Traditions and folklore Aragon
January
St. Anthony Abbot is celebrated, with rediscovery to ancient traditions, blessing of animals, tasting of typical products in the neighborhood of “Furca Vò,” and the concluding ride.
February
Aragonese Carnival, with parade of floats.
March
St. Joseph the Craftsman is celebrated, with a procession of the saint through the streets of the town, fireworks and the traditional Tavulata.
April
Aragonese Holy Week. Celebrations begin on Palm Sunday with the blessing and procession in the parishes. On Thursday in the Carmel Church the “Deposition of Christ from the Cross” takes place and then throughout the night the vigil and visit to the tombs. On Good Friday, celebrations begin in the morning with the procession of the Nazarene and Our Lady of Sorrows to Calvary where, at 12 noon sharp, the Crucifixion of Christ takes place. Around 8 p.m., an urn adorned with four angels and a woven palm tree with the dead Christ inside, moves in procession through the streets of the historic center, accompanied by statues of Our Lady of Sorrows, St. John and Mary Magdalene, the brass band and hundreds of faithful. The procession ends around midnight with the burial taking place on the square in front of the Church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. The central moment of the Easter events, however, is Easter Sunday when the so-called “Meeting of the Giants” takes place at noon, a performance that takes place using the statues of the Risen Lord and the Virgin as well as the Spanish statues of St. Peter and St. Paul. The events continue on the next two Sundays when the statue of Our Lady of the Rosary is carried in procession through the streets of the town, again accompanied by Saints Peter and Paul. On the second Sunday of Easter, the Tagano Festival takes place.
May
Our Lady of Fatima, crowned Queen of Aragon on May 13, 1950 by Cardinal Ruffini, is celebrated. Our Lady is venerated throughout the month of May inside the Mother Church where the faithful go to bring flowers and pause in prayer. On May 13, the procession of the venerated simulacrum of Our Lady of Fatima through the streets of the city takes place, and fireworks are exploded on its return. Tied to the festivities are the “Children’s Folklore Meeting” and the “Marian Choral Review.”
June
Corpus Christi is celebrated, with the Eucharistic procession through the streets of the city.
July
Aragonese Summer, with art, music, theater and the striking “White Nights.”
August
May: Our Lady of Fatima, crowned Queen of Aragon on May 13, 1950 by Cardinal Ruffini, is celebrated. Our Lady is venerated throughout the month of May inside the Mother Church where the faithful go to bring flowers and pause in prayer. On May 13, the procession of the venerated simulacrum of Our Lady of Fatima through the streets of the city takes place, and fireworks are exploded on its return. Tied to the festivities are the “Children’s Folklore Meeting” and the “Marian Choral Review.”
May/June: Corpus Christi is celebrated, with the Eucharistic procession through the streets of the city.
July/August: Aragon Summer, with art, music, theater and the striking “White Nights.” August: Our Lady of Mercede is celebrated on the first Sunday, anticipated by a
novena with the recitation of the Holy Rosary in strictly Aragonese dialect and the singing of “Salve Regina.”
On the concluding Sunday around 6 p.m. Holy Mass is celebrated with the blessing of the emigrants, after which the Procession of Our Lady of Mercede is held through the streets of the city, and fireworks are exploded on the return. On the third Sunday, however, St. John Bosco is celebrated, with a Eucharistic procession through the streets of the “Serre” district and fireworks.
September
Santa Rosalia is celebrated on the first Sunday with a procession of the statue through the streets of the district of the same name and fireworks. On the second Saturday, the traditional Sausage Festival takes place, handed down from year to year; since 2007, the Festival has been held at the streets of the old town center, reviving the old tradition. The sausage is roasted by Aragonese butchers at quaint stands located along the streets. On the second Sunday, however, “St. Vincent Ferreri” is celebrated, which is the most important feast of the town, singing and cabaret shows, a livestock fair, the procession of the saint, and fireworks that conclude the Aragonese Summer.
October
day 4 St. Francis of Assisi is celebrated, with a novena, blessing of animals, and procession of the statue through the city streets. The second Sunday, however, celebrates Our Lady of the Rosary, who has been the Patroness of Aragon since 1875. In his honor there is the tasting of “Pani cunzatu,” religious and fraternal moments, the Procession of the statue through the streets of the city, the “Festival of the Aragonese cuddiruni,” and fireworks.
November
On the 2nd the faithful departed, those who died in the wars, those who died in Nassirya and those who fell in the mines are remembered with a procession to the cemetery.
December: day 8 Immaculate Conception is celebrated with a procession through the streets of the village. Instead, from the 16th to the 24th the Nannaredde (Christmas novenas) take place.
Kitchen
The first Sunday after Easter in Aragon is the Tagano festival. The dish that symbolizes Easter in Aragon is u taganuuna dish made of pasta, eggs, and tuma. The name comes from the pan in which it is cooked on Holy Saturday afternoon to be eaten on Angel Monday. Baked in the oven for at least two hours it can be eaten cold or hot. The dish can be enjoyed with new white wine.
Another typical dish of Aragonese cuisine is ‘mbriulata or imbriulata, which consists of rolled salty bread dough stuffed inside with various ingredients: olives, onion and minced pork seasoned with olive oil, salt and pepper.