An important Russian holiday on November 30 is Grigory Zimneokazatel: what not to do

On November 30, Russians celebrate an ancient national holiday, which in Russia was considered the main winter "landmark." On this day, they observed the weather, held rituals, and monitored what actions could bring trouble to the household and family. What prohibitions were preserved in the folk tradition can be found in the Izvestia article.

The history of the holiday and folk traditions on November 30th

On November 30, the Orthodox calendar commemorates St. Gregory the Wonderworker, Bishop of Neo—Caesarea, who lived in the III-IV centuries. In the church tradition, the day is dedicated to the memory of his life and miracles. In popular culture, this day has acquired its own coloring, in Russia it has long ceased to be only a religious memorable date and turned into a calendar marker of the arrival of winter.

Already in the pre-Petrine and peasant eras, November 30 was called in different ways — "Gregory", "Grigoriev Day", and in folk folklore the nickname "Winter Designator" or "Winter Designator" was fixed in connection with observing the weather and rituals associated with the "setting of winter".

Why is the day called the "Winter Indicator"?

The term "Winter Indicator" reflects the role of the date as an indicator, an omen of the weather for the coming months. In an agrarian society, where survival depended on understanding the upcoming climatic conditions, any stable calendar point was used to "remove indicators" — they observed the weather on a designated day and extrapolated it for the entire winter.

In practice, this was expressed in simple observations: if it snowed and froze that day, they expected a harsh winter, if the day was warm and windless, they hoped for a mild winter.

What is strictly forbidden to do on this day

Popular prohibitions and warnings related to November 30 are a set of taboos aimed at preserving family and social order before the "establishment" of winter.

It is forbidden to quarrel and sort things out on this day, it is not recommended to try on other people's wedding rings (this was considered a bad omen for future family relations), it is not customary to borrow money and things (so as not to attract troubles and strife), it is not worth getting a haircut.

Popular publications also emphasize the prohibition on excessive chatter, gossip and empty news: it was believed that on this day "empty news" has a bad meaning and can cause trouble. The tradition paid special attention to relationships within the family — scandals and harsh words could be interpreted as a harbinger of troubles and diseases, especially for the older and weak members of the community.