Paranza indicates a pair, a pair of fishing trawl boats. Today, this term also means a single boat, but in Termoli, the paranza consists in two fishing boats.
The typical Paranza of Termoli, already documented since the middle of the 19th century, is from 7 to 16 meters long. It has a single mast with square sails. A typical characteristic is the big eyes painted for ornamental purposes on the bow and the toppa (a kind of head situated on the top of the bow). Fishing is carried by a conical bag net of 20/30 meter between.
The trawl net, maneuvered by the two fishing boats, scrapes the sea bottom moving the sand to scare the fish that go upward remaining imprisoned. This type of fishing starts from March and continues until September.
There is a rotatory in the Port, a monument to the old paranze, that reproduce the brow of an ancient paranza, commissioned by Professor Di Gianfrancesco of Vinchiaturo, realized in plastic cement, with the same effect of wood. Together with the sculpture, there are the silhouettes of two sails in yellow and red, with metallic tubes illuminated by led lights. On the cement wall there are 21 tiles, with colorful designs of historic boats and the names of fishermen in dialect. The floor is covered with blue tiles that will recall the color of the sea.
Paranza is also the name given to small fish and mollusks caught with this type of fishing boat and used to prepare the famous Paranza fish-fry, a mixed fry with fish and squids.
Since 1990, in the city of Termoli, some volunteers have created a cultural association called “A’ Paranze”, devoted to study local folk tradition to better preserve it and to re-propose it to citizens in various artistic forms with the aim to keep alive the traditions.