Sheep-herding Among the Croats of Caras-Severin, Romania

In the introduction the author describes the geographical setting of seven Croatian villages in Caras. He also gives oral histories of the immigration of Croats in the 15th and 16th centuries, as well as factors which helped maintain their ethnic identity. The main traditional occupations of the Croats of Caras are sheep-her¬ding and fruit-growing, while agriculture has only secondary and supple¬mentary importance. Every household keeps one or two cows, several pigs and horses which replaced traditional oxen. Their small holdings (6 to 10 yokes) have not been collectivized. Presently, most men and some younger women are employed in local mines and still-mills to which they commute from their village homes. The basic occupation of Croats from Caras until 1950\u27s was sheep-her¬ding, and it is still prominent. Households join their sheep into common herds watched by specialized shepherds. The accumulated milk is distri¬buted to sheep-owners according to fixed rules. The yearly cycle of sheep-herding starts on St. George\u27s (April 23rd) with elaborated ceremonies depicted here in detail. It ends on Michaelmass with another ceremony and feast. The rituals used to be much more elaborated, and the author gives both their earlier and post World War II forms. The author also describes the dress and equipment of a shepherd, the presentation of shepherds in oral poetry and stories, the production of cheese and other dairy products, and the processing of wool