Patronal Feast of Maria SS. del Rosario (La Settembrina)

The Patronal Feast of Palma di Montechiaro

In the heart of southern Sicily, overlooking the sea of the Agrigento province, the town of Palma di Montechiaro dedicates September 8th every year to its celestial Patron Saint, Maria Santissima del Rosario. The civil and religious festivities are known to all locals by the affectionate name «La Settembrina»: it is a moment when the community, including many families who have emigrated and return for the occasion, reconnects with its deepest identity.

Faith and Devotion

The religious heart of the festival beats in the Mother Church (Duomo) of Maria SS. del Rosario, located in the historic center. The day of September 8th culminates with a solemn Eucharistic celebration and the procession of the Madonna's statue, carried on shoulders through the main streets of the town, accompanied by confraternities, the faithful, and the sound of the brass band. It is a long and well-attended pageant that winds through the neighborhoods amidst prayers, devotional songs, and the affection of an entire community.

Music, Entertainment, and Tradition

Alongside the spiritual dimension, «La Settembrina» offers a rich civil program. The evenings come alive with concerts, music and dance shows, and entertainment and cabaret performances set up in the town squares. Among the most anticipated events are the band concerts and the evening shows leading up to the Patron Saint's day, while the traditional fireworks light up the sky at the end of the festival, greeted by the applause of the crowd.

A Festival That Lasts All Month

The festivities for the Patron Saint are part of a broader September calendar that enlivens Palma di Montechiaro for much of the month, with side events featuring music, entertainment, and culture. The festival thus represents not only an appointment of devotion but also an opportunity for social gathering, meeting, and promoting the popular traditions of the Agrigento territory.

Palma di Montechiaro and Sicily

Founded in the 17th century by the Tomasi family, ancestors of the writer Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa, Palma di Montechiaro is one of the most evocative centers in the province of Agrigento, in Sicily. The feast of its Patron Saint, Maria SS. del Rosario, is the thread that binds the present to its centuries-old history, renewing an appointment awaited by the entire community every September 8th.