LAND OF OUR FATHERS AND MOTHERS-- OR, ABRUZZO-MOLISE 101

Perhaps, some of you, especially those who grew up in our part of the old country, already know far more than what is said in this short narrative. If so, you can fill in the gaps, tell us about them, and help us "spread the word" among our youngsters, our friends, and the older Abruzzesi/Molisani who, though lucky enough to have had ancestors with the foresight and courage to emigrate to this county, are not yet fully familiar with the glory of our heritage.

Sadly enough, we all know that some of the old-timers among us at times may have been made to feel uneasy about their Italian heritage, or may have been humiliated because of it. And, if truth be told, Abruzzesi and Molisani in this country were not looked upon with favor by some fellow Italian immigrants who had not yet learned what America was all about.

Fortunately, however, those prejudices have long been put to rest, not only among Italian-Americans but also among our other fellow Americans. So, let all of us rekindle our pride in our Abruzzo-Molise heritage, and let us go on with our story, or as we would say in our old Abruzzo parlance,

The Land

Villa S. Maria- A typical town in rugged Abruzzo
Abruzzo and Molise are two contiguous regions in south central Italy, on the Adriatic Sea, with a total area of 5,882 square miles (approximately the same as Connecticut and Rhode Island combined). Abruzzo lies north of Molise, and accounts for 70 percent of the total area.
Except for a relatively broad coastal plain, the terrain is essentially mountainous. Monte Corno, the highest peak in the Gran Sasso d'Italia massif, culminates at 9,650 feet above sea level. From up there, on a clear day, one can see as far as Rome and the Adriatic Sea--or so it is claimed in one of the most popular songs of Abruzzo. A local Tourist Offices describes the rugged terrain of the two regions as "natura forte del Mediterraneo," which is another way of saying "Wonderful, Wild Abruzzo-Molise."

The People and Their Local Government

Costumes of Abruzzo
Approximately 70 percent of a total population of 1,530,000 lives in Abruzzo. Long thought of as a single region, Abruzzo and Molise separated administratively in 1963, but their cultural ties and bonds of friendship, affection and blood remain as strong as ever.

Abruzzo now comprises four provinces, named after their chief towns: Chieti, L'Aquila, Pescara and Teramo. Molise has two provinces: Campobasso and Isernia. (Administratively, an Italian province is roughly the equivalent of an American County, and the province's chief town, or Capoluogo di Provincia, is essentially the equivalent of an American County seat.)

The Economy

Until some 40 years ago, the wilderness of the area and the lack of good roads had isolated Abruzzo-Molise from the rest of Italy and made it one of the least prosperous areas in the country. All this has changed now.

Tourism and commerce are thriving, alongside with traditional cottage industries such as pasta making, food processing, confectionary manufacturing, cheese and olive oil production, wine making, and church bell casting, as well as copper, wrought iron and ceramics handicrafts--just to mention a few. As a matter of fact, some of these cottage industries have now developed into full fledged exporting companies that sell their products in every corner of the world.

The per capita income is still much lower than in Northern Italy but, by and large, poverty and hunger no longer stalk our ancestral land. As the local work force has moved into higher paying occupations, large numbers of immigrants from the Less Developed Countries have now moved into Abruzzo and Molise, mostly as street vendors, and domestics, but also as farm hands, to till the same land that in times past had been unable to provide enough jobs and sustenance for its own children, forcing them to emigrate in droves.

Partono I Bastimenti Per Terre Assai Lontane, or The Great Exodus

According to readily available statistics, 1,019,000 people emigrated from Abruzzo-Molise between 1901 and 1915. Considering the number of those who emigrated before and after that time (especially immediately after Word War II), and taken as a given that the number of the descendants (oriundi) must be far larger than that of the original emigrants, it follows that the Abruzzesi/Molisani abroad far outnumber those now living in Abruzzo-Molise.

It would take quite a bit of research to ascertain how many of our "paesani" came to the United States and Canada, but, before mentioning the names of some of those who did well, it may be worth mentioning that since time immemorial our land has not been a magnet for outside people who aspired to make something of themselves. People who set their sights high, usually had to move out. And, today, the names of quite a few of the descendants of those who came to North America are recognized instantly on a national or even global basis. Some of them are listed here in no particular order--and with apologies to those we have left out because we did not know of their origin.

a)  The World of Entertainment:

• Dean Martin, from Paganica, L'Aquila, on his father's side, and Riccia, Campobasso, on his mother's side. Her maiden name was Martino, hence his art name Martin.
• Perry Como, from Palena, Chieti.
• Mario Lanza, from Filignano, Isernia. He, too, got his art name from his mother, Maria Lanza, who was from Abruzzo.
• Anna Moffo, she, too, from Riccia, Campobasso.
• Robert De Niro, from Ferrazzano, Campobasso.
• Henry Mancini, from Scanno, L'Aquila, and Molise.
• Alan Alda, from Abruzzo.
• Madonna, from Pacentro, L'Aquila.

b)  Sports: