Capodanno in Italy

Toasting the New Year the Italian way

New Year’s Day is called Capodanno in Italy, which literally means ‘head of the year’.

Teatro La Fenice in Venice

It is a public holiday, and schools, Government offices, post offices and banks are closed.

After a late start following the New Year’s Eve festivities, many families will enjoy another traditional feast together, either at home or in a restaurant.

Visitors and residents will attend church services throughout the country before sitting down to a festive meal and toasting 2016 with a glass of good Prosecco.

Rai Uno will be broadcasting a New Year’s Day concert live from La Fenice in Venice at 12.20 local time.

San Giuseppe Maria Tomasi

The Catholic Church remembers cardinal-priest Giuseppe Maria Tomasi di Lampedusa who died on this day in 1713.

He was the son of the Prince of Lampedusa in Sicily but he renounced his inheritance and joined a religious order.

Later in life he worked to reform the church and was created a cardinal-priest by Pope Clement XI who admired his sanctity.

He was buried in a church near his home after his death but his remains were later transferred to the Basilica of Sant’Andrea della Valle in Rome and he was canonised by Pope John Paul II in 1986.

Travel tip:

La Fenice (the Phoenix ) is Venice’s world famous opera house, originally built in 1790. The name reflects its role in permitting an opera company to rise from the ashes after their previous theatre burnt down.  La Fenice was itself destroyed by fire in 1836 and had to be rebuilt. It was severely damaged by fire again in 1996 and rebuilt at a cost of more than 90 million euros, reopening seven years later. La Fenice is in Campo San Fantin, a short walk from Piazza San Marco.

The Basilica of Sant'Andrea
della Valle in Rome

Travel tip:

There is a shrine to San Giuseppe Maria Tomasi in the baroque Basilica of Sant’Andrea della Valle in Corso Vittoria Emanuele II in Rome. The large church is also famous for being chosen by Puccini as the setting for the first act of his opera, Tosca.

Buon Anno e Tanti Auguri per 2016 (Happy New Year and best wishes for 2016) from all at Italy On This Day!

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Festa di San Silvestro – Feast of Saint Sylvester

Celebrating with a meal of pork and lentils for a prosperous New Year

New Year’s Eve in Italy is known as the Festa di San Silvestro in memory of Pope Sylvester I who died on this day in 335 in Rome.

New Year celebrations in Rome
Photo: Zabbo (CC BY-SA 3.0)

It is not a public holiday in Italy but it is a festive time everywhere, with firework displays, concerts and parties.

One custom still followed in some parts of Italy is throwing your old things out of the window at midnight to symbolise your readiness to accept the New Year.

The bars and restaurants are busy with residents and visitors enjoying drinks and meals before seeing in the New Year in the main square when the bells ring at midnight.

Popular menu items include cotechino (Italian sausage), zampone (stuffed pig’s trotter) and lenticchie (lentils).

Pork is said to represent the fullness or richness of life, while lentils are supposed to symbolise wealth or money. Many Italians believe the coming year could bring prosperity if these foods are eaten on New Year’s Eve.

The President of the Republic delivers an end of year message from the Quirinale in Rome, which is shown on most Italian television channels during the evening. There are live concerts in the open air in many squares throughout Italy, some of which are televised.

Sylvester I was pope from 314 until his death in 335, an important time in the history of the Catholic Church.

Some of Rome’s great churches, the Basilica of St John Lateran, the Basilica of the Holy Cross in Jerusalem and the old St Peter’s Basilica, were founded during his pontificate.

The Basilica of San Silvestro
in Via del Gambero in Rome

Travel tip:

San Silvestro in Capite, the Basilica of Saint Sylvester, is a church in Rome dedicated to Pope Sylvester I. It is in Piazza San Silvestro on the corner of Via del Gambero and Via delle Mercede, on the other side of the Tiber from St Peter’s. Dating from the eighth century, it was bestowed on English Catholics by Pope Leo XIII in 1890. It is now known as ‘The National Church in Rome of Great Britain’ and mass is regularly celebrated in English there.

