Arapides by Theodoros Topalis
On January 7th, in the village of Volakas, a group of people called the Arapides took to the streets to celebrate the feast day of Saint John.
These rituals have their origins in ancient Dionysus traditions, which were later incorporated into Christian practices. The Arapides' performance is associated with wine, madness, fertility, and ecstasy.
The events start on the day of Epiphany with the custom of the bar. The village's young people, accompanied by traditional instruments, take the newlyweds from the previous year and cross the blessed waters of the fountain.
On the night of January 6th, the young people steal various items from the homes of single girls and display them in the square. After the Worship of Saint John, parents go down to the square to identify and retrieve their belongings unless they pay a symbolic fee.
At 3:00 pm on January 7th, the Arapides appear from the village streets and end up in the square where the residents boil goats in cauldrons. The Arapides carry a hump of rug full of straw on their backs, tie doorbells around their waist, bear fleece on their necks, blacken their face and hands with smut, wear tsarouchia of pigs on their feet, and hold a wooden sword in their hands, on which they lean and sway to the sound of the bells. They act in groups led by Tsaousi.
On January 8th, the day of Babo, they start with the prosecution of traditional marriage under the sounds of bagpipes and the D'Haran. At the same time, the bears come out, which are groups of masqueraders wearing whole goat skins and having a bell around their waist. The movements of the bears resemble the phallus, and each group has a bear man who directs the bears with a tambourine, spreading the fun.
