Tradiții de Anul Nou (VII) - ARNĂUȚII din Timișești (Târgu Neamț, 2.1.2016)

The largest folk group in the area, with over 100 members, the suite from Timisesti (Neamt county) preserves and continues with sanctity the ancestral traditions of the New Year. Formed in 1978 and led since then by the well-known folk craftsman Ion Albu, the suite from Timisesti has an extremely rich repertoire and includes carol singers, masked (old men), the dance of bears, goats and the dance of the Arnauts. In the present video, selections are collected from the manifestations on the street and on the stage (with a preamble of carols) of the Arnauts. The Arnauts were Albanian mercenaries employed by the rulers of Wallachia and Moldova for their own guard and protection. They are dressed in folk costumes and wear over their shirt a borangic cloth or a napkin on which beads are attached, and on top, a red blouse. On their head they have a hat decorated with pieces of mirror and beads. They have white laces, a skirt that is mostly red, ”opincas” (peasant's sandal) with bells and a multi-colored decorated mace in their hand.