Strong friendships and community bonds (you give martenitsi to people you care about)
Good luck for the year ahead!
Today, the tradition continues because it brings the whole community together. Schools, families, and friends exchange martenitsi as a simple but powerful way to show care, connection and positivity. It’s one of the few traditions that everyone—kids, teens, and adults—celebrates with the same excitement.
Yes—Baba Marta is deeply connected to nature and the environment. The whole tradition is built around the changing seasons and the arrival of spring.
People wear martenitsi until they see the first signs of spring, such as a stork, swallow or blossoming tree. These are natural indicators that winter is ending and warmer weather is coming. After spotting the first spring sign, people tie their martenitsi onto trees, especially fruit trees. This is believed to bring fertility, healthy crops and a good harvest, connecting the tradition directly to the land. The appearance of migrating birds (like storks) is part of the tradition. These birds returning from warmer countries signal the environmental shift that marks the end of winter.
