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Per la Santa Candelora se nevica o se gragnola
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Many Italian proverbs, especially regarding the weather, are associated with this day. One of the most popular sayings is, “Per la Santa Candelora se nevica o se gragnola, dell’inverno siamo fora, ma se è sole o solicello, siamo sempre a mezzo inverno”
- For the Holy Candelora, it it snows or if it rains, we are through with winter, but if there is sunshine or even just a little sun, we are still in the middle of winter’. In English-speaking countries, where the feast of Candelora is known as Candlemas Day (or Candle Mass), the saying is similar to the Italian: If Candlemas day be sunny and bright, winter will have another flight, if Candlemas day be cloudy with rain*, winter is gone and won’t come again.
Traditionally the Western term “Candlemas” (or Candle Mass) referred to the practice whereby a priest on 2 February blessed beeswax candles with an aspergilium for use throughout the year, some of which were distributed to the faithful for use in the home.
So what is the connection between these symbolic religious celebrations and the weather?
The answer is – Astronomy.
The transition point between seasons. February 2 is a cross-quarter day, halfway between the winter solstice and the spring equinox.
For millennia, people in the Northern Hemisphere have noted that if the sun comes out at the mid-way point between winter and spring, winter weather would continue for another six weeks. As one might imagine, for humans living a subsistence existence the difference was an important one, with implications for survival as well as hunting and crops. It is not surprising that rituals and celebrations were linked to it. source Wikipedia and The Florentine
*today it rained non stop ALL day.
Click on the link below to hear Natale Bertolini recite the Candelora poem (in Italiano)
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(c) RIPRODUZIONE RISERVATA
9:55 am
As always, Barganews is a valuable window into local traditions for those of us who were not raised in Tuscany. Sometimes, the window even casts light on the traditions of our own native lands.
On February 2, la Santa Candelora here, the United States and Canada celebrate Groundhog day — on which, according to folklore, this small North American mammal climbs briefly out of its burrow for a look around. If it doesn’t see its shadow, due to snowfall or rain, winter will soon end. If it does see its shadow (because the sun is shining), winter will continue for six more weeks and the groundhog goes back into hibernation.
In a way, this amplifies Jack Nannini’s contention that the chronicle of America — and of its habits and beliefs — is in many ways a continuation of Europe’s history. Not entirely, of course, but to a remarkable degree.