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Category

Rituals

TAG

• Music
• Parade
• School
• Singing
• Social practices

WHERE

Poschiavo (Bernina), Graubünden - Switzerland

Start from the Reformed school in Poschiavo. The procession passes through Clalt, Spineo, I Burin, Bignideo, La Palza and Macon reaching at last the valley of Selva, a wide tableland located at 1,450 metres above sea level, a two-hour walk from the town of Poschiavo, on the Western side of the mountain.

WHEN

April-May, on Sunday

WHO

Olgiati-Rüdlinger Gritli
(informant)

Steffani Silvio
(informant)

Feast of Selva in Poschiavo

The Feast of Selva represents one of the most important social events for the Reformed community of Val Poschiavo. Until the 1960s, when the religiously oriented schools were united, the day started at six in the morning with the sound "da allegrezza" (for cheerful occasions) of the campanin (small bell) of the Evangelical church in Poschiavo. The children gathered in a procession and left the town at seven heading for Selva and carrying small flags representing the Swiss Cantons. They used to reach Macon passing through Clalt, Spineo and La Palza. There, the tradition required that the newcomers kissed the bottom of an old lady dressed in tatters, perhaps an old legacy meant to ward off bad luck and tied to witch hunt. The schoolchildren were accompanied not only by teachers and by some parents, but by a great part of the community. Many people came from nearby mountains too. At the sound of the bell, the group reached the tableland of Selva, where they were welcomed with a cup of hot chocolate. After the ceremony in the small Evangelical church, built in 1676, the children moved to the nearby maggenghi (pasture lands where the cattle were led in the month of May) of La Goba and Pozzol, property of the Evangelical community, where they were offered polenta in flur, a speciality made of buckwheat, cream and raisin. Then the children sang songs, played games, did gymnastic exercises, recited poems and performed short plays. In the evening, the participants came back to Poschiavo where they were welcomed by the music of the Municipal Philharmonic Society. The whole group then reached the square where, amid the children's joyful yells, a holiday from school was announced for the following morning.

HISTORICAL-ANALYTICAL NOTES

The Trip to Selva was introduced in 1826, one year after the foundation of the Reformed school in Poschiavo by the minister, theologian and pedagogue Otto Carisch, one of the most outstanding figures in the religious environment of Grigioni in the first half of the Nineteenth century. The aim was to offer the schoolchildren a day of fun and games in the open air in a period in which the occasions for entertainment were definitely limited. Moreover, the trip was meant to remind the flight to Selva of the Protestant families from Poschiavo in 1623, following the anti-Protestant revolt in Valtellina, historically known as Sacro Macello (Holy Massacre).
In 1858, an attempt was made to gather the entire youth of Val Poschiavo for the trip to Selva. Thanks to inspector Lardelli's initiative, more than 500 children from both the towns and confessions gathered in Selva but the event was not repeated afterwards, probably due to the excessive logistic and organizational effort or maybe because of an ill-cooked polenta which caused a few cases of stomachache, as a newspaper, "Il Grigione Italiano", reported.

LEARNING AND TRANSMISSION

Since its beginning, the Feast of Selva has been organized by the school. Until the 1930s, when the last sacristan of Selva died, the sacristan himself was entrusted with the preparation of the polenta in flur with the help of the tenant farmer. The teachers looked after the schoolchildren.
The participation of the whole Reformed community assures that the feast is preserved and passed on.

COMMUNITY

Feast of the Evangelical Community of Poschiavo. The union of the religiously oriented schools (1967-69) brought to the abolition of the school trip on a working day. Therefore, today the event takes place on Sunday. As a consequence, the passage of the organizational responsibilities from the school to the families has reduced the public spirit of the event and its meaning as a way to stress the sense of belonging to a community. This fact, together with low birth rates and, consequently, a smaller number of children belonging to the Protestant community, is the reason for a less numerous  participation in the Feast of Selva today. Besides, the construction of a road has had consequences on the number of people who reach Selva on foot, in accordance with the ancient tradition.

PROTECTIVE MEASURES

Today, a teacher is appointed by the consistory to organize the event.

• Available in:
• ITA
• ENG
• FRA
• DEU

To learn more

Web Sites

• Living Traditions in Switzerland
  

Bibliography

• Pool Silvio
  Almanacco del Grigioni Italiano - Selva
  Pro Grigioni Italiano 1950
  
• Lardelli Tommaso
  La mia biografia con un po' di Storia di Poschiavo nel secolo XIX
  a cura di Fernando Iseppi 2000
  
• La scuola riformata di Poschiavo, commemorazione centenario 1825-1925
  
• Thüler Margit
  Feste im Alpenraum
  
• Storia della Corporazione Evangelica di Poschiavo
  
• Lardelli Antonio
  Almanacco del Grigioni Italiano - Ricordi: la gita a Selva negli anni '20
  Pro Grigioni Italiano 1997
  

Produced by

SVIZZERA Canton Grigioni - Polo Poschiavo - Fabrizio Lardi

Scientific Advisor

Daniele Papacella

Release Date

19-SET-2013 (Fabrizio Lardi)

Last update

05-NOV-2014

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