Maslenitsa 2025: when it begins and ends in Russia, folk signs, recipes for pancakes

The last month of winter in Russia ends with an ancient Slavic holiday - Maslenitsa. In 2025 Shrovetide week will begin on Monday, February 24, and will end on Sunday, March 2 - this is the main day of festivities, when the effigy is burned. History and traditions of Shrovetide, folk omens, recipes for pancakes - in the material "Izvestia".

History and traditions of Pancake Day in 2025

According to expert journalist Goryacheva Ksenia Goryacheva, in the folk calendar of the Eastern Slavs the holiday means the border of winter and spring. Pancake Day is an analog of Carnival in European countries and "Fat Tuesday" in Catholics. In the calendar of the Russian Orthodox Church this period is called Cheese Week.

The date of Maslenitsa changes every year depending on the date of Easter. Traditional attributes of the folk celebration are a Pancake effigy, sledding, and festivities; Russians have pancakes and flatbreads, while Belarusians and Ukrainians have vareniki, cheesniki, and kolodka.

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The whole week of celebration is divided into two periods: Narrow Maslenitsa and Wide Maslenitsa. Narrow Maslenitsa is the first three days: Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, Broad Maslenitsa is the last four days: Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. In the first three days in Russia could be engaged in household work, and from Thursday all work ceased, and began Shrovetide.

Today Pancake Day is a fun holiday, fairs, performance of artists and round dances. Residents of the country with the whole family come to walk and rejoice. Russia widely celebrates this holiday, there are rowdies, and hot delicious pancakes, ends with the burning of an effigy of Maslenitsa - a kind of transition from winter to spring.

Shrovetide: the signs of the holiday

"Our ancestors were able to distinguish the signs of fate, by which they built truthful predictions for the whole year. Girls in Russia especially watched what pancakes come out on Shrovetide week. It was believed that in them you can see your future", - says Goryaeva.

If the pancake was easy to flip, it meant that the rest of the year would go well. If it is difficult to separate from the frying pan, the person expects a difficult period.

If an unmarried girl could not separate the pancake from the frying pan on Shrovetide, it was understood that she would not get married for another three years. If an unmarried girl had pancakes with even edges, it meant that the marriage (or relationship) would succeed. On thin pancakes on Shrovetide predicted an easy life, and in the thick our ancestors saw an omen of severe trials. It was believed that if you eat peas on Wednesday and pancakes on Thursday, you will have plenty of money for the rest of the year. The more pancakes you bake on Pancake Day, the more nourishing and happy the year will be - they believed in Russia.

Pancake Day and the Church

Despite the fact that Maslenitsa is considered a pagan holiday, it is also celebrated by Orthodox Russians.

According to Bishop of the Russian Orthodox Church Diodor Isayev, choosing whether to celebrate Shrovetide, it is worth listening to yourself.

"In our time, Shrovetide festivities can well be called a good holiday - long past wild amusements and customs like fist fights, in which many people died. The main thing is to observe moderation - do not overeat, do not indulge in rampant drunkenness. It is very good these days to go to visit or invite guests to sit at the table and talk, which in our time (when all communication is often in the network, and close people do not see each other for months) is very important <...> The main thing that everything happened in kindness and joy, "- he said.

Recipes of pancakes for Shrovetide 2025

Pancakes are considered a traditional Shrovetide dish. As noted by culinary historian Anton Prokofiev, classic pancakes are wheat pancakes. They are divided into two types - pancakes and blints. Pancakes are a yeast product, it is insisted on opara, which can be made in advance or simply take a sourdough starter used for breadmakers. Pancakes are also "red", with a large addition of muffins - yolks and butter, and if you add there and whipped cream, you get "royal pancakes".

Pancakes are simply flour mixed with eggs, milk, kefir and so on. Buckwheat can be used as flour, but since there is little gluten in it, you should be sure to mix it with wheat so that they do not fall apart during baking.

Pancakes also come in oatmeal, millet, classic Russian pancakes - rye. In general, almost any cereal can be used.

"During cooking, it is best to use milk of 3.2% fat content, you can also use kefir, in fact it is a game with flavors. The fatter the batter, the deeper the flavor of the pancakes turns out, so forget about the diet if you are going to please yourself with them. It is pointless to save calories on pancakes", - said Prokofiev.

Earlier Izvestia told about the meaning and traditions of Meat Loaf Saturday, which precedes Shrovetide week.