In the south of Italy, the Christmas period tells a journey of faith, family warmth and customs handed down from generation to generation. Among these stand out the novena, the tombolata and the popular songs that fill the air with magic and joy.
It happens everywhere but in the South, when the month of December is approaching, time slows down and leaves room for rituals that awaken memories and create new ones. Here, Christmas is not just a celebration, but a celebration of traditions, from novena prayers to tombolata to folk songs.
Whether you walk through the lively streets of Naples or the picturesque villages of Puglia, the Christmas traditions of southern Italy make this time of year unique.
The Novena, a moment of prayer and participation
In the regions south of the Boot, the Christmas novena is a moment of strong spirituality. For nine days, starting on 16 December, the faithful gather in churches or small corners set up in their homes to recite songs and prayers dedicated to Advent.
For example, it is an institution in Campania, especially in Naples, where it is celebrated with a unique religious depth. It is a tradition that has its roots in the ancient popular religiosity, with a particular emphasis on the midnight mass. In addition to prayer, the Neapolitan novena is accompanied by a strong cultural component characterized by folk songs that tell stories of devotion and tradition.
In Basilicata, the spiritual preparation to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ is a moment of family intimacy and communion. The prayers and melodies are particularly emotional. In some countries, it is also intertwined with the tradition of the living crib.
In Puglia, the novena is often accompanied by nocturnal processions of statues of the Madonna and the Child Jesus. Here, you will experience a suggestive atmosphere that seems to take you back in time.
And again, in Calabria, many families light a candle during prayer as a symbol of the waiting of the Child Jesus and an invitation to hope.
In Sicily, this is a very intense collective spiritual experience, especially because it involves acquaintances, relatives and friends.
The Tombolata: numbers, laughter and tradition
If the novena is the moment of contemplation and spirituality, the tombolata is the triumph of conviviality. It is one of the most popular Christmas traditions in Italy, but has become an unmissable event for families in the South.
In the Bell Tombolata it is not just about marking numbers on the cards, but to create a kind of home cabaret where the person who draws the numbers enjoys commenting on each draw with jokes or references to the Neapolitan smorfia. For example, the number 33 is associated with “the years of Christ” while the 90 is connected to “fear”.
In Basilicata, on the other hand, the tombolata is often combined with a tasting of homemade cakes, such as shorts filled with chestnuts and cocoa or cartellate. Each number drawn becomes an occasion for a toast or a taste.
In Puglia, in many cases, it is the children who have the task of announcing the numbers, often stalling them with funny or chanting accents. All this is accompanied by the products of Apulian gastronomy, such as sweet taralli, panettone or pandoro, pasticciotti and homemade Christmas sweets.
Popular songs as the soul of Christmas
Music is the thread running through Christmas and every region of the South has its own traditions. In Basilicata, for example, the sound of the trumpet and the babble is almost omnipresent. These instruments, played by shepherds dressed in traditional clothes, evoke the atmosphere of the mountains and the simplicity of rural life.
The popular music of Campania is rich in religious songs but also folk songs that are mixed with stories of everyday life, from those of the mother to those of the carrettieri.
In Puglia, influenced by the traditions of Salento and Bari, the Christmas music contributes to create the festive atmosphere. These songs are performed with the guitar and tamburello during processions or in living cribs tell stories of a distant Christmas, that of the oldest traditions.
In Calabria, before Christmas, you can meet the zampognari standing in front of the cribs and intent on playing their melodies while waiting to receive wine or frying as a sign of gratitude while, between Santo Stefano l’Epifania, The singing brigades move from country to country, bringing with them the strina, a song that wishes health and prosperity.
In Sicily, the Christmas carols called “ninnareddi” tell the story of the Nativity with sweetness and devotion. These songs, which are passed down orally, are often accompanied by guitars and tambourines and are sung both in church and during family vigils. The Christmas music is imbued with a deep spirituality and influences from the Arab tradition that make the melodies particularly emotional.
In Sardinia, the legends and daily life of folk songs are sometimes replayed during the Christmas holidays. The Sardinian Christmas carols, often supported by instruments such as the tamburello and the launeddas, have a particularly evocative and powerful character thanks to the stories of the land and its people.
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