Avvento

Avvento is the Italian term for Advent, the liturgical season that precedes Christmas in Western Christian churches. It marks the beginning of the liturgical year and, in most calendars, lasts about four weeks. Advent begins on the first Sunday after Thanksgiving in some contexts, but in general it starts when the Sunday closest to November 30 is observed and ends on Christmas Eve.

The name Advent comes from the Latin adventus, meaning “coming.” The season is a time of preparation and expectation for the Nativity of Jesus as well as for the second coming of Christ. It is observed in Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, Methodist and many other Protestant traditions, though practices and emphasis can vary.

Common symbols and practices include the Advent wreath, which holds four candles. Three candles are typically violet, with a fourth pink (rose) candle lit on the third Sunday, known as Gaudete Sunday. Additional customs include Advent calendars and Jesse trees, home prayers, and special psalms or hymns. The liturgical color is usually violet, signifying penance, with rose used on Gaudete Sunday to mark a lighter, anticipatory tone. In many communities, Advent is a period of prayer, reflection, and acts of preparation rather than a period of feasting.

Across denominations, observance of Advent may differ in duration, rituals, and emphasis. In some Eastern Christian traditions, other fasts or preparatory periods precede Christmas, but the term avvento remains primarily associated with Western Advent customs.