Hey Stampers! Did You Know Today is Dyngus Day? Did you even know there WAS a Dyngus Day? I sure didn't until today. My Stampin' Up! business coach records a message for me every Monday morning. He gives me highlights of special days in the upcoming week. This week kicked off with…you guessed it, Dyngus Day!
Dyngus Day, also spelled Dingus, is a fun Polish Holiday. It is very popular in Poland, and in Polish communities all across the United States. After the long Lenten holiday, Dyngus Day is a day of just plain fun. It is always celebrated on the Monday after Easter. Polka music is a tradition on Dyngus Day and it is often mandatory for participants to dance at least once.
Perhaps the most well-known Dyngus Day tradition is that in which single boys try to splash water on single girls as an expression of interest. This tradition dates back to the baptism of Prince Mieszko I on Easter Monday in 966 A.D. The water symbolized purification. The rite of sprinkling water on the holiday is an expression of gratefulness that the first Polish king was baptized, and that Catholicism entered Poland. Participants use buckets or, in modern day, squirt guns. Some boys use cologne instead of water.
Lest you think the boys have all the fun, single girls can reciprocate or “retaliate” on Tuesday by throwing dishes and crockery at the boys. What a hoot!
I really enjoy finding out about traditions all over the world and I hope you got a bit of fun out of today's share, too!
Oh, one bit of stamping news to share, too. Mark your calendar for April 9. This is the day the list of retiring Stampin' Up! products comes out. The new annual catalog makes its debut on June 1, so lots of products are “retired” to make way for new stuff. Stay tuned!
