Date and public holiday status
Saints Constantine and Helena is celebrated on 21 May every year. It is not a public holiday: it is a normal working day in Bulgaria. The date falls on Thursday in 2026, Friday in 2027 and Sunday in 2028.
The saints behind the feast
The Orthodox Church honours Emperor Constantine the Great and his mother, Helena. Constantine was the first Roman emperor to support Christianity. Through the Edict of Milan in 313, he ended the persecution of Christians, and in 325 he convened the First Ecumenical Council at Nicaea.
According to tradition, Helena discovered the True Cross in Jerusalem—the cross on which Christ was crucified. Constantine and Helena are honoured as “Equal to the Apostles”, a church title recognising their importance to Christianity.
The fire-walking tradition
The feast is associated with nestinarstvo, a Bulgarian ritual in which participants dance barefoot on glowing embers while carrying icons of the saints. These fire-walkers are known as nestinari.
The custom is practised in several villages in the Strandzha region, the best known of which is Balgari. The ritual is included on UNESCO’s list of intangible cultural heritage.
Who celebrates a name day
The feast is also a name day, a celebration for people whose names are associated with the saints. Those celebrating include people named Konstantin, Konstantina, Kostadin, Kosta, Kolyo, Elena, Elenka, Elin, Eli, Lena and Kina, as well as those with related names.