Little Bit Early, but interesting none the less
Befana
In Italian folklore, La Befana is an old woman who delivers gifts to children throughout the country on Epiphany Eve – the night between 5 and 6 January. The Epiphany is the Christian feast day that commemorates the visitation of the biblical Magi to the baby Jesus.
Befana Cookies
Modern Italian Christian legend has it that the Magi invited Befana to join them on their journey to find the new-born Jesus, but she declined, being too busy with her housework and baking. Later, poor Befana had a change of heart. She quickly packed a sack with food and gifts for the baby, took her broom to help the new mother clean her house, and set out to catch up with the Magi. She searched and searched all through the night, but couldn’t find them, and to this day she is still searching alone for the little baby. On Epiphany Eve she goes to every house where there is a child and leaves a gift, just in case…
Befana wears a full dark skirt, apron with patch-pockets, shawl, crooked hat and worn out slippers. She is a smiling and good-hearted, if ugly, old lady, trying to make amends for what must be the mother of all errors of judgment. She flies over the rooftops on her broom, descending into the houses through the chimneys to fill the stockings that the children have left hanging out for her. The children also leave a small plate of food and a glass of wine by the chimney. The next morning, together with the gifts in their stockings, they find the snack is gone and there is a mysterious sooty hand print on the plate…
Befana’s origins are lost in time and history – descended from prechristian traditions and entwined in popular culture and folklore. One common belief is that her name derives from a mispronunciation of the Italian word ‘Epifania’, but there is also evidence to suggest that Befana is descended from the Sabine/Roman goddess named Strenia, who presided over the Roman new year celebrations and gift-giving – ‘strenna’ is a word still used in Italian for gifts given around the Christmas and New Year period. What is certain is that Befana predates Christianity, and has probably been integrated into the Christian calendar in the way that many pagan customs were adopted by the new Church. Italian anthropologists Claudia and Luigi Manciocco, in their book “Una Casa Senza Porte” (House Without Doors) actually trace Befana’s origins back to Neolithic beliefs and practices. On a lighter note, many Italian children simply believe that Befana is Santa Claus’ wife and lives at the South Pole. Santa Claus cannot always satisfy every child’s requests, so Befana tries to make amends…
Befana stocking
Like Santa Claus, she is remarkably quick on her delivery rounds. There are nearly 8.5 million under-14′s in Italy, and even estimating a generous 2 kids per household (the reality is that the average family unit in Italy is composed of just 2.8 individuals, and if we assume there are 2 adults, that leaves just .8 of a child…) that means Befana has to make 97 deliveries per second for 12 continuous hours without even pausing for an espresso!
Most towns in Italy have some sort of event organised for the Befana. Last year in Lucca, she flew into one of the town squares riding on a bicycle suspended from a crane. Suspending my disbelief alongside her bicycle, I joined the wide-eyed children gathered in the square below. A chorus of breathless Oohs and Aahs accompanied her slow and magical descent from the starry evening sky, followed by a speedy and not-so-magical stampede for the goodies she had in her sack as soon as she touched ground – not unlike the opening of the doors at Harrods’ January sales.
BEFANA house
I have also met the Befana in Fibbiano, a tiny ‘borgo’ or hamlet with a population of just 50, in the hills between Lucca and Camaiore. On the evening of January 5th, all the parents secretly prepared the stockings for their little treasures, labeling them carefully with their names, and leaving them hidden outside their front doors. At some point in the evening while we were having dinner, the stockings mysteriously disappeared. A couple of hours later the Befana rolled noisily into town on a tractor decked out with fairy lights, and distributed the stockings to the amazed and delighted children. Well, not all were delighted – my son was too small and too sleepy to cope. When faced with the Befana, crooked hat and warty nose, he dissolved into tears on my shoulder. The sweet and crunchy Befana biscuits he found in his stocking were a great consolation though.
