My Cultural Heritage

[Gooding]

If you're a McDonald, you can reach out to the geneticist Mc Donald to analyse your data for free.

Now that's interesting. How do I go about doing that? My mother's the McDonald, by the way.. would that make a difference?

[Gooding]

Bump. I've told my story. Any others?

[Curiosity]

Bump. I've told my story. Any others?

Hey!
I live in the same city I was born, It's called Petrópolis, a not-so-big city in the mountains, close to Rio de Janeiro (about 45 minutes driving). It can be hot in here, mostly during summer, but it's a lot colder than Rio - right now it's 13ºC here, and there it's 20ºC.

I think growing up here is not that different from most places. I would mostly go to school, then come home, do my homeworks, watch TV, use the Internet, sometimes go out to see my friends during the Afternoon, to study together or just hang out. Weekends were about being with family mostly, as a child, and going out with my friends, as a teenager. We used to go to each other houses, listen to music, have barbecues, go to the pool, have parties, or just get together to do nothing, just hang out.

We have an apartment in a city called "Cabo-Frio", a beach town about 3 hours driving from here. I have a cousin who lives there, and most of my summers I spent there. Also most of my friends from Petrópolis used to spend their summers in Cabo Frio, and we would all get together at the beach. There were some kids from Rio that had apartments in the same place too, and also used to spend their summers there, who became our friends. It was really nice to see them every vacation and most likely during Carnival (huge here in Brazil, and it's a holiday usually from saturday to wednesday) too. Some of them are my friends still. I had a boyfriend from 14 to 20 years old, then another from 20 to 27, and my current boyfriend for three years. So I had lot's of friends, lots of fun, but always commited. Never had many experiences that most of my friends had.

I live with my mother and sister. Here is really common for adults to live with their parents while they're not married. A lot of my friends still live with their parents, like myself. My boyfriend stays here usually from Friday to Monday. I'm really close to my family, I have 3 sisters, 4 nephews and a niece, from 6 to 16 years old, and they all (the kids) love to come here and stay with us. It's rare for them to spend more than a week without coming here and usually sleeping in. We're really close and have a lot of fun together. It's good, cause the house is always full of joy, as the kids are, and I guess it keeps all of us young in spirit.

Here in Brazil we have a really weird thing about religion. Most of the population call themselves Catholics, but non-practicing. It means they believe in Catholicism, but don't go to church on Sundays, confess regularly or practice the religion entirely. My father, as an example, called himself a Catholic, but rarelly did any of these things. I was raised going to Catholic Schools only, I was baptized and forced by my family to take the first communion and chrismation, but no one ever cared to as much as read the Bible at my home. Of course there are many true Catholics in Brazil, but many are like the ones in my family. Today the religion I follow is Umbanda, a syncretic Brazilian religion that blends African traditions with Catholicism, Spiritism, and Indigenous beliefs. It's big here in Brazil and it's mostly about spiritual evolution through reincarnation, practice of charity and learning to be humble.

Christmas were always with the whole family together, my father's family and my mother's family. It was nice, 'cause my cousins from one side felt like they were cousins to my cousin from the other side too. Was that understandable? As we grew up, it became harder to get everyone together, as many got married and now have to alternate Christmas between our family and their spouses families. Easter is mostly about kids here. The little ones (now only my six years old niece) believe in the easter bunny and hope for the chocolate eggs. We get together, usually only the closest family, have lunch, give each other chocolate, talk, play with the kids. We don't celebrate Thanksgiving here.

Now, as an adult, in my free time I like to read and learn about many subjects, to paint, to be with my family and friends, and to travel whenever I can.
Can't think of anything else to say. If I do remember something, I'll come back to this.

[Brianna]

Christmas were always with the whole family together, my father's family and my mother's family. It was nice, 'cause my cousins from one side felt like they were cousins to my cousin from the other side too. Was that understandable?

It was understandable. I knew the non-related cousins of my cousins too. We sometimes went to the same gatherings. Some of my parents' cousins were more like aunts and uncles. Their children were more like first cousins than second cousins. Some of my first cousins were more like siblings. Even the pets were like family members. We had a custom where we referred to cousins' non-related grandparents with names like "Grandpa Stevens" or "Grandma Stewart". Even family friends did this.

