The Giubiana is a traditional celebration having great popularity in the northern Italian region of Lombardy, and particularly in Brianza, as well as in the region of Piedmont. During the last Thursday in January, bonfires are lit, on which the Giubiana is burnt.
The name
The name of this witch, and of the festival, changes according to the different languages spoken in these regions:
According to some, she is named after the ancient Roman GodJupiter, and this is why celebrations are held on Thursdays. Furthermore, according to popular traditions, on Thursday nights witches assembled for Sabbath.
The festivity
In the days before the festival the villagers collect all that's combustible, and put a pyre together. After a procession through the village street, the Giubiana is placed on the pyre and set on fire. The rite is both symbolic and propitiatory. The Giubiana is burnt to ashes to terminate the winter, so that the pyre flame is believed to predict an abundant harvest in the upcoming year. In some parts of eastern Brianza, the Giubiana is accompanied by a masculine character, the Ginée, her husband and the personification of January. In Canzo the celebration is particularly well-constructed; other symbolic and traditional characters are seen during the procession along historic centre, for example Anguana, the Òmm selvadech, the Bear and the Hunter, the Executioner, the Candelabrum-bearers, the 'Bun e Gramm', the so-called Lawyer of the Lost Causes, the soothsayer, the Scarenna men, the Woman of the Street, the historical Firemen, the Shepherd, the Woodsman, the Carriage of the Peasants, the Sledge, and others. The "Cumpagnia di Nost" organizes the festivity, in which the town is adorned with black and red hangings ; the symbol of the festivity is the red leg of the Giubiana; also the music of the drums and of the baghèt is mournful, but after burning it becomes cheerful because the evil has been eliminated; traditional costumes are worn. The atmosphere is sacral and joyful, thanks to the Celtic and Christian symbolism.
