NEW YEAR’S DAY
•
The month of the January starts welcoming the new year. Like the
other countries in the world, Italy too has its own original way to
celebrate this new start. On New Year’s Eve it is tradition to throw
old things away. So that, it is rather dangerous to walk at night time,
because you can be easily hit by old plates or flying glasses. As a
good luck charm we wear red underwear and eat a dish of lentils.
The new year is welcomed by impressive fireworks, balls and
concerts in the cities squares and the traditional toast with
champagne at midnight.
EPIPHANY
•
Epiphany, on 6th January of the new year, is also a very important festival in
our country. It
traditionally marks the end of the festive time, when the
Christmas tree and the Crib, which are traditionally made the 8th of
December, are unmade and schools reopen. But the Epiphany has also a
more important meaning. For centuries, the typical character of the Epiphany,
la Befana, replaced the figure of Santa Klaus or Father Christmas, who is
quite recent in Italy. In fact in the night between the 5th and 6th January ,
“Befana”, an ugly, old woman, is supposed to bring presents to children
riding a broom and carrying a really heavy bag. Flying on her broom in the
winter sky , she slides down the chimneys and fills the stockings that children
put on the fireplace with sweets and toys. The tradition wants that she gives
sweets and toys to the good children and coal to the bad ones.
CARNIVAL
Carnival is a festival that is celebrated in all the
countries of Catholic tradition.
The word carnival comes from the Latin " carnem
upbeat " (" eliminate meat " ) and originally it indicated
the banquet that was held on the last day of Carnival (
Mardi Gras ), immediately before the period of fasting
and abstinence of Lent.
The celebrations, which start on 17th January to
culminate in the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday (the
so-called Fat Tuesday), consist of public parades where
the distinctive and characteristic feature is the custom
of masking.
In Italy Carnival is celebrated all over the country, from
the biggest cities to the smallest villages. Everywhere
we can find long parades of people disguised in the
most unusual and original ways. However some cities
can boast festivals known all over the world for their
originality and special effects as well as for the tribute to
the tradition.
The Carnival of Viareggio originated in 1873 and it is one of the
most important and most popular carnivals in the world. It is
usually held on all Sundays from January to February and it is
made up of floats of different dimensions, full of huge papiermâché, caricatures of famous men/women, politicians,
intellectuals or people from the world of entertainment , whose
characteristic traits, especially the somatic, are highlighted with
satire and irony.
The Carnival of Venice is known for the beauty of the costumes ,
the pageantry of the festivities in the magical atmosphere of the
lagoon and consists of several full days of exhibitions of various
kind : art exhibitions, fashion shows , theater performances, etc. .
The Historic Carnival of Ivrea is one of the oldest and original carnivals
in the world, whose origins dated back in centuries. It is famous for its
spectacular climax, the so-called, Battle of the Oranges. In it is
represented in the form of allegory , the revolt of the citizens from the
tyrant of the city, probably Ranieri Biandrate , killed by Mugnaia which
was preparing to exercise the Droit de seigneur. It was that event to
caused the civil war represented by the battle between the people
and the royal troops which is commemorated during the carnival ,
where teams of orange-throwers on foot ( ie the people) defend their
squares by aranceri carts (ie the ' army ) with strokes of orange to
represent the arrows , while parading through the streets of the city , the
procession of Mugnaia throwing sweets and gifts to the population.
Even in Basilicata there are different
traditions related to Carnival. In the
fascist period, the writer and painter
Carlo Levi in the small town of Aliano
was the first to examine our way to
celebrate it and the manifold
meanings attached to it in his wellbook "Christ Stopped at Eboli”.In fact,
the masks carried out at carnival time
are taken from the world of nature
and represent grotesque and
diabolical animal figures. Leather
belts, bells and various garments
related to our tradition, characterize
these bizarre costumes against the
striking backdrop of the Lucan
Badlands.
VALENTINE’S DAY
The celebration of Valentine's Day has replaced in the
Christian Age the Roman Lupercalia, celebrated on
February 15th ; these rituals , however, were dedicated to
fertility and not to romantic love. In 496 Pope Gelasius I
dedicated the 14 February to the saint and martyr Saint
Valentine.
There is no doubt , however, that in mid-February, we can
encounter the first signs of awakening of nature and in the
Middle Ages , particularly in France and England, it was
believed that on that date the mating of the birds began
and then the event lent itself to consider this the party of
lovers.
While it is still uncertain the historical evolution of the
anniversary,there are some historical references that
suggest that Valentine's Day was dedicated to lovers
since the early centuries of the second millennium.
Among them, there is the foundation in Paris, on February
14th, 1400, of ' "High Court of Love" , an institution based
on the principles of courtly love . The court was intended
to decide on disputes relating to contracts of love ,
betrayal , and violence against women. The judges were
selected based on their familiarity with the poetry of love.
