Difference between revisions of "Sardinian"

Latest revision as of 16:03, 31 March 2010

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Sardinia

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-{{Infobox_RegionIT |
+#redirect [[Sardinia]]
-name              = Sardegna |
-fullname          = Regione Autonoma della Sardegna<br>Regione Autonoma de sa Sardigna |
-isocode           = &nbsp; |
-capital           = [[Cagliari]] |
-governor          = [[Renato Soru]]<br>(''[[The Union (political coalition)|The Union]]'') |
-zone              = [[Insular Italy]] |
-province          = [[Province of Cagliari|Cagliari]]<br>[[Province of Nuoro|Nuoro]]<br>[[Province of Oristano|Oristano]]<br>[[Province of Sassari|Sassari]]<br>[[Province of Ogliastra|Ogliastra]][[Sardinia#Notes|<sup>1</sup>]]<br>[[Province of Medio Campidano|Medio Campidano]][[Sardinia#Notes|<sup>1</sup>]]<br>[[Province of Olbia-Tempio|Olbia-Tempio]][[Sardinia#Notes|<sup>1</sup>]]<br>[[Province of Carbonia-Iglesias|Carbonia-Iglesias]][[Sardinia#Notes|<sup>1</sup>]]|
-municipality      = 377 |
-arearank          = 3rd |
-area              = 24,090 |
-areapercent       = 8.0 |
-population_as_of  = 2003 est. |
-populationrank    = 11th |
-population        = 1,637,639 |
-populationpercent = 2.9 |
-populationdensity = 68 |
-coatofarms        = [[Image:Sardinia_flag.png|150px| [[Maure|Sos Battor Moros]] &ndash; The Four Moors ]] |
-map               = [[Image:Italy Regions Sardinia Map.png|220px|]] |
-}}
-'''Sardinia''' (''Sardigna'', ''Sardinna'' or ''Sardinnia'' in the [[Sardinian language]], ''Sardegna'' in [[Italian language|Italian]], ''Sardenya'' in [[Catalan language|Catalan]]), is the second largest island in the [[Mediterranean Sea]] ([[Sicily]] is the largest), between [[Italy]], [[Spain]] and [[Tunisia]], south of [[Corsica]]. It forms part of Italy.
-At the beginning of the nuragic age  circa 1500 BC  it was  first called "Hyknusa" (latinized [[Ichnusa]] ) by the [[Greeks]] probably meaning island (nusa) of  the
-[[Hyksos]], the people who had  just  been expelled by Amasis I of Egypt circa 1540 BC and were by now  looking for a new home .
-"Sandalyon"  was her second name probably  due to its shape, recalling a footprint.
-Last and present name has been  Sardinia, for the [[Shardana]] , (who also had been expelled in Egypt by Ramses III circa 1180 BC )
-==Geography==
-Sardinia has an area of 24,090 km<sup>2</sup> and a population of 1.65 million.
-Sardinia is an autonomous region of [[Italy]]. The regional capital is [[Cagliari]]. The region is divided into four provinces: Cagliari, [[Sassari]], [[Nuoro]] and [[Oristano]]; another four provinces ([[Olbia-Tempio]], [[Ogliastra]], [[Carbonia-Iglesias]] and [[Medio Campidano]]) have been proposed to enter effect in [[2005]].
-''See also: [[Sardinian towns]]''
-Sardinia is one of two Italian regions whose inhabitants have been recognised as a "popolo" (i.e. a distinct people) by the Italian Parliament. The other region is [[Veneto]].
-==Tourism==
-The island contains numerous extraordinary tourist areas, including the [[Costa Smeralda]] and [[Gennargentu]]. The island is particularly famous for its [[beach]]es, but is also rich in other interesting places. why not also see: [[Tourist destinations of Sardinia]]
-==Climate==
-The [[climate]] is mainly Mediterranean, with a warm spring and fall, hot summer, and mild winter. Sardinia is suffering from a multi-year [[drought]], thought by some to be due to [[global warming]].
-==Language==
-The most spoken languages in Sardinia are Italian and [[Sardinian language|Sardinian]], a [[Romance language]] with obscure roots in [[Phoenician languages|Phoenician]], [[Etruscan language]], and Near Eastern languages. While it has been significantly supplanted by Italian for official purposes,  [[Sardinian language|Sardinian]] is still widely spoken in rural areas.
-In the northern regions of Gallura and Sassari, the language spoken is not Sardinian but a variety of [[Corsican language|Corsican]] (as in [[Corsica]]). In the island of San Pietro, the dialect spoken is Ligurian, from [[Genoa]]. In the city of Alghero in the north, a mediaeval dialect of [[Catalan language|Catalan]] is still spoken (the name of the city in Catalan is ''L'Alguer'') as the island was a Catalan colony in the past.
-==Business and commerce==
