Citizendia

Comune di Catania
u Liotru, symbol of Catania
u Liotru, symbol of Catania
Coat of arms of Comune di Catania
Municipal coat of arms

Location of Catania in Italy
CountryFlag of Italy Italy
RegionSicily
ProvinceCatania (CT)
MayorVincenzo Emanuele
(temporary, pending election)
Elevation7 m (23 ft)
Area180. Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest Sicily ( Italian and Sicilian: Sicilia) is an autonomous region of Italy. In Italy, a Province (in Italian provincia) is an administrative division of intermediate level between Municipality ( Comune Catania ( Provincia di Catania; Sicilian: Pruvincia di Catania) is a province in the autonomous island region of Sicily 88 km² (70 sq mi)
Population (as of 05-2007)
 - Total313,110
 - Density1,731/km² (4,483/sq mi)
Time zoneCET, UTC+1
Coordinates37°31′0″N, 15°4′0″E
GentilicCatanesi
Dialing code095
Postal code95100
FrazioniSan Giovanni Galermo
PatronSt. Agatha
 - DayFebruary 5
Website: http://www.comune.catania.it/
The Roman Odeon.
The Roman Odeon. Central European Time ( CET) is one of the names of the Time zone that is 1 hour ahead of Coordinated Universal Time. UTC+1 is used in the following locations Central European Time West Africa Time Western European Summer Time A geographic coordinate system enables every location on the Earth to be specified in three coordinates using mainly a spherical coordinate system. A demonym or gentilic is a word that denotes the members of a People or the inhabitants of a place Here are a list of area codes in Italy. All numbers here begin with the country code (0039 A frazione, in Italy, is the name given in administrative law to a type of territorial subdivision of a Comune; for other Administrative For communities named after St Agatha see Sainte-Agathe. Saint Agatha of Sicily or Saint Agatha (died 251 is a Christian Events 1576 - Henry of Navarre converts to Roman Catholicism in order to ensure his right to the throne of France.
Catania Duomo. Giovanni Battista Vaccarini's principal façade (1736) is an example of the city's Sicilian Baroque architecture.
Catania Duomo. Giovanni Battista Vaccarini's principal façade (1736) is an example of the city's Sicilian Baroque architecture. Giovanni Battista Vaccarini (February 3 1702 - March 11 1768 was a Sicilian Architect, notable for his work in the Baroque style in his homeland during Sicilian Baroque is the distinctive form of Baroque architecture that took hold on the island of Sicily
Piazza Duomo (Cathedral Square) in Catania.
Piazza Duomo (Cathedral Square) in Catania.
The Baroque interior of the church of St. Benedict.
The Baroque interior of the church of St. Benedict.

Catania (Greek: Κατάνη – Katánē; Latin: Catăna and Catĭna;[1] Arabic: Balad-al-Fil or Medinat-al-Fil, Wadi Musa and Qataniyah) is an Italian city on the east coast of Sicily, between Messina and Syracuse. Greek (el ελληνική γλώσσα or simply el ελληνικά — "Hellenic" is an Indo-European language, spoken today by 15-22 million people mainly Latin ( lingua Latīna, laˈtiːna is an Italic language, historically spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Arabic (ar الْعَرَبيّة (informally ar عَرَبيْ) in terms of the number of speakers is the largest living member of the Semitic language Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest Sicily ( Italian and Sicilian: Sicilia) is an autonomous region of Italy. Syracuse (Siracusa Sicilian: Sarausa, Classical Greek: / transliterated Syrakousai) is a historic City in It is the capital of the eponymous province, and with 313,000 inhabitants (more than 700,000 in the Metropolitan Area)[2] it is the second-largest city on the island. Catania ( Provincia di Catania; Sicilian: Pruvincia di Catania) is a province in the autonomous island region of Sicily

Contents

Geography

Catania is located on the east coast of the island, at the foot of the active volcano Mount Etna. The position of Catania at the foot of Mount Etna was the source, as Strabo remarks, both of benefits and evils to the city. For on the one hand, the violent outbursts of the volcano from time to time desolated great parts of its territory; on the other, the volcanic ashes produced a soil of great fertility, adapted especially for the growth of vines. (Strab. vi. p. 269. )

The origins of its names

The ancient Sicels were wont to found and denominate cities and villages choosing between geographical connotations and peculiar attributes of the locations they discovered and peopled. The Sicels ( Latin: Siculi; Greek: Σικελοί The Siculian word "Katane" signifies "grater, flaying knife, scorch". [12][13][14][15] This term was immediately adopted by the new Greek colonists that used it to name the preexistent indigenous place. An additional acceptation is: harsh lands, uneven ground,sharp stones, rugged or rough soil. Such variety of senses is easily justifiable since the Etnean Metropolis has always been positioned, rebuilt and set inside a black lavic landscape.

