L'Italo-Americano

www.italoamericano.org 10 THURSDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2021 L'Italo-Americano 2 0 2 1 h a s b e e n r o u g h . N o t a s rough as 2020 b u t I a m n o t that sad to see this year go. While we are s i t t i n g a n d g o r g i n g o n panettone on two different sides of the Atlantic, I reckon o u r N e w Y e a r ' s E v e celebrations won't be very different: a good dinner with f r i e n d s a n d f a m i l y , s o m e bubbly, perhaps some red underwear to enter the new year in style - and fend off bad luck. The younger among us will probably head out to parties or go clubbing, while sporty types may spend the day on the ski slopes and the night in a charming cabin sipping mulled wine or hot c h o c o l a t e . I f t h e y a r e vaccinated, of course. A s t h e n e w y e a r a p p r o a c h e s , t h e h i s t o r y - obsessed being who lives in me starts asking questions: how were people in the past celebrating? Did they eat what we eat, drink what we d r i n k ? D i d t h e y a c t u a l l y celebrate New Year's Eve at all? Well, I did some research to satisfy my curiosity and I found out a thing or two I'd like to share. I'll start with my beloved Romans, of course, who in fact did not celebrate the beginning of the new year in December but in March. Yes, in March. March was the month dedicated to the god of war and power, Mars, as well as the moment when nature awoke from the cold months of winter: it was, in itself, a moment of rebirth and new beginnings, quite a natural choice, when you think of it, to set the start of the new year. According to T e r e n t i u s , f a m o u s playwright during the Roman Republic, it was king Numa Pompilius who set the date of a n c i e n t C a p o d a n n o i n March, and it was to remain so for some centuries before C o n s u l Q u i n t u s F u l v i u s N o b i l i o r m o v e d i t t o December. But that's another story. On the last day of the old year, Consuls were the ones beginning the celebrations. Much like today, they would receive friends and family at their residence and accepted t h e i r g r e e t i n g s f r o m a prosperous new year. Then, they would sacrifice a white b u l l t o t h e g o d s o n t h e Campidoglio, and they called i t a d a y . R o m e ' s f i r s t E m p e r o r , A u g u s t u s , inaugurated a tradition we still respect today, that of wearing red on New Year's Eve: in 31 BC, he donned a red robe to symbolize fertility and as a good omen for the future. The habit stuck and we like wearing red while celebrating the coming of the new year still today. If we trust the words of Saint Eligius, who lived in t h e 7 t h c e n t u r y , e a r l y M e d i e v a l p e o p l e h a d a penchant for partying hard - actually, a bit too hard - on New Year's Eve, as they had remained fond, at least in s o m e p a r t s o f E u r o p e , o f ancient pagan rituals that involved dressing up like stags and cows, drinking and eating in abundance, and gift e x c h a n g e . B e s i d e s t h e masquerade, it doesn't sound m u c h d i f f e r e n t f r o m o u r modern celebrations, does it? But it wouldn't be the Middle Ages if there weren't some complications: if the Romans had eventually settled on s t a r t i n g t h e n e w y e a r i n January, after the fall of the E m p i r e e v e r y r e g i o n i n Europe sort of picked the date it preferred: England a n d I r e l a n d r e t u r n e d t o March, more precisely the 25th, the day when Catholics celebrates Jesus' Incarnation, w h i l e S p a i n o p t e d f o r Christmas Day and France for Easter Sunday. And what about Italy? Well, Italy was divided into several states and duchies, so things were messy. Pisa and Florence did it like the Brits and the Irish, V e n i c e p i c k e d t h e 1 s t o f M a r c h , w h i l e P u g l i a , Calabria, and Sardinia opted for the 1st of September, just like the Byzantines. We'd have to wait until the end of the 17th century to see the 1st o f J a n u a r y b e c o m e t h e official beginning of the year, as imposed by Pope Innocent XII, who had grown tired of the confusion, in spite of the Gregorian calendar having been implemented some 100 years earlier. Fast-forwarding to the late 19th and early to mid 20th c e n t u r y , w e e n c o u n t e r celebrations we may be more familiar with, because they w e r e t h o s e o f o u r grandparents. Now, we know n o n n i a r e t h e b e s t storytellers, so I am sure you, just like me, heard about t h e i r C a p o d a n n o s p e n t r i g o r o u s l y w i t h f a m i l y a t h o m e o r , i f t h e y r e a l l y wanted to start with a bang, at the osteria. Either way, celebrations lasted well into the wee hours and involved p l e n t y o f g o o d f o o d , especially in the countryside: traditionally, cold cuts and pork were kings of the table, b e c a u s e p i g s l a u g h t e r i n g would take place between N o v e m b e r a n d e a r l y December, with salami and sausages usually prepared by the day of the Immacolata, o n t h e 8 t h o f D e c e m b e r . C a p o d a n n o w a s a l s o t h e perfect moment to try vino n u o v o , y o u n g w i n e m a d e with grapes harvested the p r e v i o u s S e p t e m b e r . I n Veneto, it's interesting to note, a typical dessert for Capodanno back then was a p i e m a d e e i t h e r w i t h p u m p k i n o r p a t a t e Americane, sweet potatoes, which we don't really eat much nowadays anymore ( w e l l , I d o . I l o v e s w e e t potatoes). Good old times. I'd like to leave you with a s t o r y m y m a t e r n a l grandparents used to tell me when I was a kid, one that i n v o l v e d a C a p o d a n n o a t their place, with my great a u n t a n d u n c l e , m y grandmother from dad's side, and her sister, aunt Sandrina. Good food and wine were served in abundance until the early morning hours when the gang decided to go to sleep. Apparently, a tipsy aunt Sandrina "dropped" her handbag off the bridge and drama, of course, ensued, to the point my great uncle had to walk down to the river banks and look for the dainty clutch in almost complete darkness, lest his sister-in- law would no longer speak to him. Ah, yes… those must have been good times! FRANCESCA BEZZONE Numa Pompilius, second king of Rome, was the one who picked March as the first month of the year (Copyrighted work available under Creative Commons agreement. Photo: Poniol. License: CC BY-SA 3.0) From the Empire to osterie: 2000 years of Italian Capodanno HERITAGE HISTORY IDENTITY TRADITIONS PEOPLE Selling Homes Throughout The Bay Area Adele Della Santina "The Right Realtor makes all the di昀erence." 650.400.4747 Adele.DellaSantina@compass.com www.AdeleDS.com DRE# 00911740 Expert in preparation, promotion, and negotiation!

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