Greek Valentines & Carnival …

The inhabitants of Amorgos do not wait for Valentine’s Day to express their love.
They always do it with Carnival, thanks to a very old tradition which is called the
“Captain” (=Kapetanios).

Amorgos: A Valentine comes always in Carnival!

Every year, all the young people from 4 different villages gather in the chapel of St.
Demetrius. There, the eldest of the inhabitants – or earlier, the priest- chooses one
of them and name him: Captain. His friends dress him and they also decorate his
horse. Then they accompany him, with violins and lutes, through the narrow streets
of the island to Selladi.
Everywhere there are treats, which contain fasting mezedes, traditional made raki
with herbs, spices and orange peel and local wine.

When the Captain’s procession reaches Selladi, where all single women wait dressed
in their traditional costumes, the dance begins.
During this dance throws his handkerchief to the one who “has stolen his
heart”, setting her as his partner … theoretically until the end of the Carnival (the
same and the next day).

The custom is said to have started since the Ottoman domination and was a way of
rewarding the best warrior who came back to the island in order to find a woman
and get married.
Today it is an opportunity to make a relationship official, and often ends up in
marriage.

Lato
Het Griekse Taal- & CultuurCentrum van Amsterdam
– Greek language, Culture & more-