In 729 BCE the archaic village of Katane became a Chalcidian colony (Katánē) and its native population was bound to be rapidly assimilated and hellenized. Chalcis or Chalkida, Halkida, Halkis or Chalkis ( Greek, Modern Χαλκίδα xal'ciða Ancient/ Katharevousa: -ίς The founders, coming from the coastwise Naxos, will make use of the autochthonal name for their new settlement. Naxos or Naxus ( Ancient Greek) was an ancient city of Sicily, on the east coast of the island between Catana (modern Catania) and Messana (modern

In 263 BCE, with the Roman Empire, the Etnean Decuman City was far-famed as Catĭna and Catăna. The former has been primarily utilized for a supposed assonance with "catina", namely the Latin feminization of the vocable "catinus". [3]Catinus has, in fact, two main values: “a gulf, a basin, a bay” and “a bowl, a vessel, a trough”. Both explications may be admissible thanks to the city’s typical trait and topography. Catania has constantly abutted against the sea, bordering its homonymous Gulf, but at the same time, it has always been reconstructed like a dilating crown beside the acuminate slopes of Etna.

Today's name stems from an Arab toponym.

In 900 CE, the Saracenic Dominance gave rise to Balad-Al-Fil and Medinat-Al-Fil, the two official Catania's Arabic appellatives. The first translates "The Village or The Country of the Elephant" and the second is simply and proudly "The City of the Elephant". [4]The Elephant is the lavic one of Piazza Duomo’s Fountain, probably a prehistorical sculpture reforged in Byzantine Era, an idolatrised talisman that was reputed able to protect the city from any sort of enemies and even so powerful to keep away misfortune, plagues or natural calamities.

The Moslem Conquerors accepted this pachydermical protection deciding to name after it the subject town. Qatanyiah are literally "the leguminous plants" (in Arab "Qataniyy"), whose feminized collective suffix is "yiah". A legume is a Plant in the family Fabaceae (or Leguminosae or a Fruit of these specific plants [5]Products like lentils, beans, peas, broad beans and lupins were chiefly cultivated in the Catanian Plain before the arrival of Aghlabites' soldiery from Tunisia. The lentil or daal or pulse ( Lens culinaris) is a bushy Annual plant of the legume family grown for its lens-shaped Seeds A pea (inaccurately called a '''sweet pea''' by food distubutors is most commonly the small spherical Seed or the seed-pod of the Legume Pisum Vicia faba, the broad bean, fava bean, faba bean, horse bean, field bean, tic bean is a species of Lupin, often spelled lupine in North America, is the common name for members of the Genus Lupinus in the legume family The Aghlabid dynasty of emirs members of the Arab tribe of Bani Tamim, ruled Ifriqiya (northern Africa nominally on behalf of the Abbasid Tunisia (تونس Tūnis officially the Tunisian Republic ( is a country located in North Africa. Afterwards, many Islamic Agronomists will be the principal boosters and those who overcropped the citruses orchards in the greater part of Sicily's ploughlands.

Lastly, Wadi Musa intends the River or the Valley of Moses that is to say the sometime Arab name of the Symaethus River, but this denomination was rarely associated to pinpoint the seat of the Emirate of Catania. The Emirate of Sicily was an Islamic state on the island of Sicily from 965 to 1072. [6][7][8]


Catania's Escutcheon

The symbol of the city is u Liotru, or the Fontana dell'Elefante and was assembled in 1736 by Giovanni Battista Vaccarini. Giovanni Battista Vaccarini (February 3 1702 - March 11 1768 was a Sicilian Architect, notable for his work in the Baroque style in his homeland during It is made of marble portraying an ancient lavic elephant and surmounted by an Egyptian obelisk from Syene. Aswan (formerly spelled Assuan (in standard أسوان Aswān) Egyptian: Swenet ( trade) Coptic: Swān; Greek Tall tale has it that Vaccarini's original elephant was neuter, which the men of Catania took as an insult to their virility. To appease them, Vaccarini appended appropriately elephantine testicles to the original statue. The Sicilian name u Liotru is the deformation of Heliodorus. Sicilian (scn '''''lu sicilianu''''' lingua siciliana, also known as Siculu or Calabro-Sicilian) is a Romance language. A similar sculpture is in Piazza Santa Maria della Minerva in Rome. Santa Maria sopra Minerva is a Basilica church in Rome. The church located in the Campus Martius region is considered the only Gothic Rome ( Roma ˈroma Roma is the capital city of Italy and Lazio, and is Italy's largest and most populous city with more than 2 Catania's coat of arms is a red elephant on a light-blue field with an "A" (Agatha's initial or the first letter of Aetna) set higher above its back.

