Calimera
Encyclopedia
Calimera is a small town of 7,296 inhabitants in the Grecìa Salentina
area of the Salento
peninsula
in Italy
, located between Gallipoli and Otranto
. It belongs to the province of Lecce
.
The inhabitants of Calimera, alongside Italian
, also speak Griko
, a Greek dialect. The language, folklore
, tradition
s and history
of Calimera, like those of the eight other cities in the area called Salentinian Greece, reveal significant Greek influences over the course of time, presumably from the time of the Byzantine control, or even the ancient Magna Graecia
colonisation in the 8th century BCE
.
In the park, there is a small monument containing an ancient Attic burial stone, given by the city of Athens
to Calimera in 1960. At the top of this monument is a motto, referring to the burial stone: "Zeni su en ise ettù sti Kalimera" (in Greek script
: Ζένη 'σού 'εν είσαι ετού στη Καλημέρα), meaning "You are not a stranger here in Calimera", which underlines the close relationship and common origins of Calimera with the rest of Greek civilisation.
Grecìa Salentina
Grecia Salentina is an area in the peninsula of Salento in southern Italy, near the town of Lecce which is inhabited by the Griko people, an ethnic Greek minority living in southern Italy who traditionally spoke a Greek Language dialect also called Griko. It consists of eleven towns and belongs to...
area of the Salento
Salento
Salento is the south-eastern extremity of the Apulia region of Italy. It is a sub-peninsula of the main Italian Peninsula, sometimes described as the "heel" of the Italian "boot"...
peninsula
Peninsula
A peninsula is a piece of land that is bordered by water on three sides but connected to mainland. In many Germanic and Celtic languages and also in Baltic, Slavic and Hungarian, peninsulas are called "half-islands"....
in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, located between Gallipoli and Otranto
Otranto
Otranto is a town and comune in the province of Lecce , in a fertile region once famous for its breed of horses.It is located on the east coast of the Salento peninsula. The Strait of Otranto, to which the city gives its name, connects the Adriatic Sea with the Ionian Sea and Italy with Albania...
. It belongs to the province of Lecce
Lecce
Lecce is a historic city of 95,200 inhabitants in southern Italy, the capital of the province of Lecce, the second province in the region by population, as well as one of the most important cities of Puglia...
.
The inhabitants of Calimera, alongside Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
, also speak Griko
Griko language
Griko, sometimes spelled Grico, is a form of the Greek language which is spoken by the Griko people in southern Italy. The Greeks consider it as a Modern Greek dialect and often call it Katoitaliotika or Grekanika...
, a Greek dialect. The language, folklore
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
, tradition
Tradition
A tradition is a ritual, belief or object passed down within a society, still maintained in the present, with origins in the past. Common examples include holidays or impractical but socially meaningful clothes , but the idea has also been applied to social norms such as greetings...
s and history
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
of Calimera, like those of the eight other cities in the area called Salentinian Greece, reveal significant Greek influences over the course of time, presumably from the time of the Byzantine control, or even the ancient Magna Graecia
Magna Graecia
Magna Græcia is the name of the coastal areas of Southern Italy on the Tarentine Gulf that were extensively colonized by Greek settlers; particularly the Achaean colonies of Tarentum, Crotone, and Sybaris, but also, more loosely, the cities of Cumae and Neapolis to the north...
colonisation in the 8th century BCE
8th century BC
The 8th century BC started the first day of 800 BC and ended the last day of 701 BC.-Overview:The 8th century BC was a period of great changes in civilizations. In Egypt, the 23rd and 24th dynasties led to rule from Nubia in the 25th Dynasty...
.
In the park, there is a small monument containing an ancient Attic burial stone, given by the city of Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
to Calimera in 1960. At the top of this monument is a motto, referring to the burial stone: "Zeni su en ise ettù sti Kalimera" (in Greek script
Greek alphabet
The Greek alphabet is the script that has been used to write the Greek language since at least 730 BC . The alphabet in its classical and modern form consists of 24 letters ordered in sequence from alpha to omega...
: Ζένη 'σού 'εν είσαι ετού στη Καλημέρα), meaning "You are not a stranger here in Calimera", which underlines the close relationship and common origins of Calimera with the rest of Greek civilisation.
See also
- Magna GraeciaMagna GraeciaMagna Græcia is the name of the coastal areas of Southern Italy on the Tarentine Gulf that were extensively colonized by Greek settlers; particularly the Achaean colonies of Tarentum, Crotone, and Sybaris, but also, more loosely, the cities of Cumae and Neapolis to the north...
- Griko peopleGriko peopleThe Griko people sometimes spelled Grico, Greco and Grecanici in Calabria are an ethnic Greek community of Southern Italy, they are found principally in regions of Calabria and Puglia ,...
- Griko languageGriko languageGriko, sometimes spelled Grico, is a form of the Greek language which is spoken by the Griko people in southern Italy. The Greeks consider it as a Modern Greek dialect and often call it Katoitaliotika or Grekanika...
- Greeks in ItalyGreeks in ItalyGreek presence in Italy begins with the migrations of the old Greek Diaspora in the 8th century BC, continuing down to the present time. There is an ethnic Greek minority known as the Griko people, who live in the Southern Italian regions of Calabria and Puglia , that speak a distinctive dialect...
- GhetoniaGhetoniaGhetonia is a cultural group based in Calimera, Grecìa Salentina in southern Italy dedicated to preserving the music, poetry, language and folklore of the Griko-speaking people of Salento....
External links
- Community of Calimera, in Italian