Jurģi or Ūsiņi

Although this festival is most commonly called Jurģi, it seems fairly clear that this originally was a festival of the deity Ūsiņš. He is tied to the coming of light in the spring, and to horses — in other words, the time when beasts were first let out to pasture in the spring.

With the incursion of Christianity, Ūsiņš was identified with St. George (in Latvian: Juris or Jurģis), and his festival is now usually celebrated on St. George's Day: April 23rd.

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This page created and maintained by
A. Steinbergs

Last revised September 18, 2008