Petrivka songs are a distinct layer of Ukrainian calendar-ritual song, timed to Petrivka — the short fast at the end of spring and the beginning of summer, before the feast of the apostles Peter and Paul. This period holds a special place in the folk calendar, joining the close of the spring rites with the anticipation of the harvest.
Petrivka falls on the shortest nights of the year, so the songs often sound the motif of the short night and the early dawn. In content Petrivka songs are mostly lyrical: they speak of a girl's love, longing, family relationships, and the beauty of summer nature. They were sung by girls in the street, in the field, returning from work. These songs are a fine, poetic testimony to how sensitively the Ukrainian folk tradition responded to every, even the shortest, season of the yearly cycle.
