ITALIAN FESTIVE DISHES WITH A COMPONENT-AGIONYM IN THE NAME: SACRED FOOD OR COMMERCIAL STRATEGY?
The article is dedicated to some traditional dishes that are prepared for holidays of the Italian saints. These dishes are often made as body parts that Christian martyrs have lost, according to canonical life, iconographic tradition or popular interpretation of church literature, which is additionally ﬁ xed not only at the visual, but also at the linguistic level. Their names include the corresponding agionym. Based on the linguistic and culturological analysis of Italian rituals, the article concludes that cooking and eating of dishes that symbolize holy ﬂ esh goes back to the Christian tradition of the Eucharist or is a relic of more ancient pagan beliefs. The association of food rituals with the ancient mythology, which is not always justiﬁ ed, in the Modern Italian culture is becoming a way of acquiring the national-cultural identity. The use of dishes with an agionym is also a successful commercial strategy that raises the income of food businesses during the religious holidays. However, food with the agionym in the name is not always connected with the sacred date and may be associated more with a particular city, region than with a holiday, especially for a foreigner. The naming of some dishes is often based on the parodycomic principle.