Abstract
ABSTRACT While Bulgarians have purportedly been mumming since ancient times, the last 20 years have seen an increase of interest and participation in these multi-purpose rituals. The ‘revival’ has been accompanied by an increase of expressed belief in the efficacy of the rituals to exorcize evil and bring abundance. How can we account for this seeming re-enchantment? Following a brief description of the rituals, this analysis tracks three dynamics that have contributed to new expressions of belief: the impact of western postsecularism, the prior significance of ambivalence in how villagers related to the rituals, and widespread disenchantment with alternative programs for development and improvement. The article concludes with an examination of how these forces of re-enchantment articulate with a prior analysis of mumming as an expression of alternative modernity.
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