Tag: Italian Christmas tradition

Italian Christmas Markets in the North: a taste of festivity

CC BY 2.0, darvina06

Christmas Markets (“Mercatino di Natale”)
in Italy are a special tradition  that is at heart of the winter festivities in many “piazzas” around the “Belpaese”. From big cities to small villages, the fever of the Christmas markets run through Italy for a couple of days or an entire month or even  longer: some markets finish on the 6th of January (“Befana”).

Christmas Markets in Italy are less numerous than the markets in Germany, but they are popular both with the locals and visitors from Europe and the UK.

The Italians create every year also elaborate crib displays and nativity scenes close or as a centre for many Italian Christmas Markets. The Italian stallholders offer fantastic local food and drink plus locally manufactured seasonal gift products.

Let’s have a round starting from the top Italian Christmas Markets in Northern Italy: for example let’s go in Trentino-Alto Adige Region: snow, mountains, great food and great Christmas markets, thanks to its influence coming from the close Germany. Many mountain towns hold Christmas markets: here you can find many lovely but pretty tacky items. But also some interesting wooden carved local handicrafts can be found here. Lights and sweeties complete the fun.

Trento holds one of the best Christmas markets in Piazza Fiera, from the end of November up to the end of December. The market shows off more than sixty traditional wooden huts which sell crafts, decorations, and food . A large Nativity Scene is created in Piazza Duomo, too. Bolzano holds a daily Christmas market from the end of November through December 23 in the historic center.

Veneto has its share of markets on display as well: if you go to Campo Santo Stefano in Venice you will be surronded by the wooden houses in the piazza with the stalls selling high quality Venetian handicrafts. Verona in Piazza dei Signori has a huge German-style Christmas Market with wooden stalls from in late November through December 21.

 

“Presepi” of Italy: a Christmas tradition

Jingle bells, jingle bells…here comes the time for Christmas decorations in Italy!!! The most important tradition is connected to the Nativity scene, called presepe or presepio in Italian language.

Every church and every family has its own presepe. You can find it in the middle of the squares, outside the shops, and in many public areas. The manger scene is a must but you can expect much more: the representation collect often the entire village!

When do Italians make a Presepe (Christmas crib)? They set up it  starting December 8, that is the Feast Day of the Immaculate Conception, and you put back in the storage room on January 6, that is the Epiphany.

Figurines for nativity scenes are made in many parts of Italy, but the  best are certainly coming from Naples and Sicily. Baby Jesus is added on Christmas Eve.

The Nativity scene representation has a long history: it is said to have origins with St. Francis of Assisi in 1223, when he builded a nativity scene in a cave close to the town of Greccio, which reenacts this event each year. There it has been held the first Christmas Eve mass and a nativity pageant.

Carving figurines for nativity scenes started in the late 13th century: thanks to Arnolfo di Cambio who had to carve marble nativity figures for the first Rome Jubilee held in 1300. The original nativity can be seen in the museum of Santa Maria Maggiore Church. Many are the museum dedicated to the “presepe”.

Il Museo Nazionale di San Martino is in Naples and boast a fab and very elaborate collection of nativity scenes starting from the 1800s. Il Museo Tipologico Nazionale del Presepio is under the church of Saints Quirico e Giulitta in Rome, and exhibits over 3000 figurines from all over the world! The museum has very limited opening hours: closed in the summer but open each afternoon December 24-January 6.