by SunTiger

Created on: July 06, 2008

Once a year, long before anyone in Italy had ever heard of Santa Clause, the Italians and Romans celebrated the coming of La Befana a very good old witch who left her home in the wintry North and flew to bless every home where a sleeping child could be found.

While La Befana fills stockings with candy, much like Santa Claus does today, she is not jolly like him. In fact, she's actually depicted as quite poor and hideous-looking; bony and wrinkled. Instead of a fuzzy red cape, she wears ill-fitting and ragged shoes, clothes sewn with colorful patches and a red mole upon her nose. Just the same, she's very likeable and loving. She also adores children (and they love her in return).

Once on any given rooftop, she enters the house through the chimney, or, in modern apartment buildings, through the keyhole. Unlike Santa, who rides the skies behind eight reindeer, La Befana rides upon her very own broom and she always makes her rounds on the eve of Epiphany, (January 5th). Resembling Santa in the way he prefers NOT to be seen, a child who happens to surprise La Bafana, while she inserts candy into their socks, will likely get thumped on the head by the end of her broomstick!

The following morning, January 6th is a Christian feast day which celebrates the three wise men who visited the birth place of Jesus Christ. La Bafana reportedly met them when she opened her door to feed the travelers. They were tired from following the nativity star in search of the manger. Since she cared for them, the men invited the kindly La Bafana to travel with them but she had many housecleaning chores to do and didn't quite grasp that they were searching for God's own child. Later, when she realized the loftiness of their quest, she deserted her cleaning duties and pursued after her guests. While she never caught up to them, she began presenting candy to good children (and coal to bad children) whom she met upon her way.

To this day La Befana knows when children have been good or bad and she knows when they're awake. When she visits a family in their home, instead of tracking soot across any living room floor (like Santa might do) she actually sweeps up, quite tidily.

To entice La Befana's favors, families set out libations for her; including a small glass of wine with any variety of locally grown food. Perhaps Santa would lose some weight if he gave up his gifts of milk and cookies to follow La Befana's healthier dietary example!

In some customs, La Befana leaves all children a black-colored piece of hard-candy that merely looks like coal, since all children are suspected of being naughty every now and then. Even still, the coal-candy tastes good. So nobody really feels punished by her.

Learn more about this author, SunTiger.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.