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SUMMARY

This research deals with the overwintering of the Vlachs of Metsovo. Overwintering in livestock
farming is a phenomenon that involves the movement of mountain breeders. Breeders along with
their flocks moved from the mountains to the lower altitude areas during autumn to find meadows
with more favorable climatic conditions, in the so-called heimadhia. When spring arrived they
returned to their family homes and their summer meadows. This move to and from the winter
pastures, as well as the staying of livestock farmers and animals at the place of overwintering until
spring determines the phenomenon of overwintering. The celebration of St. Dimitrius (October 26)
marked the beginning of the winter period and the movement to the winter pastures, while the

celebration of St. George (April 23) marked the begging of the summer period and the return to the
place of origin. The folkloric interest of this phenomenon lies in the fact that firstly, it concerns the
ethnocultural group of the Vlachs of Metsovo. Also, it refers to the time of the 20th- 21st century,
when the society of Metsovo still exhibited strong elements of "traditionality". Last but not least,
overwintering is associated with folkways and customs, which were mainly related to the departure
of the farmers from the winter pastures and their return to Metsovo. The transhumant character of
the Vlach populations had a direct correlation with overwintering. It was a lifestyle that determined
perceptions, attitudes, folkways and customs. Consequently, by studying in depth the phenomenon
of overwintering the cultural system developed by the Vlachs during their occupation with livestock
farming can be approached and understood to a greater extent. This research also trys to explain
the difficulties of transhumance livestock farming and the reasons for its gradual abandonment by

younger generations, when the socio-economic conditions changed. Overwintering was studied
through the material collected from semi-directional interviews with men and women belonging to
different subgroups of tsopani, or paid sheperds, smeihtes, shepherds that joined their sheep,
tselingathes, the wealthiest livestock farmers, to see if and to what extent their narratives differed
due to the parameters of the gender and intergenerational perspective, but also the view point of
different levels within the pastoral hierarchy. This research’s contribution to the already existing
bibliography is multidimensional. More specifically, this study has to do with the particularity of the
population group studied, Vlachs of Metsovo. Moreover, this group has been researched in a

specific time frame. Finally, overwintering is approached through the interview quotes of the
"silent subjects". Most interestingly, the differences in the characteristics of the research sample,
gender, age, position within pastoral hierarchy, brought a quite few narratives and gave various
aspects of overwintering.

KEY WORDS

Metsovo, Vlachs, semi-nomadic livestock farming, overwintering, gendered identities, tselingato,
tselingas, shepherd, biohistory, narration, ecology, pastoral economy, movements, winter pastures

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