Serbs, and it’s often a bigger deal than birthdays.
- Slavski kolač: a decorated round bread, blessed by the priest.
- Žito: boiled, sweetened wheat, in memory of family who have died.
- A candle and wine, plus a long lunch with whoever turns up.
If you’re invited to someone’s slava, it’s worth going. It’s an honour to be asked. Converts often take up a slava of their own.
Christmas customs
- Badnji dan (Christmas Eve, 6 January): an oak branch called the badnjak is blessed and burned, often at a bonfire at church. Straw on the floor recalls the stable.
- Česnica: a round bread baked on Christmas morning with a coin inside. Whoever finds the coin is said to be lucky that year.
Useful phrases
| You’ll hear | Meaning | Reply |
|---|---|---|
| Hristos se rodi! | Christ is born! (Christmas season) | Vaistinu se rodi! (He is truly born!) |
| Hristos vaskrse! | Christ is risen! (Pascha season) | Vaistinu vaskrse! (He is truly risen!) |
| Pomoz Bog | God help you, a general greeting | Bog ti pomogao (God help you too) |
| Gospodi pomiluj | Lord, have mercy | Sung over and over in the services |
| Oče, blagoslovite | Father, bless (greeting a priest) | He blesses you |
Other things you’ll notice
- Language: services mix Church Slavonic (an old language for worship), Serbian and often English.
- Two alphabets: Serbian is written in both Cyrillic and Latin letters, so you might see “Христос васкрсе” or “Hristos vaskrse”.
- Kum and kuma: a godparent or wedding sponsor. In Serbian culture it’s a lifelong, almost family-level bond.
- Red eggs at Pascha: people tap them against each other, and the last uncracked egg wins.
- Prayer ropes are called brojanica.