The term `folklore’ was coined in 1846 by the English archaeologist W. J. Thoms. It combines the words folk (people) and lore (tradition)
to indicate popular traditions and their study. To begin with, the study of folklore was limited to the songs and stories of oral traditions. However, it soon began to include all popular customs, artsand traditions. Such a comprehensive study presents two problems. The first problem lies in finding a criterion to define the object of study, i.e. to distinguish which aspects are legitimate, anonymous, popular expressions and which are the product of academic culture, as established authors often take inspiration from the former. Another problem concerns the vastness of this potential field of study. Popular expressions include dance, figurative arts, music and literature which are part of complex religious and social rituals (rite), and which, together with clothing and cookery, comprise the primary cultural and social background of a population. To what extent, therefore, should the study of folklore – intended as the study of the traditions and communication abilities of a people – be concerned with these expressions? It is interesting to note that, oddly enough, the culture currently known as pop (from popular), is in actual fact completely alien to popular culture. Some crafts have been replaced by the moulding of plastic materials, and other practices, such as the cooking of traditional meals, have become rare.

The real and popular cookery of today is fast food, while traditional dishes are served alongside exotic foods under the comprehensive label of `ethnic cuisine’, which is increasingly less related to anything `popular’. Another example of this trend is the clothing industry, where it is worth noting the `social’ evolution of denim, which to begin with marked the wearer as belonging to the lower classes and later took on a `universalistic’ character which goes beyond social distinction. Today folklore is, possibly implicitly, almost entirely managed by the media. It has lost its `popular’ character and has become a mass production. One example of surviving modern folklore can be found in the musical field, in the output of singer-songwriters, while the rest of popular music has become crystallized into a series of exhibits to be displayed at tourist and religious events, most of which maintain only the trappings of ancient forms.