Ferragosto

Ferragosto is a public holiday celebrated on 15 August throughout Italy. It originates from Feriae Augusti, the festival of Emperor Augustus, who made August 1st a day of rest after weeks of hard work in the agricultural sector. Eventually, it was customary for the workers to wish their employers buon Ferragosto and receive a monetary bonus in return. During the early medieval period, the Catholic Church moved the date of Ferragosto from August 1 to August 15, the feast day of the Assumption of Mary, to integrate the pre-existing celebration into the cycle of the Christian year.

During these celebrations, horse races were organized across the empire, and beasts of burden (including oxen, donkeys and mules) were given a rest from work and decorated with flowers. Such ancient traditions still exist today. In Siena, for example, the Palio dell’ Assunta takes place on August 16. In fact, the name Palio comes from the pallium, a piece of precious fabric that is the prize given to winners, just as in the horse races in ancient Rome.

Benito Mussolini used the festivity to give the lower classes the opportunity to visit cultural cities or go to the seaside for one to three days, from August 14–16, creating “holiday trains” with very inexpensive tickets for this holiday period. Food and board were not included, which is why even today Italians associate packed lunches and barbecues with this day. Mid-August is also the summer vacation period, which may be a long weekend (ponte di Ferragosto) or most of August. Until 2010, 90% of companies, shops and industries closed, as signs on shuttered shops explained:

“Closed for vacation.”

However, because closing an entire country’s economy for a full month would result in serious financial impacts and workplace backlogs, most companies now close for about two weeks and require all workers to take mandatory vacation, like the practice of workplaces closing between Christmas and New Year’s Day.

So, hopefully you have been enjoying your ferie this summer and are looking forward to events starting this fall. On September 20, plan to attend Pizza Palooza in Market Square, and on October 17 the Fredericksburg-Este Association will offer a free lecture at St. George’s church. Mark your calendars and stay tuned for details!

Also, if you have decided that it is time to improve your Italian, there are myriad courses available starting this fall from 7weekitalian.com and the Italian Cultural Society of Washington, DC, among others. Further information will be provided soon.