
-
AP to continue crediting 'Napalm Girl' photo to Nick Ut after probe
-
Colombia moves to join China's Belt and Road
-
Martinez cried 'for two days' after nearly missing Barca triumph with injury
-
US, Chinese officials to hold trade talks in Switzerland
-
Barca 'will be back' after painful Champions League exit to Inter, says Flick
-
US jury awards WhatsApp $168 mn in NSO Group cyberespionage suit
-
India launches strikes on Pakistan, Islamabad vows to 'settle the score'
-
Trump vows 'seamless' experience for 2026 World Cup fans
-
Motown legend Smokey Robinson sued for sexual assault
-
Trump hopes India-Pakistan clashes end 'very quickly'
-
Frattesi shoots Inter into Champions League final after Barcelona epic
-
India launches strikes on Pakistan, Islamabad vows retaliation
-
India launches strikes on Pakistan as Islamabad vows retaliation
-
Alpine shock as F1 team principal Oakes resigns
-
Merz elected German chancellor after surprise setback
-
Gujarat edge Mumbai in last-ball thriller to top IPL table
-
Israel's plan for Gaza draws international criticism
-
SpaceX gets US approval to launch more Starship flights from Texas
-
Alpine F1 team principal Oakes resigns
-
Colombia's desert north feels the pain of Trump's cuts
-
Arsenal determined 'to make a statement' against PSG in Champions League semi-final
-
Top US court allows Trump's ban on trans troops to take effect
-
Whole lotta legal argument: Led Zeppelin guitarist Page sued
-
US, Yemen's Huthis agree ceasefire: mediator Oman
-
Johnson receives special invite to PGA Championship
-
Trump says US should to stop 'subsidizing' Canada as trade talks continue
-
Indian PM vows to stop waters key to rival Pakistan
-
Thousands demonstrate in Panama over deal with US military
-
Canada 'never for sale', Carney tells Trump
-
Vatican readies for conclave lockdown
-
Championship club Watford sack manager Cleverley
-
New German leader Merz stumbles out of the blocks
-
'Wagatha Christie': Vardy and Rooney settle on legal costs
-
Defending Rome champion Zverev blames burn out on poor run of form
-
No signs of US recession, Treasury Secretary says
-
Israel pummels Yemen airport in reprisal against Huthis
-
Swiatek struggling with 'perfectionism' ahead of Rome
-
Germany's Merz elected chancellor after surprise setback
-
Ukraine fires drones on Moscow days before WWII parade
-
EU proposes ending all Russian gas imports by 2027
-
UK, India strike trade deal amid US tariff blitz
-
Move over Met Ball. For fashion wow head to the Vatican
-
Stocks retreat as traders cautious before Fed rates call
-
EDF complaint blocks Czech-Korean nuclear deal
-
Germany's Merz faces new vote for chancellor after surprise loss
-
US trade deficit hit fresh record before new Trump tariffs
-
US Fed starts rate meeting under cloud of tariff uncertainty
-
Trump's Aberdeen course to host revived Scottish Championship
-
Argentina's 1978 World Cup winner Galvan dies
-
French lawmakers want Dreyfus promoted 130 years after scandal

Bearskin dance reconnects Romania youth with tradition
Romanian teenager Cosmin sweats profusely under a gigantic bearskin costume as he prances to the exhilarating sound of drums, flutes and whistles to welcome the New Year.
The parade Cosmin stars in has ancient roots and is increasingly a tourist attraction in Romania, especially for youngsters looking to reconnect with national traditions.
Performing in a costume made of real bearskin and weighing 40 kilograms (88 pounds) is physically demanding, but Cosmin would not miss the dance for the world.
"The skin I'm wearing belonged to my grandfather," the 17-year-old student says with pride, swaying the animal's head from side to side.
The northeastern town of Comanesti puts on the colourful and noisy display between Christmas and New Year's Day to chase away evil spirits.
The centuries-old tradition is held across the country but is most fervently celebrated in the region that includes Comanesti, which has emerged as the hub for troupes of bearskin-clad dancers.
Preparations begin in autumn and the local council selects the hundreds of mostly young performers, with their ages starting from as young as eight and rarely exceeding 30.
The most expressive acts win prizes, while the imposing bearskin costumes come with the animal's most fearsome features, including the paws, claws and mouth.
Small traditional "mici" sausages and kebabs are on the menu for spectators and dancers, and boards list the names of the participants' home villages.
Romania is home to more than half of Europe's brown bear population, an animal believed to embody strength and bravery but now protected as threatened by deforestation.
The dance, which has pre-Christian roots, has become a magnet for tourists and an important source of income in recent years.
- 'Search for an identity' -
Anthropologist Valer Simion Cosma believes the festival has undergone a "renaissance" since 2007 and Romania's entry into the European Union.
As many citizens choose to leave the country of 19 million people for brighter prospects abroad, the younger generation has grasped the event's value as part of a "search for an identity", he said.
Cosma noted that the almost six million Romanians living abroad want to preserve local customs with family when they come back home.
That breaks with the recent trend whereby Romania's "cultural interest was directed towards the outside" and folklore was "seen as outdated and confined to the older generations", the researcher added.
The renewed enthusiasm for the bear dance, encouraged by television coverage, has given a new lease of life to the industry producing the costumes and attracted tourists in their thousands.
"The value of folklore no longer lies in the meaning it was once given, but in its role as a spectacle and its economic impact," Cosma said.
P.Mathewson--AMWN