EN
The authoress stresses the need for integrated research into folklore, which would place the analysis and interpretation of songs in the context of a ritual or a performance situation, defining its place and function in a given ritual and its dramatic development and establishing the place of a given ritual within the annual or familial cycle. Such a perspective is important for interpreting the songs' symbolism and for investigating the interdependencies between the content, expression and style of the songs, and the purpose of the ritual. The differentiation of style of extant ritual songs can bring insight to the differentiations in the lifestyle of those who created and sang them. These interdependencies are analysed in the spring songs repertoire of the Podlasie region.