History

Foundation

All ancient authors agree in representing Catania as a Greek colony named Κατάνη (Katánē—see also List of traditional Greek place names) of Chalcidic origin, but founded immediately from the neighboring city of Naxos, under the guidance of a leader named Euarchos (Euarchus). This is a list of Greek place names. That is a list of the names of places as they exist in the Greek language. Chalcis or Chalkida, Halkida, Halkis or Chalkis ( Greek, Modern Χαλκίδα xal'ciða Ancient/ Katharevousa: -ίς Naxos or Naxus ( Ancient Greek) was an ancient city of Sicily, on the east coast of the island between Catana (modern Catania) and Messana (modern The exact date of its foundation is not recorded, but it appears from Thucydides to have followed shortly after that of Leontini (modern Lentini), which he places in the fifth year after Syracuse, or 730 BCE. Thucydides ( C 460 BC &ndash C 395 BC) ( Greek Θουκυδίδης Thoukydídēs) was a Greek Lentini ( Lintini in Sicilian, Leontinoi, Leontini and Leontium historically is a Syracuse (Siracusa Sicilian: Sarausa, Classical Greek: / transliterated Syrakousai) is a historic City in (Thuc. vi. 3; Strabo vi. Strabo ( Greek: Στράβων 63/64 BC – ca AD 24 was a Greek historian, geographer and philosopher. p. 268; Scymn. Ch. 286; Scyl. § 13; Steph. B. s. Scymnus of Chios (fl c 185 BC) was a Greek Geographer. He was said to have been the author of a Periegesis in prose Scylax of Caryanda was an ancient Greek explorer from Caria. He lived during the 6th century BC Stephanus of Byzantium, also known as Stephanus Byzantinus ( Greek:; fl v. )

Greek Sicily

The only event of its early history which has been transmitted to us is the legislation of Charondas, and even of this the date is wholly uncertain. Charondas ( Greek) a celebrated lawgiver of Catania in Sicily. But from the fact that his legislation was extended to the other Chalcidic cities, not only of Sicily, but of Magna Graecia also, as well as to his own country (Arist., Pol. Aristotle (Greek Aristotélēs) (384 BC – 322 BC was a Greek philosopher a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. ii. 9), it is evident that Catania continued in intimate relations with these kindred cities.

It seems to have retained its independence till the time of Hieron of Syracuse, but that despot, in 476 BCE, expelled all the original inhabitants, whom he established at Leontini, while he repeopled the city with a new body of colonists, amounting, it is said, to not less than 10,000 in number, and consisting partly of Syracusans, partly of Peloponnesians. Hieron I (Ἱέρων in Greek was the son of Deinomenes, the brother of Gelon and tyrant of Syracuse in Sicily from 478 to 467 BC Syracuse (Siracusa Sicilian: Sarausa, Classical Greek: / transliterated Syrakousai) is a historic City in The Peloponnese or Peloponnesus ( Greek: Πελοπόννησος Pelopónnisos; see also List of Greek place names) is a large Peninsula He at the same time changed its name to Αἴτνη (Aítnē, Aetna or Ætna, after the nearby Mount Etna, an activevolcano), and caused himself to be proclaimed the Oekist or founder of the new city. As such he was celebrated by Pindar, and after his death obtained heroic honors from the citizens of his new colony. Pindar (ˈpɪndɚ (or Pindarus, Greek:) (probably born 522 BC in Cynoscephalae a village in Boeotia; died 443 BC in Argos) was an Ancient (Diod. xi. 49, in 66; Strab. l. c. ; Pind. Pyth. i. , and Schol. ad loc. ) But this state of things was of brief duration, and a few years after the death of Hieron and the expulsion of Thrasybulus, the Syracusans combined with Ducetius, king of the Siculi, to expel the newly settled inhabitants of Catania, who were compelled to retire to the fortress of Inessa (to which they gave the name of Aetna), while the old Chalcidic citizens were reinstated in the possession of Catania, 461 BCE. Thrasybulus was a tyrant who ruled Syracuse for eleven months during 466 and 465 BC Ducetius (died 440 BCE was a Hellenized leader of the Sicels and founder of a united Sicilian state and numerous cities The Sicels ( Latin: Siculi; Greek: Σικελοί Aetna ( Ancient Greek:) was an ancient city of Sicily, situated at the foot of the mountain of the same name, on its southern declivity (Diod. xi. 76; Strab. l. c. )

