Some of the most colourful celebrations to be seen during the festive season are in the Cossack settlements in Russia’s southern regions, where a mixture of local and Ukrainian traditions blend with spectacular results.

Cossacks are specific communities of various ethnicities living in the southern steppe regions of Eastern Europe and Russia.

The village of Yelizavetinskaya on the outskirts Krasnodar was one of the first Cossack settlements in the area, sometimes known as Kuban. The region is famous for its distinctive dialect, Cossack music, dances and literature.

However, even during the Stalinist years, when religion was suppressed by the communists, and many Cossack families were sent to labour camps, people here managed to preserve their faith and customs.

“My parents and grandparents and aunts and uncles used to practise these ceremonies. They sang and we learnt from them,” said Lyubov Sychova, a local resident.

Most Cossacks are deeply religious. Their traditions are connected with Christianity. They also have their own carols. Among the Cossacks living in Russia’s southern regions it’s a tradition to visit and sing carols to your neighbours on Christmas Eve.

The singers always get rewards: a basket of fruit, pies and sometimes a large bottle of gorilka, a kind of vodka.