Establishment of the Vyshyvanka Day Going beyond the borders of Ukraine What do the patterns and ornaments on the vyshyvanka mean? Northern regions Southern Ukraine and Crimea Eastern regions Western Ukraine Embroidered shirts with Bayraktars Why isn’t Vyshyvanka Day an official state holiday? Every year on the third Thursday of May, Ukrainians traditionally wear embroidered shirts called “vyshyvanky”. This year, Vyshyvanka Day falls on May 18. The embroidered shirt has changed its place in the wardrobe from casual clothes to the most elegant ones. Ukrainska Pravda (Ukrainian news website) talked to Lesia Voroniuk, one of the founders of the holiday, Khrystyna Dukh-Zafiyovska, an artist, and Halyna Yatsentiuk, a folklore collector and owner of the Vyshyvanka Museum in Verkhovyna, about the history of the holiday, the importance of embroidery as a talisman, and modern ornaments. Establishment of the Vyshyvanka Day In 2006, five students from the History Faculty of Chernivtsi University wore vyshyvanky (embroidered shirts). “At that time, t-shirts with DiCaprio and Titanic were trendy, not vyshyvanky. Only the well-performing students wore them,” recalls Lesia Voroniuk, one of the founders of the holiday, with a smile. At that time, the initiative was supported by dozens of students in Chernivtsi. Wearing a vyshyvanka was considered “unfashionable,” so changing that perception was quite an achievement. “I remember the first Vyshyvanka Day very well when I enter the History Faculty wearing an embroidered shirt and look for other people who have also joined the initiative. I walk on the first floor, and I don’t see anyone. I go up the stairs, and there’s one person in a shirt, another one, and another one. Now I understand that it was such a bold and daring decision because back then it was even considered somewhat of an “anti-trend,” shares Lesia Voroniuk. Nowadays, the significance of the vyshyvanka has changed dramatically. Just like over 100 years ago, it has become a sacred talisman for Ukrainians. “The vyshyvanka is embroidered to protect. Once, it was a kind of talisman, especially for children. Now it is a talisman for all Ukrainians,” emphasizes Halyna Yatsentiuk. “Today, when Vyshyvanka Day is 17 years old, and there is a war outside, the embroidered shirt is a spiritual armor for me. I believe it is the most expressive and clear definition of its significance,” adds the co-founder of the holiday. Such significance...