In The News - Romanian Bear Dancing Tradition

To outsiders, the sight of a troupe of dancing bears, decked out in blood-red tassels, stomping through the snowy streets of a small Romanian town might be a strange and perplexing sight. But for those who live in Romania's eastern Moldova region, the arrival of the bears -- actually locals wearing real bearskins is a time of celebration. The event takes place annually between Christmas and New Year's.

It's a tradition that, until recently, few beyond the tight-knit rural communities of the Trotus Valley have witnessed.

Bear Tamer
Men and women in full bear costume parade through the streets in and around Moinesti. They're accompanied by drummers and a singing "bear tamer." The bear dancing is meant to drive away evil spirits. It owes its origins to the time when local Gypsies, also known as Roma, would descend into towns from the forests in which they lived, bringing with them real bears.

Townsfolk would even pay the Gypsies to allow bear cubs to walk up and down their backs, which was thought to be a cure for a backache.

Older bears would be made to "dance" by being placed on hot metal plates that would make them hop up and down. This more harmful tradition was stopped around the 1930s.

Some of the older generations can still recall seeing Roma leading bears on leashes down from the forest when they were very young.

Unfortunately knowledge of the tradition is very limited because Roma don't write their history down.  No one is quite sure how and when the Roma went from live bears walking on people's backs to people dressed as bears. However, the costumes that are used in the dance are actual bearskins.

Economic Hard Times

While bear dancing was once an exclusively Roma activity, a ban on bear hunting has escalated the price of the skins up to $2,200 and most Roma, have sold their skins and can't afford new ones. Hard economic times following the collapse of communism meant an end to the days when crowds of bear troupes were welcomed in every house with food, drink and money. Some groups make prearranged stops at the homes of community figures or restaurants, where they can pick up tips of up to $100. In recent times, some have been able to make more money traveling to bigger cities like Bucharest to perform for wealthy clients.

Unfortunately, though the tradition is still cherished by locals, it is in danger of dying out as local cultures are diluted by Western influences and many people leave home. 

Outside knowledge and Tourism might be able to save this local tradition, or it could erase it completely.

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