January 6 is the Epiphany, a holiday in Italy. It’s the day when the Three Kings come to Jesus. In this day arrives in Italy also the Befana. But who is the Befana? What does she bring?Â
Who is the Befana?
The Befana is an old, ugly woman who fly across the country on her broom in the night between the 5th and 6th of January and fills the socks by the fireplace, which the children had hung up the day before, with sweets and little presents. But beware: children who were not well-behaved will get coal! Actually, the Befana’s sweet coal is really tasty 😉
Here is a very famous children rhyme (there are different versions):
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La Befana vien di notte
con le scarpe tutte rotte
con le toppe alla sottana
viva viva La Befana!Â
(The Befana comes at night – with completely worn-out shoes – with patches on her skirt – long live the Befana! / hurrah for the Befana!)
The Three Kings
January 6, Epiphany (it. l’Epifania) is an holiday and the last day of Christmas. People in Italy take part to the Epiphany Mass, where people dressed as the Three Kings bring their present to Jesus.
For lunch they meet with their family to enjoy the last day of Christmas together. There is no typical dish for this, but there are various traditional desserts, depending on the region. For example, it is typical in Lombardy, especially in the province of Varese, where our Ellie comes from, to eat the Cammello: it is a simple pastry made of puff pastry, shaped like a camel, in memory of the Three Kings who came to Jesus on camels.
After having eaten, all the Christmas decorations, the nativity scene and the Christmas tree are taken down. Christmas is over and the next day school starts again. As the saying goes:Â
L’Epifania, tutte le feste si porta via!
(The Epiphany takes all holidays away!)
Pic sources: Re Magi Milano, Cammello
Buona Epifania a tutti!
TRADITIONS AND CULTURE
6th January in Italy
Who is the Befana? What do people do in Italy on Epiphany? What is the Cammello?
Activities and exercises
La Befana vien di notte – Material for A1/A2
Learn the tradition of Befana and new vocabulary with a nursery rhyme.
STORIES TO READ AND LISTEN TO
Poesia: La Befana di Giovanni Pascoli (B1/B2)
A poem about the Befana by the famous poet Giovanni Pascoli.
La storia dei Tre Re Magi (A2)
The story of the Three Kings in Italian from our Advent Calendar.
FROM OUR BOOKSHOP
Le più belle storie della Befana
Read the most beautiful stories about the Befana in Italian!
