ROOTS AND WINGS

PROJECT COMENIUS 2008

ITALY-Cutrofiano

HUNGARY-Nyíregyháza ROMANIA-Vaslui

GREECE-Kerkyra

Multilateral Partnership

PROJECT COMENIUS 2008

PROJECT COMENIUS 2008/2010

Description of proposed partnershipThe participating students investigate elements of their national cultural features in the past and the present. They spot elements that have changed and others that remain alive through the time. They compare these elements to the corresponding ones of the other participants and they pinpoint similarities and/or differences.

ROOTS AND WINGS

COMENIUS

PARTNERSHIPS

Comenius group 2008-2009

ISTITUTO

COMPRENSIVO

DI CUTROFIANO

PRESENTS

Log in

SCHOOL YEARS 2008-10The activities in this multimedia work has been carried out by students of the first and second classes of the middle school of the Comprehensive “Don Bosco” in Cutrofiano.Teachers: Prof. Virdi Giuseppe-Paglialonga Monica- Vincenti Vincenzo

Translation and summary by Tiziana Diso

COAT OF ARMS• The origins of the arms have no historical

certainty.It’ s supposed that Filomarini (lord inCutrofiano) had a large herd of fine horses,so on his arms appear a horse.

• That horses were an important part of thelocal economy is illustrated by the ancientname of the main town square, LargoCavallerizza, The Town Hall Square today.

• It is supposed to be S.George on his horsewho kills the dragon which then isdeseappered.

ORIGIN OF THE NAME "CUTROFIANO"

About the roots of the name "Cutrofiano" many scholars have discussed.

There are several hypotheses:As to Rohlfs the name has its roots in the pre-Messapic language(Osco) OCTUFRI, hence the name Cutrofiano, appeared only once in the Middle Ages;

According to some scholars it is a very likely hypothesis common to many towns in Salento-ANO-ending, so many human settlements exist on the site of a Roman municipium;

There is a hypothesis that the name derives from the greek KUTRA(pot) and FUNAI (rise) and then the country where there are pots;According to the tradition Cutrofiano popular name derives from "Cutrubbo, antique vase by for storage of oil.

SIGNS OF THE TIME

ROMAN ROAD

St. John Byzantine crypt

SIGNS OF PREHISTORY IN CUTROFIANO

The modifications undergone in the landscape

over the centuries do not allow a precise reconstruction

of the ancient settlements.

Topografia del territorio di Cutrofiano

As for the ancient people, we

know that the Paleolithicsettlement affects areaswhere there is the presenceof caves and shelters.

The Neolithicsettlement, spread in themost fertile plains close torivers.

The area of themenhirs, followed thedistribution of fertile landwhich coincides with that ofthe tuffs and local stone.

At Cutrofiano were foundprehistoric signs and pre-Romansettlements. Very interestingmaterial was found in the ByzantineCrypt of San Giovanni (nearPISCOPO on the way to Pretore).

St. John Byzantine crypt

Fresco in the crypt of St John.

Entrance to the crypt of St. John

Stone ax. Early Bronze Age.Contrada San Giovanni

The small collection of knives and pieces of flint andobsidian, some clay reels, the beautiful stone and other ceramicfragments found at the site of St. John's (and now preserved inthe local museum) allow us to say that around Cutrofiano therewere human settlements since the late Neolithic and Bronze age(4th - 2nd millennium BC).

Another site ,Badia, could be considered a residentialsettlement in the late Bronze and early Iron Age.

Bronze Age bowl. Contrada San Giovanni

This area is called Greek Salento.

In Roman times, the landscape of Cutrofiano, according to the study ofValeria Melissano, was punctuated by vici (lands), villae rusticae(farms), pagus (village) which, if well connected in some way with eachother could indicate a municipium settlement.

Cover sarcofago.Età Roman Empire Contrada Petrore-Castelli

SIGNS OF HISTORY IN ROMAN CUTROFIANO

From the eleventh century BC, people coming from ILLIRIA (nowAlbania), reached Salento: They were the Iapigi.Iapigi divided the place into Daunia (Foggia), Peugetia (Bari),Messapia (Lecce). They left hundreds of inscriptions in a languagethat will resist until the Roman conquest with the introduction ofLatin.

Almost contemporary to Messapi’smigration there was one from Cretewhich in the sixth century BCfounded colonies. To the south-eastof Lecce exists an area of Greekdescents consisting of nine countriesin which a dialect still survives: thegriko.

The signing of Roman rule in our country is the road texture. Forthe Romans the way is the support for device control for rapidmovement of goods and armies.

Memorial stone Roman Empire

In Roman times, the need for poststations to change horses,encouraged the emergence ofthe towns where there was aroad.

The Romans during the thirdcentury BC had conqueredApulia. Under Augustus itbecame the Royal Secunda.

Even the Latin language eventually conquered the Messapi. TheRomanization is a phenomenon found in letters, arts, civil andmilitary systems.

