пилигримка - meaning?

Question

While Russian is my first language, I've left Russia more than twenty years ago, and, at moments, I feel that I do not understand the modern usage of some words. For instance, I've only recently discovered the modern meaning of откат.

The word that puzzled my today is пилигримка: I used to think that пилигримка is female of пилигрим (pilgrim). However, the following usage is rather puzzling:

Она называется даже oфициальнo "всеoбщая пилигримка мoлoдежи всех дoрoг", как-тo так, хoтя пo кoнтингенту oна напoминает русскую радугу.

or

моя любимая пилигримковая еда

Is пилигримка more of an activity (pilgrimage?) or location? How common is this usage?

Answer 1

I think the blog your copied the first excerpt from explains it pretty well:

Пo-пoльски oнo - "pielgrzymka". Этo палoмничествo. вариант целoвания жoпы хэнка, впoлне присущий западнoй катoлическoй культуре, не бoльше.

This is just a calque from the Polish word for pilgrimage (in its Roman Catholic meaning).

In general, polonisms are quite common for terms specific to Roman Catholisicm in Russian: костёл, ксёндз, отпуст, пробощ etc.

Answer 2

This word is very interesting.

Ozhegov's dictionary marks it as obsolete in Russian language (This means its out of use BEFORE XX century) and it was mean pilgrim female.

Inside this context it has meaning of party or event, related to voyage or quest at 'saint places(locations)'. This word seen in Belorussian language as 'Пілігрымка' and derived from Polish.