Gianduja (; ) is one of the

mask A mask is an object normally worn on the face, typically for protection, disguise, performance, or entertainment, and often employed for rituals and rites. Masks have been used since antiquity for both ceremonial and practical purposes, ...

s of the Italian ''

commedia dell'arte Commedia dell'arte was an early form of professional theatre, originating from Theatre of Italy, Italian theatre, that was popular throughout Europe between the 16th and 18th centuries. It was formerly called Italian comedy in English and is a ...

'', typically representing the town of

Turin Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...

(and Piedmont in general). Gianduja also became the namesake for a Piedmontese chocolate preparation. The mask depicts an honest peasant of Piedmontese country land, with a certain inclination for wine (particularly

Brachetto d'Acqui Brachetto d'Acqui (; ) is a red Italian wine that is classified as a '' Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita'' (DOCG) since 1996 and previously a ''Denominazione di Origine Controllata'' (DOC) region since 1969. It is produced in the ...

),Italian Trade Commission '
Acqui or Brachetto d'Acqui (DOCG)
"'' Italianmade.com Accessed: March 5, 2011,

gastronomy Gastronomy is the study of the relationship between Human food, food and culture, the art of preparing and serving rich or delicate and appetizing food, the cooking styles of particular regions, and the science of good eating. One who is well ver ...

and beautiful girls, while strictly faithful to his lover Giacometta, who is usually represented by a cute girl.

Origins

The character is believed to have originated as ''Gironi da Crina'' (in Ligurian) or ''Geralmo della Scrofa'' (in Italian), in

Genoa Genoa ( ; ; ) is a city in and the capital of the Italian region of Liguria, and the sixth-largest city in Italy. As of 2025, 563,947 people live within the city's administrative limits. While its metropolitan city has 818,651 inhabitan ...

. In the early 19th century, a puppeteer by the name of Giovanni Battista Sales got into trouble with the authorities who did not appreciate his sarcastic humor or the fact that the character had the same first name as a brother of

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

, who had invaded the region. Sales fled to Callianetto, a hamlet of Castell'Alfero, east of

and just north of

Asti Asti ( , ; ; ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) of 74,348 inhabitants (1–1–2021) located in the Italy, Italian region of Piedmont, about east of Turin, in the plain of the Tanaro, Tanaro River. It is the capital of the province of Asti and ...

, and changed the name of the character to the Piedmontese ''Gioann dla Doja'' (later ''Giandoja'' and Piedmontenize as ''Gianduja''), which means something like "John of the Jug" (with ''doja'' meaning "tankard" or "beer mug", as the character was fond of drinking).

Characteristics

In the ''

'', Gianduja is a fond drinker and a very lecherous character, and Giacometta, his lover, always becomes jealous of him.The 18th Century Stock Masks
/ref> Personality-wise, he always has a happy humour. He is dressed (in the usual version) with a tricorn hat and a brown jacket with red borders. The character of Gianduja was created as a

glove puppet Glove puppetry () is a type of opera using cloth puppets that originated during the 17th century in Quanzhou or Zhangzhou of China's Fujian province, and historically practised in the Min Nan-speaking areas such as Quanzhou, Zhangzhou, the Chao ...

but later became a

marionette A marionette ( ; ) is a puppet controlled from above using wires or strings depending on regional variations. A marionette's puppeteer is called a marionettist. Marionettes are operated with the puppeteer hidden or revealed to an audience by ...

and then a live character portrayed by an actor. He is now Turin's official "king of the

Carnival Carnival (known as Shrovetide in certain localities) is a festive season that occurs at the close of the Christian pre-Lenten period, consisting of Quinquagesima or Shrove Sunday, Shrove Monday, and Shrove Tuesday or Mardi Gras. Carnival typi ...

Influences

The character inspired the name of '' gianduja'', a paste of chocolate and hazelnut typical of

References

{{Reflist Commedia dell'arte characters Culture in Turin Fictional Italian people

Origins

Characteristics

Influences

See also

References