November 10, Mardipäev (St. Martin's Day)

For centuries St. Martin's Day has been one of the most important and cherished days in the Estonian folk calendar. It remains popular today, especially among young people and the rural population. St. Martin’s Day celebrates the end of the agrarian year and the beginning of the winter period. It also often marks the end of the period of all souls.

The historical meaning of Mardipäev
St. Martin's Day actually has two meanings: in the agricultural calendar it marks the beginning of the natural winter, but in the economic calendar it is seen as the end of autumn. Among Estonians, St. Martin's Day also marks the end of the period of all souls, as well as the autumn period in the Estonian popular calendar when the souls of the ancestors were worshipped that lasted from November 1 to St. Martin's Day

Customs

Estonia’s St. Martin's Day customs are connected foremost with those of Halloween, which is widely celebrated in other European countries. St. Martinus himself was considered the patron of beggars and this has contributed to the Western European custom of begging for charitable gifts on this day. In Estonia, children often go from house to house on St. Martin’s Day, singing their St. Martin's Day songs and wishing households good luck for crops, cattle and for the household in general.

St. Martin’s Day is a male holiday, since it honours a male saint. When men went singing and dancing door-to-door, one of the men was disguised as a woman.

The most cherished time for going door-to-door is St. Martin's Eve, when traditionally the group leader was a male, called the Martin Elder or Elder Saint. Masks of animals, such as bears, goats and rams have been common in both Estonia and the rest of Europe on this night.

In the Estonian folklore archives some 1,500 variations of Martin and Catharine songs have been collected, which indicates the extraordinary significance of this type of ritual song and its survival throughout time. At the same time, the begging tradition has grown in popularity and has been adopted by ethnic minorities living in Estonia, like the coastal Swedes and Russians who lived at the eastern border on the shores of Lake Peipsi.

St. Martin's Day has retained its historical significance and cultural traditions, and therefore, still remains popular today, especially amongst Estonia’s young and rural populations.