Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2025 All Rights Reserved

Nestinari dancing on live embers in Bulgari village

Photo: BGNES, archive

The day of Saints Constantine and Helena is marked today (3 June, old style) in the village of Bulgari in Mount Standzha, with traditional nestinari games. 

Saturday’s programme begins with a nestinari ritual early in the morning, and then from 1 PM until 7 PM the documentary “Footsteps in the fire” will be screened. There will be a photo exhibition of the nestinari ritual at the information centre in the village, followed by a folklore concert programme with the participation of ensemble Tsarevo from the Georgi Kondolov 1914 chitalishte (culture community club). 


The nestinari games proper will begin at 9.30 PM.  At 10 AM on the next day, June 4, there will be an icon procession.

Bulgari is one of few villages where the authentic nestinari tradition has been preserved to this day. Every year, the nestinari ritual of dancing on live embers comes to life in the village in the first days of June, to the sound of drums, as a way of honouring the patron saints of the village – Constantine and Helena.

Compiled by Veneta Nikolova

Photos: Facebook/selobulgari, BGNES



Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

More from category

Sunny and hot weather expected on Wednesday

Sunny weather is in the forecast for Wednesday. It will be hot in the plains and lowlands around and after noon. There will be a light northerly and northwesterly wind, turning to moderate in Eastern Bulgaria. Maximum temperatures will range between..

published on 6/24/25 6:35 PM

Mobile consular services to be held in the Balearic Islands in September

In cooperation with the Bulgarian Cultural and Spiritual Centre “Sveta Sofia” in the Balearic Islands, the Consulate General of Bulgaria in Valencia will hold mobile consular days in the town of Santanyí on 13 and 14 September 2025. According to an..

published on 6/24/25 6:07 PM

Bulgarian Foreign Ministry issues warning over national strike in Belgium on 25 June

The Bulgarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) has issued a warning about a national strike in Belgium on 25 June 2025, organised by the trade unions. As part of the planned protest, all departing flights from Brussels' Zaventem International..

published on 6/24/25 5:53 PM