Contribution a l'etude ethnologique de la semaine sainte en corse
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Abstract EN:
The holy week precedes easter, which is christ's resurrection; it is celebrated in spring. Normally it is also a feast of renewal and a new year which begins. The various rites during this paschal period illustrates the duality of this feast: death and resurrection of christ on one hand, and on the other hand death and resurrection of the nature and the year that has finished. In corse, the holyweek is the climax of religious life, which is good example of synchretism of christian faith and pagan rites. We discribe here, the different rites which are situated in the bosom of the complex paschal rites, at the sametime respecting the chronological order, and which were in use upto nineteen hundred and fifty. A study was done on each day of the holy week, specially the palm sunday, tuesday, and wednesday of holy week. People plait the palm leaves on mandy thursday and good friday. The various offices are celebrated by processions of confraternities like "cerca" and "granitula". We were also interested in special meals taken during the pasckal period. The aim of our study was to observe in which measure the customs of these people were inspired by the evangelical texts; and also to see how the christian cycle of easter was grafted on the traditions and faith of these prechristians. We were able to find out some of the antique cults rendered to certain deities (like adonis and atys); ancestral cult was also prevalent among these people. At the very onset of spring season, some people invoke the invisible and their ancestors considered to be as essential for fertility. It seemed to us also that certain practises were meant to renew the times (such as expulsion of demons, purification of water and fire) and to assure the continuity of life and to predict the future (days and months) as a symbolic gesture of abundance, people also consume puffed up foods during this time.
Abstract FR:
La semaine sainte precede la fete de paques, fete chretienne de la resurrection du christ; mais paques, celebree aux environs de l'equinoxe de printemps est aussi dans le calendrier populaire, une fete de renouveau et de nouvelle annee. Les rites qui se deroulent pendant la periode pascale illustrent donc la dualite de la fete, mort et resurrection du christ d'une part, mort et resurrection de la nature et de l'annee d'autre part. La semaine sainte en corse, temps fort de la vie religieuse, est un bon exemple de syncretisme de foi chretienne et de rites paiens. Au cours de notre etude, nous decrivons les differents usages qui se situent (ou se situaient jusqu'en mille-neuf-cent-cinquante environ) au sein du complexe pascal dans l'ile, en respectant un ordre chronologique. Nous examinons ainsi chaque jour de la semaine, notamment: le dimanche des rameaux; les mardi, mercredi, jeudi et vendredi au cours desquels sont tressees des palmes dans certains villages, celebres les offices des tenebres, organisees des processions de confreries telles que la "cerca" et la "granitula". Nous nous interessons egalement aux dimanche et lundi de paques ainsi qu'aux mets specifiques de la periode pascale. Le but de notre travail consiste a observer dans quelle mesure les recits evangeliques qui se rapportent aux evenements de la passion du christ ont inspire des coutumes folkloriques, et comment certains elements du cycle chretien de paques ont pu se greffer sur des traditions et des croyances prechretiennes. Nous avons ainsi cru pouvoir relever des survivances de cultes antiques rendus a des divinites agraires et des reminiscences du culte des ancetres; en effet, au debut du printemps, periode imprecise et critique, les hommes invoquent les invisibles et les ancetres protecteurs dispensateurs de toute fecondite. D'autre part, il nous a semble que certaines pratiques avaient pu autrefois etre destinees a regenerer le temps, a assurer la continuite de la vie et a presager de chacun des jours et des mois a venir.