One of the most interesting was the romanization of toponymynames ending in ANO. It is thought that some nobles from Laziohad been allocated lands in rural areas, for example Squinzano wasthe land of the Quinti, and so Arnesano of the Arnisis family, andcertainly Carmiano of the Carmini’s family and Cutrofiano of theOctufri’s family.

Sarcophagus lid Imperial

Fragments of pottery. Age of Bronze Final

Contrada Badia

Cup monounsata

Cup miniature

Period Messapico

Contrada Jucuraro (Sogliano Cavour)

Missing the Western Roman Empire thecurrent Salento remained under theByzantine Empire

St. John Byzantine crypt

Inside the crypt

V. MELISSANO, Archaeological research in the territory of Cutrofiano-Galatina 1990

Kilix. Age Messapica (3rd - 4th

century. A.C

Contrada Jacurao (Sogliano Cavour).

Lexan. Age Messapica.

Contrada Jacurao (Sogliano Cavour)

Memorial stone. Roman Imperial Age

Contrada Petrore-Castelli

Coperchio Sarcofago. Età Romana Imperiale.

Contrada Petrore.Castelli

Sarcofago. Età Romana Imperiale.

Contrada Petrore-Castelli

The ancient

walls...These were

probably the walls

which surrounded

Cutrofiano……

Inside the

walls…..there

were the most

important

buildings

becouse the

old town was

the heart of

social,

political and

religious

affairs.

Buildings inside the walls

The city walls

just outside the walls were

held the workshops .... The museum

collects testimonies of links between Cutrofiano and

ceramics

Cutrofiano Greek and Byzantine

From the fifth century AD, after the fall of theRoman empire, Salento became a battleground. Inthe ninth century it was reconquered byByzantium.

Attuale P.zza F. Cavallotti

The Byzantines reached Cutrofiano from Calabria;In the cave of St. John in Cutrofiano there is aByzantine fresco.

Our Magna Grecia is not Greek but Byzantinebecause we came, not only from Greece butfrom the Middle East (Albanians, Armenians,Palestinians, Syrians, Lebanese). These peoplebrought with them their saints, their ritestheir language. One of this community settledin Cutrofiano. The monks began to frequentthe site of St. John named Grottella whichwas the ancient place of worship. Around theeighth-ninth century that is contemporaryrock settlement to a smaller one locatedaround the present Piazza Cavallotti.

GRIKO in SALENTO:AN ISLAND OF GREECE

. When does Griko form in Salento?

There are two theories:The first refers to the unbroken historical continuity between the Griko speakers and people of Salento.The second one backs the 'greek’ settlement in Byzantine times.Currently, the presence of griko in Salento is reduced to only nine centers

(Calimera, Martignano, Corigliano, Starnatia, Soleto, Zollino, Castrignano,Martano and Melpignano), whereas in past centuries this was a largest area.

The gradual decrease of "Griko" comes from the following reasons:1. Religious: the abolition of the Orthodox rite2. Political unification of Italy.3. Economic and social migration, social development, the standardization oflanguage and information.

It 's so that Antonio

Costantini defines our

architecture: “Trulli

,pajare, dry walls and

mirrors that have

marked our history

1700-1800 - During this period the development of

trulli have the greatest development. The owner

builds admirably temporary shelters, having circular

or square pyramidal or conical shape, surrounds

them of olive trees and figs, legumes and so on.

SIGNS OF OUR HISTORY

Signs that fortunately

survived in our country and

representing our history. Not that, because we are on

this land, these places are ours,

are our only if we know them, love

them, we protect and defend them

One of the finest

traditions of our

country was the

custom of

lighting huge

stacks of wood,

called "focare"

generally

consisting of

bundles of vines.

It happens along

the streets on the

evening of

February 17th of

each year ..

THE FOCARE

• This tradition has been handed down among the inhabitants of Cutrofiano for more than two centuries, and it occurs to thank Santantonio who had escaped the danger of earthquake.Until a few years ago, at the end of the evening, when the

flames were extinguished, every family, generally using lu scarfalettu (warming pan) collect a certain amount of embers and brought them home. It was considered as a sacred fire with which they roast a bit bread, snails, potatoes, or cooked dried vegetables, especially peas and beans. Sometimes the fire was inserted into a circular wooden bench, around which sat the whole family, eating and telling tales and stories.

THE CUREMMAAfter the period of carnival, the women hang onthe terraces of the houses the Curemma, an oldand thin puppet dressed in black ,full of symbolicelements. In one hand holding a stick, on the othera spindle with seven feathers representing theseven weeks of Lent, a period of fasting,abstinence from meat and from foods of animalorigin (milk , eggs, cheese).

There is the tradition of singing Santu Lazzaru the nights of Thursday, Friday and Saturday before The Palm. It is not specifically tied to Lent, but in some ways it was a rite of agriculture.

Indeed, in past times men with accordions and drums were in the countryside and the farms singing a lullaby to wish prosperity and good vintage.

Another hypothesis on the origin of this song is that these verses were sung by storytellers.