Between the Sacred and the Profane: Campania's Rites and Festivals
In Campania, popular rites and festivals are of great social and cultural importance, handed down from generation to generation. On these occasions, a community is able to express its identity at its best, while at the same time providing a good opportunity to immerse oneself in the traditions of the place or to plan new trips to discover the beauty of the landscape, cuisine and history. Among the most popular festivities are those in honour of the patron saints.
Events and celebrations
In terms of public holidays in the Campania region, the 19th September is the day to celebrate San Gennaro, the patron saint of Naples, whose cathedral houses some of his relics, including bones and an ampoule believed to contain his blood. This day is inextricably linked to the tradition of the "melting of blood", which, if it occurs, is considered a symbol of good fortune. The occasion attracts hundreds of believers to the Campania capital every year, for what can be considered one of the main days of worship for the Neapolitan population and beyond.
The other focal point of Neapolitan tradition is undoubtedly Christmas, which every year is experienced as a time to get together and socialise, with shopping, markets, walks and various events.
Just as popular is the Festival of Piedigrotta, which is celebrated every 8 September in the area of Naples of the same name, more precisely in the Chiaia district. This festivity, which has its origins in the ancient pagan revelry described by Petronius Arbiter in his Satyricon, became more composed and "official" between 1500 and 1700, becoming one of the most popular celebrations for the Bourbon family, with decorations, illuminations, floats, parades, stalls and songs.
The Carnival too is a deeply felt festival in Campania, a region that can boast one of the most iconic masks of the Commedia dell'Arte: the perpetually hungry Pulcinella, to whom the popular tradition of the "Zeza" is dedicated, replicated every year in several municipalities in Irpinia. In this carnival scene, which originated in the mid-seventeenth century, the family conflict is represented by Pulcinella, his wife Zeza and his daughter Vicenzella, who is in love with Don Nicola.
Another suggestive religious tradition, which brings together hundreds of devotees, or even just curious onlookers, every year is that of the Madonna dell’Arco. On Easter Monday a multitude of devotees to the Virgin Mary parade towards the sanctuary dedicated to Her in the Vesuvian town of Sant'Anastasia. During the procession, some of these devotees, called "fujenti" or "battenti", retain the ritual of dressing in white and flagellating themselves using scourges and nailed cork tiles.
