Malanka: Ukrainians celebrate pagan-rooted new year festival

Dressed as goats, bears, oxen and cranes, many Ukrainians ring in the new year in the colorful rituals of the Malanka holiday.

Children dressed in bear costumes pose for a photo while celebrating the Malanka festival in the village of Krasnoilsk, Ukraine, Jan. 14, 2022.

Malanka, which draws on pagan folk tales, marks the new year according to the Julian calendar, meaning it falls on Jan. 13-14.

Children are handed money as a gift while celebrating the Malanka festival in the village of Krasnoilsk, Ukraine, Jan. 13, 2022.

In the festivities, celebrants go from house to house, where the dwellers offer them food.

Traditional costume masks used to celebrate the Malanka festival are placed on a fence in the village of Krasnoilsk, Ukraine, Jan. 14, 2022.

According to tradition, a household should have 12 dishes on offer – one for each month of the year.

A participant, dressed in a traditional costume, leans on a windowsill while celebrating the Malanka festival in the village of Krasnoilsk, Ukraine, Jan. 14, 2022.

Pancakes, pies and cheese dumplings are common dishes for the holiday.

Participants, dressed in traditional costumes, ride in a horse-drawn cart while celebrating the Malanka festival in the village of Krasnoilsk, Ukraine, Jan. 14, 2022.

The celebrations stem from a pagan myth about Malanka, a daughter of the Slavic deity Lada, who was once kidnapped by an evil snake and locked up in the underworld before being rescued.

A girl, dressed in a traditional costume, reacts after being handed money as a gift while celebrating the Malanka festival in the village of Krasnoilsk, Ukraine, Jan. 13, 2022.

One of the most famous rituals is the driving of a man dressed as a goat, symbolizing a dying and resurrecting deity.

Participants dressed in traditional costumes celebrate the Malanka festival in the village of Krasnoilsk, Ukraine, Jan. 14, 2022.

In some areas, homeowners will burn straw and a didukh – a decoration made from a sheaf of wheat – to symbolize the death of everything bad.

Participants, dressed in traditional costumes, celebrate the Malanka festival in the village of Krasnoilsk, Ukraine, Jan. 13, 2022.

Participants, dressed in traditional costumes, celebrate the Malanka festival in the village of Krasnoilsk, Ukraine, Jan. 14, 2022.

Villagers dressed in traditional costumes, rest , eat and drink while celebrating the Malanka festival in the village of Krasnoilsk, Ukraine, Jan. 14, 2022.

Participants, dressed in traditional costumes, cross a bridge while celebrating the Malanka festival in the village of Krasnoilsk, Ukraine, Jan. 14, 2022.

Villagers, dressed as soldiers, guard a checkpoint during Malanka celebrations near the village of Krasnoilsk, Ukraine, Jan. 13, 2022.

Participants, dressed in traditional costumes, eat and drink while celebrating the Malanka festival in the village of Krasnoilsk, Ukraine, Jan. 14, 2022.

A villager, dressed in a traditional bear costume, celebrates the Malanka festival in the village of Krasnoilsk, Ukraine, Jan. 14, 2022.

Participants, dressed in traditional costumes, take a break while celebrating the Malanka festival in the village of Krasnoilsk, Ukraine, Jan. 14, 2022.

An aerial view of villagers parading the street while celebrating the Malanka festival in the village of Krasnoilsk, Ukraine, Jan. 14, 2022.

Ivan Perchek dresses in a traditional bear costume ahead of the Malanka festival in the village of Krasnoilsk, Ukraine, Jan. 12, 2022.

A villager, dressed in a traditional bear costume, celebrates the Malanka festival in the village of Krasnoilsk, Ukraine, Jan. 14, 2022.

A man walks toward a building where traditional bear costumes are prepared for the Malanka festival in the village of Krasnoilsk, Ukraine, Jan. 12, 2022.

Villagers decorate bear costumes in preparation for the Malanka festival in the village of Krasnoilsk, Ukraine, Wednesday, Jan. 12, 2022. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)

Children, dressed in traditional costumes, pose for a photo while celebrating the Malanka festival in the village of Krasnoilsk, Ukraine, Thursday, Jan. 13, 2022.

Participants, dressed in traditional costumes, dance while celebrating the Malanka festival in the village of Krasnoilsk, Ukraine, Jan. 14, 2022.