Arushnyk orrushnik (Ukrainian:рушник[rʊʃˈnɪk]ⓘ;Belarusian:ручнік[rut͡ʂˈnʲik]ⓘ;Russian:ручник, рушник[rʊtɕˈnʲik],[rʊʂˈnʲik];Rusyn:ручник) is a decorative and ritual cloth. Made of linen or cotton it usually represents woven or embroidered designs,symbols andcryptograms of the ancient world.[1] They have been used in sacredEast Slavic rituals, religious services and ceremonial events such asweddings andfunerals.[2] Each region has its own designs and patterns with hidden meaning, passed down from generation to generation and studied byethnographers.
There are many rushnyk collections in ethnographic museums. InUkraine, the Rushnyk Museum is located inPereiaslav, Ukraine as part of The Museum of Folk Architecture and Way of Life of CentralNaddniprianshchyna. A Russian rushnik collection is housed at theHermitage Museum.
Therectangular shape of the fabric indicates a life's journey and the ornamentation captures the culturalancestral memory of the region.[3] The material used is eitherlinen orhemp. The act of spinning thread and the process of weaving linen embodies spiritual power dating back to the ancientdeityMokosh who is often represented in embroidery. The needle has its own energy, an idea similar toacupuncture, and the color of the thread hassacred meaning. Red represents life and is the main color used. A rushnyk is given to a baby at birth, it follows the person throughout life and is used in the funeral service after death.
A Rushnyk has many uses. The very basic rushnik is colloquially called theutyralnyk or wiper and serves as atowel. The utyralnyk either has no designs on it or it has very narrow strip on the edges. In contrast, anabozhnyk is a highly decorated Rushnyk composing ofembroidery and oflace.Nabozhnyks, also callednabraznyks ornakutnyks are used to decorateicons andicon corners in homes.
Colour plays a very important symbolic role in traditional Slavicembroidery. Red is the colour of life, thesun, fertility andhealth. The majority of rushnyks are embroidered with red threads. The very word "red" means "beautiful" and "splendid" inOld Russian andRuthenian: a red girl, a red sun or a red spring. The phraseKrasnaya devitsa in Old Russian language for example is an old idiomatic expression which means beautiful girl, the wordKrasnaya translates in Russian language also into red.[4] The diamond-shaped design of the rushnyk is an ancient agricultural symbol, which means a sown field, or the sun, and expresses the idea of fertility and protection against evil.Ducks, in the centre of the rushnyk, symbolize the element of life-giving water. In weddingfolklore a duck and a drake symbolize a bride and a groom, in other words a pair of ducks is a symbol of family life. Another common symbol on rushniks are birds.[5]
During a wedding ceremony, thebride andgroom stand on a Rushnyk called apidnozhnyk, which translates as step-on towel. What happens to the pidnozhnyk is that the bride will drag the towel behind her, and herbridesmaids follow behind her. Tradition has it that when the bridesmaids follow behind the pidnozhnyk, they are following the path of the bride and will hopefully be married.
Words with the common suffix "-nyk" ("-nik"), denotingagent nouns, indicate a general association of the new word with the base one.
Media related toRushnyk at Wikimedia Commons