The period which followed the settlement of affairs at this epoch appears to have been one of great prosperity for Catania, as well as for the Sicilian cities in general: but we have no details of its history till the great Athenian expedition to Sicily (part of the larger Peloponnesian War). The History of Athens is one of the longest of any city in Europe and in the world The Sicilian Expedition was an Athenian expedition to Sicily from 415 BC to 413 BC, during the Peloponnesian War. On that occasion the Catanaeans, notwithstanding their Chalcidic connections, at first refused to receive the Athenians into their city: but the latter having effected an entrance, they found themselves compelled to espouse the alliance of the invaders, and Catania became in consequence the headquarters of the Athenian armament throughout the first year of the expedition, and the base of their subsequent operations against Syracuse. (Thuc. vi. 50-52, 63, 71, 89; Diod. xiii. 4, 6, 7; Plut. Nic. Lucius Mestrius Plutarchus ( Greek: Μέστριος Πλούταρχος c 15, 16. )

We have no information as to the fate of Catania after the close of this expedition: it is next mentioned in 403 BCE, when it fell into the power of Dionysius I of Syracuse, who sold the inhabitants as slaves, and gave up the city to plunder; after which he established there a body of Campanian mercenaries. Dionysius I or Dionysius the Elder (ca 432&ndash367 BC Greek: Διονύσιος) Tyrant of Syracuse, conquered several cities Campania is a region of Southern Italy in Europe. The region has a population of around 5 These, however, quit it again in 396 BCE, and retired to Aetna, on the approach of the great Carthaginian armament under Himilco and Mago. Aetna ( Ancient Greek:) was an ancient city of Sicily, situated at the foot of the mountain of the same name, on its southern declivity Carthage (Καρχηδών Karkhēdōn, Carthago from the Phoenician קרת חדשת phn-Latn Qart-ḥadašt meaning new town) refers Mago ( Greek:) was commander of the Carthaginian fleet under Himilco in the war against Dionysius I of Syracuse, 396 BCE The great sea-fight in which the latter defeated Leptines, the brother of Dionysius, was fought immediately off Catania, and the city apparently fell, in consequence, into the hands of the Carthaginians. Leptines ( Greek:) was a military leader from Syracuse Sicily, active during his brother Dionysius the Elder 's wars (Diod. xiv. 15, 58, 60. )

But we have no account of its subsequent fortunes, nor does it appear who constituted its new population; it is only certain that it continued to exist. Callippus, the assassin of Dion, when he was expelled from Syracuse, for a time held possession of Catania (Plut. Callippus or Calippus ( Greek: Κάλλιπος ca 370 BC&ndashca Dion. 58); and when Timoleon landed in Sicily we find it subject to a despot named Mamercus, who at first joined the Corinthian leader but afterwards abandoned his alliance for that of the Carthaginians, and was in consequence attacked and expelled by Timoleon. Timoleon ( Greek: Τιμολέων son of Timodemus of Corinth (ca Corinth, or Korinth ( Greek Κόρινθος ( is a city in Greece. (Diod. xvi. 69; Plut. Timol. 13, 30-34. ) Catania was now restored to liberty, and appears to have continued to retain its independence; during the wars of Agathocles with the Carthaginians, it sided at one time with the former, at others with the latter; and when Pyrrhus landed in Sicily, Catania was the first to open its gates to him, and received him with the greatest magnificence. Agathocles (361-289 BC ( Greek name Αγαθοκλής ( Agathokles) derived from αγαθός ( agathos) good and Pyrrhus (318-272 BC ( Greek: Πύρρος Aιακιδης Pyrros Aiakides was one of the most successful ancient Greek generals of the Hellenistic (Diod. xix. 110, xxii. 8, Exc. Hoesch. p. 496. )

Roman rule

In the First Punic War, Catania was one of the first among the cities of Sicily, which made their submission to the Roman Republic, after the first successes of their arms in 263 BC. The First Punic War ( 264 to 241 BC) was the first of three major wars fought between Carthage and the Roman Republic. The Roman Republic was the phase of the ancient Roman civilization characterized by a Republican form of government a period which began with the overthrow of the (Eutrop. ii. 19. ) The expression of Pliny (vii. Gaius or Caius Plinius Secundus, ( AD 23 – August 25, AD 79 better known as Pliny the Elder, was an ancient Author 60) who represents it as having been taken by Valerius Messala, is certainly a mistake. It appears to have continued afterwards steadily to maintain its friendly relations with Rome, and though it did not enjoy the advantages of a confederate city (foederata civitas), like its neighbors Tauromenium (modern Taormina) and Messana (modern Messina), it rose to a position of great prosperity under the Roman rule. Taormina ( Sicilian: Taurmina; Greek: - Tauromenion; Latin Tauromenium) is a Comune and small town

