Tarantella and the Musical Tradition of Southern Italian Greeks

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Tarantella and the Musical Tradition of Southern Italian Greeks

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The musical tradition of the Italian Greek populations of Southern Italy remains strong to this day, as do the variations of the language that has been spoken since the 8th century BCE.

The popular tarantella folk dance and the accompanying songs are part of a long tradition of two ancient cultures that have influenced each other through the centuries.

The first Greek colonies in modern day Italy were established in the south around 700 BCE by Achaeans. They were organized around two main centers. The first is located in the southeastern tip of Italy (in the Puglia region) and specifically on the Salento peninsula. The second center is located in Calabria, southeast of Reggio.

As the colonies multiplied, the term Magna Graecia (Greater Greece) came into effect, a term that several of the local descendants of the ancient Greek settlers like to use to this day.

In both Salento and Calabria, two dialects were semi-officially used before the unification of Italy into a single state in 1861. One was Greek with two subdialects, which in the Grecia Salentina region is called Griko, while in the Bovesia region, the similar Grecanico is spoken.

The other, the

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, is derived from Latin, but is distinct from the official Italian language. Its exclusively oral transmission ensured its continuity and survival for over a thousand years. Archaic-Doric, Hellenistic and Byzantine influences from the local Romance dialect are found in these Greek linguistic idioms of Southern Italy, due to the long coexistence of the two dialects.

Greek musical traditions

The musical tradition of Magna Graecia goes alongside the customs and the linguistic traditions that developed over the years. It includes songs that correspond to all aspects of everyday life. Although there are differences between the musical traditions of Salento and Calabria, the popular poetry of these regions presents, for the most part, a varied but similar theme.

Consequently, in all the communities of Southern Italy we see compositions such as laments, love songs (serenades), wedding songs, work songs, religious songs, lullabies, “short songs for the entertainment of children” and dance songs prevailing.

The lyrics of the songs were written mainly in Greek and Romance dialects and more rarely in Italian, without showing any differences in the essence of their themes. Some of them are of particular beauty, emotionally charged and insightful.

The tarantella is the most popular traditional dance of Southern Italy, also known as the “spider dance.” It took its name from the tarantula spider (tarantola) which was named after the Italian city of Taranto, where this species is found.

Southern Italy and Sicily were colonized by the ancient Greeks in the 8th century BCE during the second colonization. From then on and for the next 200 years, Greek tribes founded colonies, creating the famous Magna Grecia (Greater Greece), which was marked by the cultural flowering of the Apulia and Calabria regions, starting from Brindisi and Lecce and reaching the Salento region. Despite the passing of centuries, Greek culture is still very strong in the region, with the famous tarantella forming a connection between Greek and Italian culture.

Tarantella and the Grecanico dialect

The Greek influence on the tarantella songs is in the lyrics, which are written and sung in the Grecanico dialect. The Greek community in Southern Italy remained distinct until the end of the Byzantine *******, when it merged with the Italian. This coexistence created a Grecanico-Italian dialect that combines words from ancient Greek and Byzantine times with the Italian language and musicality.

The Grecanico dialect spoken by the inhabitants of the Greek-speaking villages of Southern Italy has reached modern times through oral transmission from generation to generation, and especially through the lyrics of the tarantellas. Today it is recognized as a dialect of the Greek language. It is the variety of Italiot Greek used by the ethnic Griko people in Calabria, as opposed to the Italiot Greek dialect spoken in the Grecìa Salentina. Both are remnants of the Ancient and Byzantine Greek colonization of the region.

Myths about the origin of the tarantella vary, but there is no denying that it is a ritual and ecstatic dance, much like the frenzied celebrations and mystical rites of Dionysus, the Greek god of wine, revelry, but also of mysticism and spiritual ecstasy. One popular hypothesis about its origin is related to the ancient Greek Pantheon religion and in particular to the worship of the god Dionysus. This is due to the similarity in its dance movements with those of the depictions of the Bacchides on ancient Greek vases.

Another version of the origin of the tarantella comes from the people of Taranto. The dance traces its origins to Taranto, a city in Puglia, the “heel” of Italy’s “boot.” The city, in fact, takes its name from a type of wolf spider native to the area, a spider that became the subject of considerable myth and lore. According to popular belief, the spider’s bite was particularly venomous and induced frenzied behavior in its victims, who were usually
women of lower socioeconomic status. The dance represented the frenzy that the bite of the tarantula spider brings to a person through dance.

In the Middle Ages, people believed that the antidote for the treatment of the poisonous bite was to dance around the patient with spasmodic movements, like those of the spider. In this way, the tarantella came to symbolize liberation from suffering, extending this meaning to other social occasions, such as the liberation of women.

The most popular folk dance

To this day the tarantella is the most popular traditional dance in Italy and people dance the crazy dance in local festivals and fairs, always using lyrics in the Greek dialect. Although it is a medieval dance, today there are many local musical groups and bands that play this music and have made it an integral part of the Italian music industry. In fact, every year the festival “La Notte della Taranta” is organized, where tarantella music is played, attracting over 120,000 thousand visitors every year.

The tarantella is one of the remnants of Magna Graecia and the Italian Greeks, highlighting the history of the region and acting as a cultural diplomat of the dance drama that connects Greek and Italian cultural heritage.

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