Pentecost (Rusalii)
31 May 2026 · movable holiday — Hop, calușar! The little bells are singing and the sky is dancing with us.
Pentecost is a Christian feast commemorating the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the apostles, fifty days after Easter (counting Easter as the first day). In Romania, Orthodox Pentecost, also called Rusalii, is observed on Sunday and Monday, and both days are public holidays. The date moves each year: Easter is set by church rules tied to the spring equinox and the full moon that follows it, and Pentecost comes 49 days after it. Around Rusalii, the călușari (pronounced kuh-loo-SHAR-ee) perform in Romania. These are male groups who dance a ritual with high leaps, bells at the ankles, colourful ribbons and decorated staffs. The Căluș dance is inscribed on UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. It is passed down from generation to generation and is linked to beliefs in health and protection for the community.
Flying across the sky: An ethereal, bluish-silver star figure made of luminous dots and thin lines, like a constellation, leaping in a dance across the sky
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