-Sardinia's currency (as a part of Italy) is now the [[Euro]], but in some rural areas Sardinians still unofficially refer to ''su Francu'' (or loc. "su Pidzu"); 1 francu = 1,000 former [[Lira|Italian Lira]].
-Several [[gold]] and [[silver]] mines operate on the island.
-The Sardinian economy is today focused on [[tourism]](peaking with the [[Costa Smeralda]]), industry, commerce, services and [[information technology]]; an increasing income is coming from its famous [[wine]]s and gastronomy.
-==Transport==
-[[Train]]s on Sardinia connect the whole island but are rather slow. Some run on [[narrow gauge]] track. Many tourists catch the "trenino verde" which runs through the wildest parts of the island. It is slow but it allows the traveller to have scenic views impossible to see from the main road. The train connects Cagliari to Arbatax in the south and Sassari to Palau in the north.  It's highly recommended to make the trip from Macomer to Bosa Marina, where the train winds its way through the typical Sardinian landscape to reach the sea near the coastal town of Bosa situated in the west of the island.
-==Environment==
-Sardinia is a precious natural resource, containing thousands of rare or uncommon animals and plant species such as the [[Mediterranean Monk Seal]] and the [[boar]]. It lacks many species instead, like the [[viper]] and the [[marmot]], which are found everywhere else on the continent.
-==History==
-''See also: '''[[History of Sardinia]]'''''
-Sardinia's history is very ancient. In [[1979]] human remains were found that were dated to 150,000 BC.
-In [[Prehistory]] Sardinia's inhabitants developed a trade in [[obsidian]], a stone used for the production of the first rough tools, and this activity brought Sardinians into contact with most of the [[Mediterranean Sea|Mediterranean]] people.
-Desiccated grapes, recently found in several locations, were DNA tested and proved to be the oldest grapes in the world, dating back to the Pyramids' and Mesopotamian’s era. The Cannonau wine is made with these grapes and may qualify as the mother of all the European wines.
-From [[Neolithic]] times till the [[Roman Empire]], the [[Nuragic civilisation]] took shape on the island. Still today, more than 7,000 ''[[Nuraghe]]'' survive. It is speculated that, among others, the [[Shardana]] people landed in Sardinia coming from the eastern Mediterranean.  [[Shardana]] had joined the [[Shekelesh]] and others to form the coalition of the [[Sea Peoples]], but were defeated by [[Ramses III]] around 1180 BC in Egypt. [[Shardana]] and [[Shekelesh]] were also called by the Egyptians as the 'people from the faraway islands', implying that [[Shardana]] were already residents of Sardinia at the time of the Egyptian expedition. This assertion holds some truth, in fact most of the [[tombe dei giganti]] have a tombstone shaped like a ship vertically dug into the ground witnessing to their sea traveling activities.
-According to some linguistic studies, the town of [[Sardis]] in ([[Lydia]]) would have been their starting point from which they would have reached the [[Tyrrhenian Sea]], dividing into what were to become the Sardinians and the [[Etruscans]].
-However most theories regarding the original population of Sardinia have been formulated prior to genetics research and in the traditional frame of east-west movements. Genetics has now shown that Sardinians are a [[pre-Indo-European]] population and, like [[Basque people|Basque]], different from all surrounding and much younger groups.
-The density, extensiveness and sheer size of the architectural remains from the [[Neolithic]] period, points to a considerable population of the island.
-Beginning around 1000 BC, [[Phoenicia]]n mariners established several ports of trade on the Sardinian coast. In [[509 BC]], war broke out between the native Nuragic people and the Phoenician settlers. The settlers called for help from [[Carthage]], and the island became a province in the Carthaginian Empire. In [[238 BC]], after being defeated by the [[Roman Republic]] during the [[First Punic War]], Carthage ceded Sardinia to Rome.
-From [[456]] - [[534]], Sardinia was a part of the short-lived kingdom of the [[Vandals]] in North Africa, until reconquered by the [[Byzantine empire|Byzantine]] emperor [[Justinian I]]. Under the Byzantines, the imperial representative was a judge who governed from the southern city of [[Caralis]].  Byzantine rule was practically nonexistent in the mountainous [[Barbagia]] region in the eastern part of the island, and an independent heathen kingdom persisted there from the sixth through ninth centuries.
