According to the folktale, the Giubiana was an old witch, thin, with very long legs and red stockings. She lived in the woods and because of her long legs, she never set foot on the ground, but moved from tree to tree. On the last Thursday of January, she used to go in search of some children to eat. One mother, to protect her child, decided to set a trap for her. She prepared a large pot full of yellow (saffron) risotto with luganega (sausage) and put it on the windowsill. The Giubiana attracted by the smell, came out of the woods, and began to eat all the contents of the huge pot. The risotto was so good that the ravenous Giubiana did not notice the time passing. She did not notice that the sun, which kills witches, was now about to rise. By the time the Giubiana finished all the risotto, the first ray of sunshine had come out: the Giubiana was thus pulverized by the sunlight, and from that day all the children were saved. To remember that event at the end of January, risotto with luganega is prepared and the puppet in the guise of the old witch is burned.
The name "Giubiana" seems related to the Roman god Jupiter, but other possible reference figures are Juno, Janus, and Diana.
In the medieval centuries the popular narrative created a variety of legends and numerous folk tales, in which Giubiana thus became a female figure alluding to the Great Mother, sometimes an old woman, sometimes a witch, a variant of the Befana, to be symbolically driven away along with the rigors of winter. The most distinguishing element of the festival is the great bonfire, which even today is perceived by all as a symbol of renewal and a new year's restart.
