On the 17th of January, Italians celebrate Sant’Antonio Abate, known in English as Saint Anthony of Egypt or Saint Anthony the Great. Anthony is a saint of the early Church and he is considered the first saint hermit, as well as one of the fathers of monasticism.
In Italy, he is traditionally considered a santo contadino, that is, a saint connected with rural life and beliefs and that’s why it is said that all animals, on the night of Sant’Antonio Abate, gain the faculty of speaking.