WOMAN’S DAY
Woman’s day is celebrated on 8th March.
The official date of this festivity was 28th February 1909 in the USA. It was
established by the Socialist Party, which in this date organized the first
great manifestation in favour of the extension of the Universal Suffrage.
But the festivity became well established in the 1911, when in a New
York factory, the Triangle, a fire devoleped and 146 women, most of
them immigrants, lost their lives. From this moment on, manifestations in
favour of women spread throughout all Europe and in Italy the 8th of
March is dedicated to women. In this day some female conquests such
as divorce, contraception and the legalization of abortion,are also
symbolically recalled.
SAINT JOSEPH’S DAY AND FATHER’S DAY
In March Saint Joseph and Father day are
both celebrated on 19th. This because
Saint Joseph is usually assumed as a
model father and a devotee husband.
Moreover, according to the tradition, the
Saint also protects orphans, young
unmarried women and poor people. For
this reason in Sicily, the poor are usually
invited at lunch in this day. In other areas
of Italy the feast coincides with the end
of the winter: as a ritual in some places
huge bonfires are made as to declare the
end of the cold season and the rebirth of
nature.
This double feast has its own sweet,
zeppole. These are a sort of krapfen
usually stuffed with custard and topped
with cherries put in syrup and a sprinkle of
icing sugar. Zeppole can be fried or
baked in the oven.
EASTER
Easter is the principal feast of Christianity. It celebrates the resurrection of
Jesus that, according to the Scriptures, took place on the third day after
his death on the cross. The date of Easter varies from year to year
according to the lunar cycles and it, also, determines the rate of other
celebrations and liturgical seasons, such as Lent and Pentecost.
At Easter there is the habit of giving chocolate eggs. At the beginning
there were given real eggs, with colorful shell, meaning rebirth, and the
reset of life. Only later these were replaced by chocolate eggs, that still
continue to maintain the original, symbolic meaning.
LIBERATION DAY
On the 25th April of each year in Italy is celebrated
the Liberation day, when the country was freed by
the Fascist dictatorship and a new era was
inaugurated.
Conventionally, this date was chosen because it was
the day of the liberation of Milan and Turin. In
particular, on April 25th, 1945 the Executive
Committee of National Liberation of Upper Italy
chaired by Luigi Longo, Emilio Sereni, Sandro Pertini
and Valiani ( present , among others, Rodolfo
Morandi - who was appointed chairman of the CLNAI
- Justin Arpesani Marazza and Achilles ), at 8 am on
the radio officially proclaimed the insurrection, the
jack of all powers by the CLNAI and the death
sentence for all the fascist leaders ( including
Mussolini, who would have been reached and shot
three days later ).
The Liberation put an end to twenty years of fascist
dictatorship and five years of war; it symbolically
represents the beginning of the historic journey that
will lead to the referendum of 2nd June 1946 for the
choice between monarchy and republic, then the
birth the Italian Republic, until the final draft of the
Constitution.
MOTHER’S DAY
Mother’s day is usually celebrated the second Sunday of May. Its origins
dated back to the Fifties, when from the idea of celebrating the
maternal figure, not only in her biological and social role, but in her
religious was quickly spread .
This festivity is usually celebrated at home and all mums are usually given
enormous bunches of flowers, roses in particular, and boxes of
chocolate.
REPUBLIC DAY
On June 2nd, in Italy there is a
special festival to celebrate the
birth of the nation. In fact, after
the fall of Fascism, on 2nd and
3rd June 1946 an institutional
referendum was held, to make
the Italians choose their favorite
form of government, monarchy
or republic, to give the country.
So, after 85 years of monarchy,
with 12,718,641 votes against
10,718,502, Italy became a
republic and the monarchs of the
House of Savoy were exiled.
This festival is similar to the French July 14th (the anniversary of the
storming of the Bastille ), and the American July 4th U.S. (the day
on which in 1776 was signed the Declaration of Independence ) .
All over the world, Italian embassies hold a celebration where all
the Heads of State of the host country are invited.
In Italy, wishes from the other Heads of State come to the
President of the Italian Republic while Special official ceremonies
are held.
MID-AUGUST
Mid-August is a holiday which falls on 15th August in conjunction with
the celebration of the Assumption of Virgin Mary.
The term derives from the Latin “feriae Augusti” ( Augustus rest ) and
indicates a feast instituted by the Emperor Augustus in. It was added
to the existing and ancient holidays falling in the same month, as the
Vinalia rustic or Consualia, to celebrate the harvest and the end of
the main agricultural work.
CHRISTMAS
•
In Italy, just like in all countries around the world,
Christmas is undoubtedly the most important
festivity of the year. Everyone, Catholic or not lives
the same magical atmosphere and shares the
same spirit of peace and joy during the days
before 25th December.