Cicero repeatedly mentions it as, in his time, a wealthy and flourishing city; it retained its ancient municipal institutions, its chief magistrate bearing the title of Proagorus; and appears to have been one of the principal ports of Sicily for the export of corn. Marcus Tullius Cicero ( Classical Latin ˈkikeroː usually ˈsɪsərəʊ in English January 3, 106 BC &ndash December 7, 43 BC was a Roman (Cic. Verr. iii. 4. 3, 83, iv. 23, 45; Liv. xxvii. Titus Livius (traditionally 59 BC &ndash AD 17 known as Livy in English, was a Roman historian who wrote a monumental history of Rome 8. ) It subsequently suffered severely from the ravages of Sextus Pompeius, and was in consequence one of the cities to which a colony was sent by Augustus; a measure that appears to have in a great degree restored its prosperity, so that in Strabo's time it was one of the few cities in the island that was in a flourishing condition. A Roman colonia (plural coloniae) was originally a Roman outpost established in conquered territory to secure it Augustus ( Latin: IMPERATOR·CAESAR·DIVI·FILIVS·AVGVSTVS September 23 63 BC – August 19 AD 14) born Gaius Octavius Thurinus, was Strabo ( Greek: Στράβων 63/64 BC – ca AD 24 was a Greek historian, geographer and philosopher. (Strab. vi. pp. 268, 270, 272; Dion Cass. iv. Lucius Cassius Dio Cocceianus ( Greek:) (c 155 or 163/164 to after 229 known in English as Cassius Dio, Dio Cassius, or Dio was 7. )

It retained its colonial rank, as well as its prosperity, throughout the period of the Roman Empire; so that in the 4th century Ausonius in his Ordo Nobilium Urbium, notices Catania and Syracuse alone among the cities of Sicily. The Roman Empire was the post-Republican phase of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial As a means of recording the passage of Time, the 4th century (per the Julian calendar and Anno Domini / Common era) was that Century This article is about the Roman poet Ausonius For John Ausonius the Swedish murderer see John Ausonius. (Plin. iii. 8. s. 14; Ptol. iii. 4. § 9; Itin. Ant. pp. 87,90, 93, 94).

Locational significance

One of the most serious eruptions of Etna happened in 121 BCE, when great part of Catania was overwhelmed by streams of lava, and the hot ashes fell in such quantities in the city itself, as to break in the roofs of the houses. Catania was in consequence exempted, for 10 years, from its usual contributions to the Roman state. (Oros. v. 13. ) The greater part of the broad tract of plain to the southwest of Catania (now called the Piana di Catania, a district of great fertility), appears to have belonged, in ancient times, to Leontini or Centuripa (modern Centuripe), but that portion of it between Catana itself and the mouth of the Symaethus, was annexed to the territory of the latter city, and must have furnished abundant supplies of corn. Centuripe ( Latin: Centuripae; Sicilian: Centorbi) is a town in the Province of Enna ( Sicily, southern Italy) The port of Catania also, which was in great part filled up by the eruption of 1669, appears to have been in ancient times much frequented, and was the chief place of export for the corn of the rich neighboring plains. The little river Amenanus, or Amenas, which flowed through the city, was a very small stream, and could never have been navigable.

