Carnival of Satriano di Lucania

Carnival of Satriano di Lucania Carnevale di Satriano di Lucania
Mural of participants dressed up as a bear and the hermit
Status	Active
Genre	Carnival
Frequency	Annually
Location(s)	Satriano di Lucania
Country	Italy
Inaugurated	unknown (unknown)

The Carnival of Satriano (Italian: Carnevale di Satriano), held in Satriano di Lucania, Italy every February, is one of the country's many carnivals. Held on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday before Fat Tuesday (a Mardi Gras festival), it has been conducted for centuries. The event is among the most important carnival traditions of the region and of Italy and it is unique in that participants wear costumes, or masks, of bears, hermits, or lent.

The carnival has been held for centuries, but its origins are largely unknown. One theory is that it comes from the historical destruction of the ancient town Satrianum by Queen Joanna II of Anjou-Durazzo after an aristocratic girl and protégée of the queen was raped in 1421 by young men wearing goat skins. Three symbols, or masks, represent the nature of the crime. Representing the young men dressed in animal skins are skin-cladden bears. Poverty following the destruction of the town is represented by the hermits and sadness is represented by the lent, the women dressed in black.

Another hypothesis promoted before World War II is that a Franciscan hermit lived in poverty in the woods by the town and came to the town in search of food.

The meaning of the symbolic figures have changed over time. Originally, the bear took revenge for people who have wrongly suffered and disguised himself in the skins of goats and sheep. The hermit, a tree-like man, chose to live in the forest of his homeland rather than migrate to another area. In the past, the hermit received food for visiting homes and silently giving an omen during the festival.

Carnival, little carnival, give me a bit of salami, and if you do not want to give me that, I hope that it soon rots.

For a period of time, and by 2013, the festival or some of its customs were not observed. Now, the carnival focuses on ecological values.

The carnival is organized by the town of Satriano di Lucania in collaboration with Al Parco and the Lucano Apennine National Park. Private companies, associations, and volunteers coordinate efforts to conduct the carnival. It kicks off with a parade of costumed people from Basilicata towns Teana, Cirigliano, Aliano, Montescaglioso, San Mauro Forte, Tricarico, and Lavello on Friday night, and concludes at Abbamonte square, where there are food stands and folk music. In 2017, the parade was televised by Rai Uno's program La vita in diretta. An allegorical parade with people wearing bear, hermit and lent costumes, as well as a wedding procession in which the bride and groom exchange roles, is conducted on Saturday. In it, women dress as men, and men wear women's clothing. Floats are pulled by non-motorized vehicles.