[Curiosity]

It was understandable. I knew the non-related cousins of my cousins too. We sometimes went to the same gatherings. Some of my parents' cousins were more like aunts and uncles. Their children were more like first cousins than second cousins. Some of my first cousins were more like siblings. Even the pets were like family members. We had a custom where we referred to cousins' non-related grandparents with names like "Grandpa Stevens" or "Grandma Stewart". Even family friends did this.

Seems like you have a big family! We have the same habit here amongst cousins and family friends. Even some of my friends called my grandma "vó Isis" (grandma Isis - miss her a lot, she was really-really awesome), and my other grandma "Vó Dora". My grandparents died before I was born, I didn't get to know them.

[Graham]

I've talked to a few Scotch-Irish and they don't consider themselves fully Irish or Scottish, it's like they consider themselves both, which is pretty much what it is anyway. I don't consider them real Irish though, no offense but the way I see it you have to be of native Irish descent, Scots-Irish are the descendants of Scottish colonists, not the native Irish..

The Native Scots considered them family, but the native Irish did not. 17th Century. There was agro.

[Gooding]

The Native Scots considered them family, but the native Irish did not. 17th Century. There was agro.

This.

[StormBringer]

Slava, I guess is the one worth noting the most.

Unlike other Orthodox Christian nations, the Serbs do not celebrate individual name days, as when a person named after a saint would celebrate that saint's feast day, but instead have the family patron saint.

The Slava is the family's annual ceremony and veneration of their patron saint, a social event in which the family is together at the house of the patriarch. The slava also brings friends to the house, regardless if they have the same slava. The family saint is inherited from the patriarch (head of the household) – from father to son, while women do inherit the patron saint of their husbands upon leaving their families.

The tradition has its origin in the Medieval Serbia, connected to Saint Sava, the first Archbishop of the Serbs. There are indications that the institution of the slava dates from Saint Sava, that "in his understanding and tactful approach to Serbian folk religion", he "seems to have found a compromise formula satisfactory to both his people's tradition and the requirements of Byzantine theology".[5] The slava is a reinterpretation of a pagan rite:[6] the ancestor-protector became a Christian saint,[7] frequently St. Nicholas,[6] with the pagan rite being reduced of many religious elements and frequent ceremonies and becoming a social event with the annual meeting of the family and friends.

Traditional foods that are prepared for the feast are: "Slavski kolač" (славски колач) and "koljivo" (кољиво). "Slavski kolač" literally means "the Slava cake", although it is actually more similar to bread.

The top of the kolač is adorned with the sign of the Cross, the "Dove of Peace", and other symbols that relate to the family. "Koljivo" (also called "Žito") is made of boiled wheat. It can be prepared in a variety of ways but most usually includes walnuts, nutmegs and/or cloves, and honey.

The wheat is a symbol of the Resurrection of Christ and deceased family members. Depending on whether the celebration falls in a period of fasting, the rest of the feast consists of animal-free (posni) meals or not (mrsni); thus, colloquially, Slavas can be referred to as mrsne or posne.

On the day of the Slava, the family attends church services and partakes in Holy Communion. Following the service, the parish priest is received in the family's home or the family brings the slavski kolač to the church. The parish priest performs a small service which entails venerating the Saint's memory, blessing the slavski kolač and koljivo, as well as lighting the "Slava candle". Though not necessary, it is common for the priest to bless the house and perform a small memorial service for dead relatives.

My slava is Saint Mark the Evangelist's Day, 15th April in Julian calendar, falls on 8th May according to Gregorian calendar.
It's also somewhat useful when tracking lineages, and distant relatives, as our last names didn't "stabilize" until around 200 years ago, before the son would carry his father's name as last name, so according to some folk tale I've managed to figure out two families who sprang from two brothers of a man, who migrated to Bosnian Krajina from Herzegovina in second half of 19th century, and whose name my family carries, of course they also celebrate the same slava as I do.