Sons of Italy Releases 2007 Festival Directory
Washington, DC--
April 23, 2007
A free directory of over 440 annual Italian American
festivals in the United States is now available through
the Order Sons of Italy in America (OSIA), the oldest
and largest national organization for men and women
of Italian heritage in the United States.
The Sons of Italy 2007 Italian Festival Directory lists
442 festivals in 34 states and the District of Columbia
that are held between February and December
annually. The directory supplies each festival's name,
month it is held, city, state and contact information. It is
42 pages long and is based on information about
festivals held by Sons of Italy chapters as well as on
the research of Paul Porcelli, an expert on Italian
American festivals.
The early Italian immigrants brought the custom of
honoring saints with outdoor ceremonies to America
more than 100 years ago. The festivals vary in size
and character. Some consist of only the saint's
statue, a band and a procession, while others are
colossal celebrations that last several days and
include symphonic bands, entertainers, food stands,
rides and fireworks. A familiar sight at most festivals
is the saint's statue covered with money or jewelry,
which is later donated to the local church or saint's
society.
The five states with the most festivals are: New York
(91); New Jersey (69); Pennsylvania (67); Illinois (33);
and Massachusetts (32). Other states with significant
numbers of festivals include California (29), Ohio (22),
Connecticut (22) and Rhode Island (13).
Italian festivals are held coast to coast, including
Maine, Alabama, Wisconsin, Missouri, Nebraska,
Colorado, Nevada, Washington State and Texas.
According to Porcelli, the oldest festival is believed to
be the Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in
Hammonton, N.J., which this year celebrates its
132nd anniversary in July. The biggest festival is the
Feast of San Gennaro held every September in New
York City, which attracts about one million people.
Other large festivals are in Milwaukee ("Festa Italiana"
in July) and Clarksburg, W.V. (the Italian Heritage
Festival in August).
Some festivals include such traditional events as the
Flight of the Angels (the Feast of the Madonna del
Soccorso di Sciacca in Boston, in August; the Feast of
Our Lady of Laurentana in Berwyn, Ill., in September),
the Greased Pole Contest (the Feast of St. Peter in
Gloucester, Mass., in June; the Feast of Saint Rocco
in Malden, Mass., in August), and the Dance of the Lily,
in which about 100 men carry a five-ton platform
through the streets for hours (in Brooklyn, East
Harlem and Massapequa, N.Y., in June and July).
The Sons of Italy directory is free. To download a copy
of the report Click Here. For a printed copy, send a
large (9" x 12"), self-addressed envelope with $2.07 in
stamps on it to:
Sons of Italy Festival Directory
219 E Street NE
Washington, DC 20002
Sorry. No telephone or fax orders.
To add your festival to next year's directory, please
contact OSIA headquarters in Washington by mail at
the above address or by fax (202/547-1492) or e-mail:
kcafiero@osia.org
. No telephone calls, please.
Send the name of the festival, month held, city, state
and a contact person or organization with a telephone
number and/or email address. Deadline for
submissions: January 31, 2008.
Order Sons of Italy in America
OSIA is the largest and oldest national
organization in the United States for men and women
of Italian descent in the United States. Established in
1905, OSIA has more than 600,000 members and
supporters and a network of more than 745 chapters
coast to coast.
OSIA works at the community, national and
international levels to promote the heritage and
culture of an estimated 16-26 million Italian
Americans, the nation’s fifth largest ethnic group,
according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
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Contact:
Kylie Cafiero
Director of Communications
phone:
202/547-2900
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