Tag Archives: la befana

La Befana

fields:
AGE:23
Date_of_performance: 13 century – present
Language: Italian + English
Nationality: Italian
Occupation: USC Masters Student
Primary Language: English, Italien
Residence: Los Angeles

Quote: ““Okay, so in Italy, we have this super cool tradition on January 6th called La Befana. Basically, she’s like Santa, but make it a broomstick-riding grandma witch. She sneaks into houses at night and leaves candy for good kids and ‘coal’ (which is usually just black sugar candy) for the naughty ones. Legend has it, she was invited by the Three Wise Men to see baby Jesus, said ‘nah, I’m good,’ and then regretted it forever—so now she flies around looking for him and dropping off presents. It’s chaotic but iconic.”

Historical context: this has been around in italy since the 13 centuary, in some tuscan villages they burn large statues of la befana; it is both a pagan and christian tradition; thus very italian folkloric. it is a custum entrenched in the national identity of italians local and abroad like my friend who grew up in the bronx in new york city. But his grandmother who immagrated to the US. Italian-American families keep La Befana alive by adapting the tradition to city life. Instead of chimneys, stockings are hung by windows or doors, and in the morning, kids find a mix of Italian treats like panettone and torrone alongside American candies. Some families tell the legend of La Befana the night before, while others celebrate with a big meal on Epiphany. Though it’s not as widely recognized as Christmas, it remains a special way for the community to stay connected to their Italian roots while blending in with New York’s diverse culture.

La Befana

Nationality: Italian-German
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Residence: Canada
Performance Date: April 26, 2015
Primary Language: English

The legend: “In Italy theres this old woman called La Befana who has magical powers and she gives children gifts on January 5th. If you’re nice you get gifts but if you’re mean you get coal. January 5th is the Epiphany Day, I don’t know what it is but it’s some type of like God revelation or something.”

The informant is half-Italian (mom) and half-German (dad) and grew up in Belgium. She moved to the United States at 11 years old, and now resides in Canada where she attends a university. She heard this legend growing up from her mom and Nonna (her grandmother). I asked her if she ever believed in La Befana’s existence, and she said that she “did at one point because once Nonna brought it up and I was scared of her because she’s a scary old woman witch.” La Befana sounds like other gift-giving figures around the Winter Solstice, such as Santa Claus, Sinterklaas, etc. January 5th is just around Christmas, so it matches with other Winter Solstice celebrations. People already celebrated the Winter Solstice, before Christianity made it a Christian holiday, so it makes sense for Italy to have its own version of the celebration. It’s also just after New Year’s Day, which means that Epiphany Day also represents a celebration of new beginnings; good children can celebrate the past year by receiving gifts and going forward into the next year being good again. Bad children can reflect on their bad decisions in the past year in order to strive for better in the coming year. Although La Befana can be a benevolent figure, she is presented as an old witch, which scares children into being “good,” reflected by the informant’s fear of the witch.