oh bej! oh bej! origin of the name
The name, which in dialect means Oh Beautiful! Oh Beautiful!, seems to derive from the exclamations of wonder from Milanese children when, in 1510, they saw the gifts brought by the papal envoy Giannetto Castiglioni, appointed by Pope Pius IV to rekindle the city’s devotion to Saints Lazarus and Maurice.
Arriving at the gates of Milan, and fearing a cold reception from a people who had never shown strong sympathies for the pope, Castiglioni decided to take advantage of the occasion of December 7 (date of the election of the patron bishop Ambrose, in 374), having a large number of gifts prepared to distribute to children during the entrance into the city. The initiative was a great success, and a festive procession accompanied him to the Basilica of Saint Ambrose.
oh bej! oh bej! origin of the name: another theory
Another theory about the origin of the name oh bej! oh bej! speaks instead of a much more straightforward etymology: this would have been the motto, the shout to attract attention, of street vendors behind their sales counters, to emphasize the goodness of their goods.
Between legend and reality, the oh bej! oh bej of Milan continue to be, year after year, a classic and unmissable event in the popular-cultural panorama of Milan.