Catania's renown in antiquity

Catania was the birth-place of the philosopher and legislator Charondas; it was also the place of residence of the poet Stesichorus, who died there, and was buried in a magnificent sepulchre outside one of the gates, which derived from thence the name of Porta Stesichoreia. Stesichorus ( Ancient Greek:, English translation: "he who sets up the chorus" was a Greek lyric poet from Himera in (Suda, under Στησίχορος. The Suda or Souda ( also, Suidas) is a massive 10th century Byzantine Greek historical encyclopedia of the ancient Mediterranean ) Xenophanes, the philosopher of Elea, also spent the latter years of his life there (Diog. Xenophanes of Colophon ( Greek ( 570 – 480 BC was a Greek Philosopher, Poet, and social and religious Critic. Elea may refer to Velia (town, Italy Elea Kyrenia, Cyprus Elea Nicosia, Cyprus Laert. ix. 2. § 1), so that it was evidently, at an early period, a place of cultivation and refinement. The first introduction of dancing to accompany the flute, was also ascribed to Andron, a citizen of Catania (Athen. Andron ( Greek: Ἀνδρῶν-ῶνος or Andronitis is part of a Greek house which is reserved for men as distinguished from the Gynaeceum (gunaikeion i. p. 22, c. ); and the first sundial that was set up in the Roman forum was carried thither by Valerius Messala from Catania, 263 BCE. (Varr. ap. Plin. vii. 60. ) But few associations connected with Catania were more celebrated in ancient times than the Legend of the Pii Fratres, Amphinomus and Anapias, who, on occasion of a great eruption of Etna, abandoned all their property, and carried off their aged parents on their shoulders, the stream of lava itself was said to have parted, and flowed aside so as not to harm them. Statues were erected to their honor, and the place of their burial was known as the Campus Piorum; the Catanaeans even introduced the figures of the youths on their coins, and the legend became a favorite subject of allusion and declamation among the Latin poets, of whom the younger Lucilius and Claudian have dwelt upon it at considerable length. Lucilius is the Nomen of the gens Lucilia of ancient Rome. Gaius Lucilius, satirist 2nd century BC. Claudian (lat Claudius Claudianus) was a court Poet to the Emperor Honorius and Stilicho. The occurrence is referred by Hyginus to the first eruption of Etna that took place after the settlement of Catania. Gaius Julius Hyginus (ca 64 BC &ndash AD 17 was a Latin author but whether a native of Spain or of Alexandria is not sure a pupil of the famous (Strab. vi. p. 269; Paus. x. Pausanias ( Greek:) was a Greek traveller and Geographer of the 2nd century CE, who lived in the times of Hadrian, Antoninus 28. § 4; Conon, Narr. 43; Philostr. Vit. Apoll. v. 17; Solin. 5. § 15; Hygin. 254; Val. Max. v. 4. Ext. § 4; Lucil. Aetn. 602-40; Claudian. Idyll. 7; Sil. Ital. xiv. Silius Italicus, in full Tiberius Catius Silius Italicus (25 or 26 - 101 was a Latin epic Poet. 196; Auson. Ordo Nob. Urb. 11. )

From the Fall of the Roman Empire to Unification of Italy

After the fall of the Roman Empire, Catania, like the rest of Sicily, became subject of various dominations by a series of Empires, dynasties and populations:[9]

In 1693 the city was completely destroyed by earthquakes and by lava flows which ran over and around it into the sea. Italian Unification ( Italian: il Risorgimento, or "The Resurgence" was the political and social movement that unified different states of the Italian The city was then rebuilt in the precious baroque architecture that nowadays enjoys. Baroque art redirects here Please disambiguate such links to Baroque painting, Baroque sculpture, etc

Catania in Unified Italy

In 1860 General Garibaldi freed Sicily putting an end to fourteen centuries of foreign domination, and since 1861 Catania is a free city of Italy, whose history it shares since then. Garibaldi redirects here for other meanings see Garibaldi (disambiguation. Sicily ( Italian and Sicilian: Sicilia) is an autonomous region of Italy. Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest

After World War II, and the constitution of Italian Republic (1946), the history of Catania is, like the history of other cities of Southern Italy, an attempt to catch up with the economic and social development of the richer Northern Italy and to solve the problems that for historic reasons plague the south of Italy, namely a heavy gap in industrial development and infrastructures, and the presence of criminal organisations. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest

This notwithstanding, Catania during the 60s (and partly during the 90s) enjoyed a great development and an economic, social and cultural effervescence.

In the last years, Catania economy and social development somewhat faltered and in these years the city is facing economic and social stagnation.

Historical epochs and Monuments

Roman age

The city has been buried by lava a total of seven times in recorded history, and in layers under the present day city are the Roman city that preceded it, and the Greek city before that. Ancient Rome was a Civilization that grew out of a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 10th century BC

Many of the ancient monuments of the Roman city have been destroyed by the numerous earthquakes. Currently, remains of the following buildings can be seen:

Roman thermal structures:

Baroque and historical churches (UNESCO World Heritage Sites)

Urban parks

Others

The subterranean rivers

Under the city run the river Amenano, visible in just one point, south of Piazza Duomo and the river Longane or Lognina. A triumphal arch is a structure in the shape of a monumental Archway, in theory built to celebrate a victory in war actually used to celebrate a ruler Ferdinand I ( Ferdinando Antonio Pasquale Giovanni Nepomuceno Serafino Gennaro Benedetto, January 12, 1751 &ndash January 4, 1825)

Administrative division

The city of Catania is divided in ten administrative areas called Municipalità (Municipalities). [10] The current administrative set-up was established in 1995, modifing previous set-ups dating back to 1971 and 1978. Year 1995 ( MCMXCV) was a Common year starting on Sunday. Events of 1995 Year 1971 ( MCMLXXI) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the 1971 Gregorian calendar. Year 1978 ( MCMLXXVIII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1978 Gregorian calendar)

Municipalities of Catania
Municipalities of Catania

The ten Municipalities of Catania are:

