Zeraingo Udala - Ayuntamiento de Zerain
FESTIVALS > The Virgin Mary and Saint Roch's Day Festivals
On
15 August the town celebrates the festival of Our Lady of the Assumption,
to whom Zerain's church is dedicated, while the following day is given over
to the Saint Roch's Day celebration, our patron saint's day festivals
On the night of the 14 August, the eve of the festival
celebrations, we hold a "liver feast", which, until a few years ago, used
to be held on the 13th. This event has its roots in an old custom which used
to form a fundamental part of the festivities:
"In order to celebrate the great Saint Roch's Day
festival properly, a calf was killed and shared out among the townsfolk in
the local tavern. For the meat to be ready for Saint Roch's Day, the animal
had to be killed a few days beforehand, but the liver had to be eaten immediately
or else it would spoil. Consequently, the custom of the "liver feast" arose
to solve the problem of the meat needing to be cured but the liver having
to be eaten at once".
The day of Our Lady of the Assumption begins with
the Profession of the Municipal Council, in which the Mayor, holding his/her
staff of office, and the other local representatives walk from the Town Hall
to Our Lady of the Assumption Church, accompanied by the sound of the "alkate-soinua",
a tune played by txistularis (Basque flute players) during the ceremony.
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