Barabi-chan is a combination of Latvian Baravika and Lithuanian Baravyka, meaning the boletus or porcini mushroom. “Barabi” is a cognate of the word in Latvian and Lithuanian, while the ending “chan” is used in Japanese to express affection and warmth.
“‘Barabi-chan’ is not just a mushroom, you can see different surprises in it every time you meet the mascot. Barabi-chan will invite everyone to touch them, to share the magical power of the Baltic forests,” Līga Gablika, Marketing and Communication Project Coordinator at Expo, told Latvian Television.
This mascot has been picked, unsurprisingly, because some Balts believe that mushrooms bring good luck, and mushroom picking is a tradition and popular hobby in Latvia and Lithuania.
The Baltic Pavilion’s concept is also “We Are One”, indicating that everything in the world is connected.
“It has been scientifically proven that 90% of the world’s plants are interconnected by a network of mushrooms. Of course, the Baltics are also proud of the fact that our region has the highest percentage of forests compared to other European countries and the opportunity to spend a lot of time in the forest and mushroom picking,” said Gablika.
Latvian Television reports that the Baltic mascot has already won the love of local television, where several minutes were devoted to the theme of the boletus mushroom.
Last May, Estonia decided not to join Latvia and Lithuania in the Expo 2025. The Estonian Ministry of Economy justified this decision on the grounds of the costs involved in participating in the event.
The Estonian President criticized the Ministry’s decision at the time, but the Ministry said it would not reconsider.
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