Culture

The opera composer Vincenzo Bellini was born in Catania, and a museum exists at his birthplace. Wikipedia_talkFeatured_lists#Proposed_change_to_all_featured_lists for an explanation of this and other inclusion tags below -->This list provides a guide to the Vincenzo Salvatore Carmelo Francesco Bellini ( November 3, 1801 &ndash September 23, 1835) was a Sicilian Opera Composer The Teatro Massimo Bellini, which opened in 1890, is named after the composer. The Teatro Massimo Bellini is an Opera house in Catania, Sicily which was named after the local-born composer Vincenzo Bellini. The opera house presents a variety of operas through a season, which run from December to May, many of which are the work of Bellini. Opera is an art form in which Singers and Musicians perform a Dramatic work (called an opera which combines a text (called a Libretto

Giovanni Verga was born in Catania in 1840. Giovanni Verga ( 2 September 1840 - 27 January 1922) was an Italian realist Writer, best known for his depictions [11] He became the greatest writer of Verismo, an Italian literary movement akin to Naturalism. Verismo (meaning "realism" from Italian vero, meaning "truth" was an Italian literary movement born approximately between 1875 and 1895 [12] His novels portray life among the lower levels of Sicilan society, such as fishermen and stone-masons, and were written in a mixture of both literary language and local dialect. [11]

The University of Catania dates back to 1434 and it is the oldest university in Sicily. The University of Catania (Università degli Studi di Catania is a university located in Catania, Italy, and founded in 1434. [13] Its academic nicknames are: Siculorum Gymnasium and Siciliae Studium Generale. Nowadays it hosts 12 faculties and over 62'000 students. [14]

The city is base of the newspaper La Sicilia and of the tv-channel Antenna Sicilia also known as Sicilia Channel. La Sicilia is an Italian daily Newspaper based in Catania, Sicily. Several others local television channels and free-press magazines have their headquarters in Catania. Noted Italian Tv host Pippo Baudo is from Catania. Giuseppe Baudo also known as Pippo Baudo, is a popular Italian television host

In the late 1980s and 1990s Catania had a sparkling and unique popular music scene. Indie pop and indie rock bands, local radio station and dynamic independent music record labels sprung. "Twee" redirects here For a definition of the word see its entry at wiktionary. Indie rock is genre of Alternative rock that primarily exists in the independent Underground music scene In Popular music, independent music, often abbreviated as indie, is a term used to describe independence from major commercial record labels and an autonomous As a result, in those years the city experienced a vital and effervescent cultural period. Artist like Carmen Consoli and Mario Venuti and international known indie rock bands like Uzeda came out of this cultural milieu. Carmen Consoli (born September 4 1974 in Catania) is an Italian Singer-songwriter. Indie rock is genre of Alternative rock that primarily exists in the independent Underground music scene Uzeda is a Sicilian Math rock group founded in 1987 consisting of lead singer Giovanna Cacciola guitarists Agostino Tilotta and Giovanni Nicosia bassist Raffaele

The city is the home of Amatori Catania rugby union team, Calcio Catania football team and Orizzonte Catania, the latter being a brilliant women's water polo club, winning eight European Champions Cup titles from 1994 to 2008. Amatori Catania is an Italian Rugby union club currently competing in Super 10. Calcio Catania is an Italian football club founded in 1908 and are based in Catania, Sicily. Noted Italian basketball coach Ettore Messina is a native of Catania. Basketball is a team Sport in which two teams of five active players each try to score points against one another by propelling a ball through a 10 feet (3 m Ettore Messina (born September 30, 1959 in Catania) is an Italian Basketball coach that currently serves as head coach of CSKA

The city's patron saint is Saint Agatha, who is celebrated with a religious pageantry on 5 February every year. The patron saint of a particular group of people is a Saint who would protect and 'love' the group and its members For communities named after St Agatha see Sainte-Agathe. Saint Agatha of Sicily or Saint Agatha (died 251 is a Christian Events 1576 - Henry of Navarre converts to Roman Catholicism in order to ensure his right to the throne of France.

Transportation

Catania has a commercial seaport (Catania seaport), an international airport (Catania Fontanarossa), a central train station (Catania Centrale) and it is a main node of the Sicilian motorway system. Catania-Fontanarossa Airport ( Aeroporto di Catania-Fontanarossa) is located 5 km /3 miles south of Catania, the second largest city on the Italian The motorways serving Catania are the A18 Messina-Catania and the A19 Palermo-Catania; extensions of the A18 going from Catania to Syracuse and to Gela are currently under construction. Palermo ( Sicilian: Palermu, Greek: Panormus, al-Madinah during Muslim rule is a historic City in Syracuse (Siracusa Sicilian: Sarausa, Classical Greek: / transliterated Syrakousai) is a historic City in for the village in Tibet China see Gela Tibet Gela is a town in the Province of Caltanissetta in the south of Sicily, The Circumetnea is a small-gauge railway which runs for 110 km from Catania round the base of Mount Etna. The Ferrovia Circumetnea (roughly translated as "Railway around the Etna ") is a 950 mm (3 ft 1 in gauge Narrow-gauge It attains the height of 976 m above sea level before descending to rejoin the coast at Giarre-Riposto to the North. Giarre (Giarri is an Italian town and Comune on the east coast of Sicily in the Province of Catania. Riposto (Ripostu is a Comune (municipality in the Province of Catania in the Italian region Sicily, located about 170 km east

