The origin of the Epiphany tradition
The Christmas season in Italy comes to an end with the arrival of the Befana, the world’s most famous old lady, who is said to fly across the country on her broomstick at night, filling the stockings hanging in homes everywhere.

This tradition is closely tied to the Christian celebration of the feast of Epiphany. In Western Christianity, the feast commemorates the visit of the Magi to the infant Jesus and marks Christ’s revelation to non-Jewish peoples. For this reason, it is often called the Feast of the Three Kings or, in some traditions, “Little Christmas.”

In Eastern Churches, the focus is instead on the baptism of Jesus in the River Jordan, seen as the moment he reveals himself to the world as the Son of God. This event is also celebrated as the feast of Epiphany, or Theophany, with the traditional site of John the Baptist’s ministry located at Al-Maghtas, in Jordan.

But who is the old lady everyone calls “Befana”?
The Befana is an elderly woman whose figure blends ancient pagan rituals of an old female figure symbolizing the passing year and the rebirth of nature with the Christian story of the Three Kings. According to legend, the Magi once asked an old woman for help in finding Jesus; she refused at first, later regretted it, and went in search of them, carrying gifts from house to house.

From this combination emerged the legend of the Befana as she is known today: an old woman who, on the night between January 5 and 6, visits children and fills the stockings left by the fireplace with sweets for the well-behaved and coal for those who have been naughty. This charming tradition is one of the highlights of the feast of Epiphany in Italy.

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