Tsiknopempti

Tsiknopempti (Greek: Τσικνοπέμπτη) is part of the traditional celebrations of Apókries, the Greek Carnival season. Tsikna (τσίκνα) refers to the smell of cooked meat, and Pempti (Πέμπτη) means Thursday. So, Tsiknopempti could be translated as Smelly Thursday, Charred Thursday, or Smoky Thursday. The celebration, as the name suggests, centers on the consumption of grilled and roasted meats!

Tsiknopempti is not a fixed date, though it’s always a Thursday in February or March. It is celebrated 11 days before Clean Monday, which marks the beginning of the Great Lent, a seven-week lent before Easter celebrated by the Greek Orthodox Church. The roots of this tradition are unknown, but it is believed to originate from the cult of the ancient Greek god Dionysus.

People are having BBQs everywhere, eating and drinking a lot with friends and family!!! Combined with the famous Greek hospitality, you will have a great Thursday no matter where you are in Greece! This is an ideal occasion for a wonderful eating experience in one of the traditional Greek tavernas!

But why Thursday, and not Friday, where it would be much more convenient as the weekend follows right after that? The reason why the custom of tsiknisma was chosen to take place on Thursday seems to be related to another strong Christian religious tradition. As for the Orthodox faith Wednesday and Friday are very important days of fasting, Thursday was considered a more suitable day for “organized” meat eating, when believers can eat meat for the last time before abstain from it for the following seven weeks.