In the late 1990s the first line of an underground railway (Metropolitana di Catania) was built. The Metropolitana di Catania is a subway system serving the city of Catania in Sicily. The underground service started in 1999 and it is currently active on a route of 3. 8 km, from the station Borgo (North of town) to the seaport, passing through the stations of Giuffrida, Italia, Galatea, and Central Station. [15] First line is planned to extend from the satellite city of Paternò to Fontanarossa Airport. Paternò (Patirnò is a Town in the Province of Catania, Sicily. Catania-Fontanarossa Airport ( Aeroporto di Catania-Fontanarossa) is located 5 km /3 miles south of Catania, the second largest city on the Italian Segments Borgo-Nesima (extending the underground railway from the station Borgo to the suburban area of Nesima) and Galatea-Stesicoro (extending the underground railway from the station Galatea to Piazza Stesicoro, in the heart of town) are currently under construction. [15]

Demographic evolution

Sister cities

Notes and references

  1. ^ Roman writers fluctuate between the two forms Catana and Catina, of which the latter is, perhaps, the most common, and is supported by inscriptions (Orell. Phoenix (ˈfiːˌnɪks O'odham Skikik, Yavapai Wasinka, Western Apache Fiinigis, Navajo Hoozdo, The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Grenoble is a city and commune in south-east France situated at the foot of the Alps where the Drac joins the Isère River. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. Ottawa (ˈɒtəwə or sometimes /ˈɒtəwɑː/ is the Capital of Canada and the country's fourth largest municipality. Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page 3708, 3778); but the analogy of the Greek Κατάνη, and the modern Catania, would point to the former as the more correct.
  2. ^ Official ISTAT figures, cit. in Leone, Piraino (1996) Le aree metropolitane siciliane, Incipit - Collana Ancisicilia. [1] The population of the Metropolitan Area of Catania (ie. Catania and its urban hinterland) has not to be confounded with the population of the Province of Catania, a far broader area that counts 58 Comuni and 1,069,315 inhabitants, as from the Official Site of the Province of Catania. [2]
  3. ^ Adolf Holm - Catania Antica, Edizioni G. Libertini 1925
  4. ^ Michele Amari - Edrisi, Il Libro di Re Ruggero, I, p. 71
  5. ^ Autori Vari- Enciclopedia di Catania, Edizione Tringale 1987
  6. ^ Autori Vari- Enciclopedia di Catania, Edizione Tringale 1987
  7. ^ Santi Correnti - La Città semprerifiorente, Edizioni Greco 1981
  8. ^ Santi Correnti & Santino Spartà - Le strade di Catania, Edizioni Newton Compton, 2007
  9. ^ Correnti (1994), Breve Storia della Sicilia, Rome, Newton Compton, pp. 22-49
  10. ^ Administrative division of Catania, from Comune di Catania Official Website [3]
  11. ^ a b Drabble, Margaret (1985), The Oxford Companion to English Literature (5th ed. Dame Margaret Drabble (Margaret Lady Holroyd DBE, (born 5 June 1939) is an English Novelist, Biographer and ), London: Guild Publishing, p. 1026  "Verga, Giovanni"
  12. ^ Drabble, Margaret (1985), The Oxford Companion to English Literature (5th ed. Dame Margaret Drabble (Margaret Lady Holroyd DBE, (born 5 June 1939) is an English Novelist, Biographer and ), London: Guild Publishing, p. 1026  "Verismo"
  13. ^ Informations on the University of Catania by University-guides. org [4] and History of the University of Catania by Unict main site (Italian)[5] and (English) (translation) [6]
  14. ^ History of the University of Catania, by Professor Giuseppe Giarrizzo, from Unict. it (Italian)[7] and (English) (translation)[8]
  15. ^ a b Underground railway of Catania from subways. net [9] and from metroitaliane. it in (Italian)[10] and (English)(translation)[11]

External links

Sources


Dictionary

Catania

-proper noun

  1. Province of Sicily, Italy.
  2. Town and capital of Catania.
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