The Festival of Saint Agatha is the most important religious festival of Catania,

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

, commemorating the life of the city's

patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, or Eastern Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or perso ...

Agatha of Sicily Agatha of Sicily () is a Christian saint. Her feast is on 5 February. Agatha was born in Catania, part of the Roman Province of Sicily, and was martyred . She is one of several virgin martyrs who are commemorated by name in the Canon of the ...

. It takes place annually from 3 to 5 February and on 17 August. The earlier dates commemorate the

martyrdom A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...

of the Catanaian saint, while the latter date celebrates the return to Catania of her remains, after these had been transferred to

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya ( Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis ( ...

by the

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

general George Maniaces as war booty and remained there for 86 years. Sicilians celebrate Saint Agatha for her purported intercession to avert danger during eruptions of Mount Etna, earthquakes, and some epidemics that had affected Catania. There is also an underlying theme of Sicilian resistance to Roman oppression.Rosano, Liliana. "Festa di Sant’Agata: Celebrate Street Food in Catania", ''La Cucina Italiana'', February 3, 2020
/ref> The three day festival begins at noon on February 3 with a procession known as “della luminaria”. ''Cannalori'', eleven large candles in baroque gilt casings that proceeds from the Church of Sant'Agata alla Fornace to the Cathedral of St. Agatha. Each ''candelora'' represents one of the medieval guilds. At 3.00 PM, a cross-country race takes place through the streets of town. This is followed in the evening by a concert in the Piazza del Duomo and fireworks. The next day, after the "Messa dell’Aurora" (Mass at Dawn), a reliquary-bust of St. Agatha atop a silver ''fercola'' or carriage leaves the cathedral and is pulled through the neighborhoods, passing places associated with the life of the saint. The devoted followers wear the traditional white tunic that covers the body down to the ankles and is tied at the waist with a rope. The celebrations continue through the night. Gaily decorated kiosks sell traditional street food such as ''arancini'' (rice balls) and beccafico sardines (with breadcrumbs, pine nuts and raisins). On the 5th, there is again a procession after Mass. The heavy silver carriage is pulled up a steep slope. Successful passage is considered to bode well for the rest of the year."The Festival of S. Agatha", Sicilia Convention and Visitors Bureau
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References

Agatha Culture of Sicily Catania Tourist attractions in Sicily Winter events in Italy {{Sicily-stub