Andrzejki

Andrzejki is the time when single young women in Poland try to predict their luck in love and whom they are going to marry. These kind of little fortune telling games are played on the 30th of November which is the Saint Andrew's Day.

Game with a liquid wax

The most popular game is to pour a liquid wax into a bowl of cold water. Pieces of wax are then picked up and put towards the light. Girls try to see whether there is a similarity between the piece they picked up and some real life objects. If there is no such similarity it is believed that the girl is going dream something important regarding her future life.

There is also a game where girls stand around the bowl of water. A walnut shell with a tiny lighted candle is put in the water. Each girl make a piece of paper with the name of man they love. These pieces are put on the edge of bowl. A tiny walnut “ship” starts its journey. The piece of paper being touched and burned means that this is the man who is going to make a wedding proposal soon.

Some girls believe that the 14th fence post holds a secret how their future husband is going to look like. There are girls who play their Andrzejki game with a scarf, a ribbon and a rosary. Each of these objects is put under its own plate. One girl gets her eyes blindfolded. Other girls shuffle the plates. The girl is turned around three times. She then chooses the object which will determine her future. Every girl wishes for a scarf as it means a marriage. A ribbon is a sign that the girl will stay single for yet another year. Rosary means that the girl is going to stay spinster or become a nun.

Before going to bed some Polish girls write names of potential husbands on pieces of paper. Pieces are put under a pillow. In the morning a girl takes out one paper. The name she draws is the name of the man she is going to marry.