There are many different ways to greet guests. Of course, you can just go with a good old handshake or a hug, but there are lots of much more interesting ways to do so. For example, according to an ancient Ukrainian tradition, the best way to greet your beloved guests is to bring a special bread with salt on top, wrapped in an exquisitely decorated towel.
So, what exactly does this bread symbolize?
Well, the bread with salt on top is a symbol of nobility of intentions and friendship, and therefore hospitality towards the people you are trying to greet. It is also a symbol of holiness and forgiveness, and thus — eternal memory. This tradition combines the basis of life — bread, thanks to which everything is born and lives — and the essence of life — salt, thanks to which everything remains itself. Therefore, greeting someone with bread and salt means honoring this person and respecting them as they are. But let’s get deeper into the meaning of all of these products.
Both bread and salt have deep symbolism in Ukrainian culture. Bread is the most popular and significant attribute of Slavic food. "Bread is the head of everything", "Bread and water — Cossack food", "Without bread, a dry conversation", says folk wisdom. Bread is nutritious and tasty. Everything is delicious with it, whether it is liquid first courses, like soup, or a side dish, like meat, fish, vegetables or milk. In the past, in order to get bread people had to do a lot of hard work from baking to growing wheat. Moth ingredients that are used to make bread were quite pricy, especially salt since it was transported all over Ukraine from Crimea by chumaks (chumaks were merchants who were transporting and selling different goods). If you willingly wanted to spend your precious time and money in order to greet someone, it meant you had high amount of respect for them. As for salt, people all over Europe valued it. At some point in our history, salt was used as currency since a lot of work is requiredin order to obtain it.
Over the centuries, people have developed a special attitude towards bread and started to view it as a sacred object. Crumbs and fragments of bread should not be thrown away, they should be given to poultry or livestock. It is considered a sin not to eat a piece of bread, and if such a piece falls to the ground, it is appropriate to pick it up, clean it from dust, kiss it and finish eating it. To share bread and salt with someone means to make friends, to fraternize.
Meeting dear guests or newlyweds with bread and salt is a deep-rooted custom that has reached our time and accompanies weddings.
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