Calendimaggio (Kalènnemàju) and Vertuti Festival

An archaic rite in the heart of Sabina

The Calendimaggio, known in the local dialect of Paganico Sabino as Kalènnemàju, is one of the most unique folk traditions in the province of Rieti and the entire Lazio region. Every May 1st, this small village overlooking the Turano Valley, surrounded by woods and chestnut groves, renews a propitiatory gesture rooted in peasant culture and the cult of the May Calends, when the return of spring was welcomed as a true rebirth after the harshness of winter.

The gesture and the formula

The central moment is disarmingly simple, which is exactly why it strikes those witnessing it for the first time. The inhabitants, strictly on an empty stomach, dip three walnut kernels into a glass of wine while reciting the dialect formula "San Félìppu e Jàku, faccio a Kalènnemàju, se mòro affonno, se nò ritorno", an invocation to Saints Philip and James, whose feast day traditionally fell around this time. If the kernels float, the year will be favorable for the harvest; if they sink, the omen is less benevolent. It is a small domestic oracle that every family has repeated for generations, which the local Pro Loco has successfully brought into the collective dimension of the festival.

The Vertuti Festival

Once the rite is over, the day naturally shifts to the table. The vertuti are a humble yet sophisticated soup, created to use up the last supplies of the winter pantry before the new agricultural cycle: beans, chickpeas, fava beans, wheat, and corn cooked slowly, seasoned with wild thyme gathered on the surrounding slopes, and finished with Sabina extra virgin olive oil, one of the oldest denominations in Italy. Alongside the soup, the menu offers macaroni with tomato sauce, grilled sausages, bruschetta, and local wine, served under the covered area set up for the occasion.

Exhibitions, village, and views

The festival goes beyond gastronomy. From the morning, the Sala San Nicola hosts permanent exhibitions dedicated to Peasant Civilization Tools and Sacred Furnishings, concrete testimonies of a rural world that has not yet entirely disappeared here. A walk through the historic center leads to the Torre Portaia and the Belvedere della Rocca, from which the view embraces Lake Turano and the surrounding mountains, while the churches of Santa Maria dell'Annunciazione, San Nicola, and San Giovanni Battista complete the visit to the village. Local producers' stalls offer cheeses, cured meats, honey, and oil from the valley.

A community-built festival

The organization is entirely handled by the Pro Loco of Paganico Sabino, officially founded in 1981 and active continuously since 1991: by 2012, the event had already seen twenty-two editions, making it one of the longest-running and most defining events for the Municipality of Paganico Sabino. The same association manages other popular initiatives throughout the year, from the Sagne Strasciate Festival to the autumn Chestnut Festival, as well as nature excursions, concerts, and local publications. In recent years, the festival has adopted a plastic-free policy to minimize waste production.

Why it's worth the trip

In just over an hour from Rome, you arrive in a village of a few dozen inhabitants where a peasant tradition is still practiced, not reconstructed for visitors. This is what makes the Paganico Calendimaggio different from more spectacular re-enactments: the welcome is familiar, the pace is the slow one of the Turano Valley, and the festival maintains the scale of a community celebrating itself and its land.