Tim Cavanaugh San Quentin

Gossips St. Agnes

L'Aquila, Jan. 21 - The ancient tradition of St. Agnes, well known to all Aquila, devotes each year so the collegiate rite of slander. Last year, despite the tragedy of the earthquake was still very recent, the Aquila have still decided to honor this ancient rite, although to a lesser extent, as the party continued to be felt as element of the town.

On the origins of this tradition that is celebrated only in L'Aquila, and handed down for many centuries now, are the two most reliable theories. The first argues that in the early years of the founding of the city, there were various groups of people who gathered, aided by the harsh winter at inns and taverns to criticize the rulers of that time. For this reason, one of these groups was exiled from the city. Having been exiled January 21, were nicknamed "those of St. Agnes." After six months, following several requests by mothers, wives and girlfriends, "those St. Agnes, "were released to the city but on condition that they did more than gossip within the city walls. Therefore they took to meet at an inn near the Porta Rivera, just outside the city walls.

The other hypothesis is related to the fact that Aquila, was dedicated to St. Agnes convent. In 1874, the monastery was incorporated into the structures of the Hospital "San Salvatore" avenue of Nice, where are still visible both monastic and is the beautiful church of St. Agnes Chapel of the hospital until the transfer of the same in pairs. Formerly the convent that housed those Antinori, the historical Aquila, called the people of "poor life" ie "repent or badly married, and even among these prostitutes. These women, often went "in service" from the wealthy families of the city, so coming to know the secrets of the noble houses in which they worked, they put in that secret place inside and outside the convent, served with the inevitable dose of exaggeration, whenever they had the opportunity to meet and exchange gossip and confidences. This occurred particularly during the celebrations dedicated to Santa which was called the monastery, and rightly so, for the occasion, he saw them all together, even for the gratitude I definitely felt towards the nuns of the convent of St. Agnes. Among them, but here we are in the field of hypotheses, we created a kind of hierarchy based on the ability of gossip, a hierarchy that may have taken the legacy that is established each year, even today, with both vote.

Over time, even members of the nobility and the bourgeoisie celebrated the feast of St. Agnes, even if, given their class, was assigned to a single charge, that of Prior. All the other posts from the most imaginative and high-sounding, are of plebeian extraction.
For this tradition, L'Aquila, the evening of January 21 and congregations together in brotherhoods with the aim to use the language well, even in the sense Gourmet, to elect them to the various offices, a distinctive feature of ricorrenza.Ce are some of the historic, that recur in all fraternities, but otherwise even here the imagination of L'Aquila has broken and some people do over two hundred cariche.Ogni respectable group must have its own president, the one with the longest tongue of all, often assisted by a Deputy President or a Secretary. Rounding out the executive should not miss the ever Lavannara, she Lima Deaf, which corrodes, but in silence, and Mother Deji Deji cocks atria, which did not need much more explanation. For the rest you can sweep your imagination: from "Ju Zellusu" , the one who always protest, the " Recchia cold" or "de Recchia priest," what is always to eavesdrop, to "Lengua filthy" to "ju Capisciò . Among these brotherhoods that of "Devotees of St. Agnes " is best known for 45 years and elects the Prior who, like to point out that "not alludes to" speak ill "but " say evil " , preserving the spirit of the ancient infamous and never nice costume.