In the Catalan popular calendar, January is synonymous with cold, but there is one week in particular, this one we have just entered, which figures in the collective imagination historically as the coldest. But not only that. Apart from the cold, this week has always been known by a curious name of its own, the Setmana dels Barbuts, which we will now explain to you.
When is the Setmana dels Barbuts celebrated?
The Setmana dels Barbuts takes place around January 15, coinciding with the festivities of saints such as San Mauro (January 15), San Pablo Ermitaño (January 15) and San Antonio Abad (January 17).
Why is it called as?
This “week of the bearded” is so named because it coincides with the days dedicated, according to the popular saints’ calendar, to three saints, all of them represented with long and prominent beards. They are the aforementioned San Mauro (January 15), San Pablo Ermitaño (January 15) and San Antonio Abad (January 17).
There are also those who include in this period other minor bearded saints, such as San Benito and San Efigio (January 15), San Facio (January 18) and San Canuto (January 19).
A sample of the popular roots of this tradition can be found in the proverb, which contains several expressions related to the festivities of these saints, the intense cold and their beards: “When the three bearded saints arrive: San Pablo Ermitaño, San Mauro and San Antonio Abad, the harsh cold arrives” / “Between San Antonio and San Sebastián, it is colder than all year” / “San Antonio del cerdito is the first saint of the cold”.
The week coincides with the feast of San Antonio Abad, also known as the “Tres Tombs”, is celebrated with parades of blessed animals, especially horses, mules and donkeys, one of the most emblematic traditions of Catalonia and takes place in many cities and towns.