The southern Italian hill town of Matera in Basilicata
hosts the 2015 New Year's Eve convert on Rai Uno
Photo: Giuseppe Rinaldi (CC BY 2.5)

Travel tip:

Piazza Vittorio Veneto in Matera in the southern region of Basilicata will be the location for the New Year’s Eve concert, ‘L’Anno Che Verrà’ (‘The Coming Year’), which will be shown live on the Italian TV channel Rai Uno from 21.00 tonight (31 December, 2015.) The historic city of Matera is to be the European capital of culture in 2019.

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Galeazzo Alessi – architect

Brilliant designer left legacy of beautiful palaces and churches

Italian architect Galeazzo Alessi, who designed some of the most impressive buildings in Genoa and Assisi, died on this day in 1572.

The Basilica of Santa Maria degli
Angeli in Assisi, designed by Alessi
Photo: Lahiri Cappello (CC BY 2.0)

Born in Perugia in 1512, Alessi studied drawing for both civil and military architecture and developed great enthusiasm for ancient architecture, although he was also later influenced by Michelangelo.

He became known throughout Europe for his distinctive style and towards the end of his career was commissioned to design churches and palaces in France, Germany, Belgium and Spain.

A lot of his work can still be seen in Perugia and Assisi, where, in collaboration with another architect, Alessi designed the Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli in 1568.

In Genoa he designed some of the beautiful palaces with ornate decoration that have now been listed as Unesco world heritage sites and he was involved in planning the lay-out of the streets and the restoration of the city walls.

Alessi died at the age of 60 in Perugia before the designs that he had drawn up for El Escorial, the residence of the King of Spain, could be carried out.

Travel tip:

Perugia, Alessi’s home town, is the capital city of the region of Umbria and one of the main Etruscan cities of Italy. A stunning sight on a hilltop, Perugia is also home to two universities, the 14th century University of Perugia and another University that has been established for foreign students learning Italian.

Perugia's hilltop location affords stunning
views over the Umbrian countryside
Photo: Zorro2212 (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Travel tip:

For Assisi, Alessi designed the Basilica di Santa Maria degli Angeli in 1568 in collaboration with the architect Giacomo Barozzi da Vignola. It has an ornate and imposing façade and encloses a small ninth century church, the Porziuncola, a sacred place, where the young Francis of Assisi renounced the world to go and live among the poor and start the Franciscan movement.  

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Stefano Eranio – footballer

Fast forward made his mark in England’s Premier League

Italy international footballer Stefano Eranio was born on this day in 1966 in Genoa, the main city of Liguria.

Stefano Eranio

He represented his country 20 times between 1990 and 1997 but is most remembered for his playing career with AC Milan and Genoa.

A midfield player or wing-back, Eranio had brilliant technique, good pace and the ability to make attacking runs.

Towards the end of his career he played in the English Premier League for Derby County and was made an official ‘Derby Legend’ in 2006.

Eranio began his career with Genoa in 1984.  He played for them for eight seasons before moving to A C Milan in 1992.

At Milan he won three league titles, three Italian Super Cups and played in two Champions League finals.

Eranio’s first international goal was against the Netherlands in 1992 when Italy won the match 3-2. In 1997 he played his last game for Italy, helping them beat Moldova 3–0.

When he moved to Derby County in the Midlands of England, Eranio quickly became a favourite with the fans as part of an exciting team that included another Italian player, Francesco Baiano.

Eranio is credited with scoring the first goal in a competitive match at Derby's Pride Park Stadium after they moved from the Baseball Ground in 1997. But when the manager, Jim Smith, was fired in 2001, Eranio left too.

He retired in 2003 after spending a season as a player and assistant manager with Serie C2 side, Pro Sesto.

After giving up playing, he became part of the AC Milan youth coaching staff.

He is still regarded as one of the greatest players ever to play for Derby County .

Travel tip:

Liguria in northwest Italy is known as the Italian Riviera. It runs along a section of the Mediterranean coastline between France and Tuscany and is dotted with pretty seaside villages, with houses painted in different pastel colours.

The port city of Genoa is the sixth largest
city in Italy. Photo: Steven Lek (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Travel tip:

Genoa, the capital of Liguria, is the sixth largest city in Italy and has earned the nickname of La Superba because of its proud history as a major port. Part of the old town was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2006 because of the wealth of beautiful 16th century palaces.  

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