-Beginning in the eighth century, [[Arab]]s and [[Berber]]s began raiding Sardinia. Especially after the conquering of [[Sicily]] in [[832]], the Byzantines were unable to effectively defend their most distant province, and the provincial judge assumed independent authority. To provide for local defense, he divided the island into four ''[[Giudicati]]'', [[Gallura]], [[Logudoro]], [[Arborea]], and Caralis. By 900, these districts had become four independent constitutional monarchies. At various times, these fell under the sway of [[Genoa]] and [[Pisa]]. In [[1323]], the [[Kingdom of Aragon]] began a campaign to conquer Sardinia; the giudicato of Arborea successfully resisted this and for a time came to control nearly the entire island, but its last ruler [[Eleanor of Arborea]], was eventually defeated by the Aragonese in the decisive [[Battle of Sanluri]], [[June 30]] [[1409]]. The native population of the city of [[Alghero]] (''S'Alighera'' in Sardinian, ''L'Alguer'' in Catalan) was expelled and the city repopulated by the Catalan invaders, whose descendants speak [[Alguerese|Catalan]] to this day. When Catalunia became part of Spain so did Sardinia.
-Under Spain, Sardinians were regularly employed on the royal Spanish fleet. On [[October 7]] [[1571]], at the [[Battle of Lepanto (1571)|Battle of Lepanto]], Sardinian mariners on Board the admiralship of [[Infante]]  [[Don John of Austria]], brother of
-[[Felipe II]], boarded the Turkish admiralship, overpowered the crew, and cut off the head of a Turkish admiral. The sight of the admiral's head on a spear put such a fear in the heart of the Turks, that they abandoned the fight and completely surrendered to Christians. This was the first time Turks lost out to Europeans signaling a trend of military decline and defeats from which Turks never recovered.
-===Kingdom of Sardinia===
-In [[1720]] Sardinia became an independent kingdom under the [[House of Savoy]], rulers of [[Piedmont (Italy)|Piedmont]].
-In [[1792]], [[Jean-Paul Marat]], son of a Sardinian father and a Swiss mother, was one of the triumvirate leading the [[French Revolution]].
-In [[1860]], [[Vittorio Emanuele II]], [[King of Sardinia]] became also the first King of [[Italy]] after conquering the rest of the peninsula.
-==Notes==
-#The last four are new provinces since [[May 2005|May]] [[2005]].
-==See also==
-*[[Sardinian language]]: [[Sardo logudorese]], [[Sardo campidanese]], [[Gallurese]], [[Sassarese]]
-*[[Sardinia/History|History of Sardinia]]
-*[[Sardinia/Touristic_destinations|Tourist destinations of Sardinia]]
-*[[Sardinia/Traditions|Sardinian traditions]]
-*[[Sardinia/Famous_people|Famous people from Sardinia]]
-*[[List of archaeological and artistic sites of Sardinia|Sardinian archaeological and artistic sites]]
-*[[Tavolara Island|An island kingdom near Sardinia]]
-PALANTH  www.palanth.com the International Journal of Palaeoanthropology is publishing the recent discovery of rock art on the Island of Sardinia from at least 13,000 B.C..  Stone Age people were traveling across the sea to this island thousands of years prior to Noah.
-Contact  Nicholas Rolland,  formerly University of Victoria, British Columbia Canada for more info
-== External links ==
-* [http://www.regione.sardegna.it/ Official regional website in Italian]
-* [http://www.regione.sardegna.it/inglese/index.htm Official regional website in English]
-* [http://www.italy-weather-and-maps.com/maps/italy/sardinia.gif Map of Sardinia]
-* [http://www.sardegna.com/index.php?LINGUA=EN Sardegna.com]
-*[http://www.activsardegna.com/infobase/index.php?lang=en/ ActivSardegna.Com] (interactive maps of Sardinia)
-* [http://www.sarnow.com/sardinia/index.htm Webzine about Sardinia]
-*[http://www.italianvisits.com/sardegna/ ItalianVisits.com]
-* [http://www.tharros.info/ Archaeology and short history of Sardinia]
-{{Italy}}
------
-'''Sardinia''' is also a place in the [[U.S. state|State]] of [[Ohio]] in the [[United States|United States of America]]; see [[Sardinia, Ohio]].
-[[Category:Islands of Italy]]
-[[Category:Sardinia|*]]
-[[Category:NUTS 2 Statistical Regions of Europe]]

Difference between revisions of "Sardinian"

Latest revision as of 16:03, 31 March 2010

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