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The Sardinians, or Sards ( sc, Sardos or ; Italian and
Sassarese Sassarese (natively ''sassaresu'' or ''turritanu''; sc, tataresu ) is an Italo-Dalmatian language and transitional variety between Sardinian and Corsican. It is regarded as a Corso– Sardinian language because of Sassari's historic ties ...
: ''Sardi''; Gallurese: ''Saldi''), are a
Romance language The Romance languages, sometimes referred to as Latin languages or Neo-Latin languages, are the various modern languages that evolved from Vulgar Latin. They are the only extant subgroup of the Italic languages in the Indo-European language ...
-speaking
ethnic group An ethnic group or an ethnicity is a grouping of people who identify with each other on the basis of shared attributes that distinguish them from other groups. Those attributes can include common sets of traditions, ancestry, language, history, ...
native to
Sardinia Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label= Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, aft ...
, from which the western
Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on ...
island and
autonomous region An autonomous administrative division (also referred to as an autonomous area, entity, unit, region, subdivision, or territory) is a subnational administrative division or internal territory of a sovereign state that has a degree of autonomy� ...
of Italy derives its name.


Etymology

Not much can be gathered from the classical literature about the origins of the Sardinian people. The
ethnonym An ethnonym () is a name applied to a given ethnic group. Ethnonyms can be divided into two categories: exonyms (whose name of the ethnic group has been created by another group of people) and autonyms, or endonyms (whose name is created and us ...
"S(a)rd" belongs to the Pre-Indo-European linguistic substratum, and whilst they might have derived from the Iberians, the accounts of the old authors differ greatly in this respect. The oldest written attestation of the ethnonym is on the Nora stone, where the word ''Šrdn'' (''Shardan'') bears witness to its original existence by the time the Phoenician merchants first arrived to the Sardinian shores. According to Timaeus, one of
Plato Plato ( ; grc-gre, Πλάτων ; 428/427 or 424/423 – 348/347 BC) was a Greek philosopher born in Athens during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. He founded the Platonist school of thought and the Academy, the first institution ...
's dialogues, Sardinia and its people as well, the "Sardonioi" or "Sardianoi" (''Σαρδονιοί'' or ''Σαρδιανοί''), might have been named after "Sardò" (''Σαρδώ''), a legendary Lydian woman from Sardis (''Σάρδεις''), in the region of western
Anatolia Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...
(now
Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula ...
). Some other authors, like Pausanias and
Sallust Gaius Sallustius Crispus, usually anglicised as Sallust (; 86 – ), was a Roman historian and politician from an Italian plebeian family. Probably born at Amiternum in the country of the Sabines, Sallust became during the 50s BC a partisa ...
, reported instead that the Sardinians traced their descent back to a mythical ancestor, a
Libyan Demographics of Libya is the demography of Libya, specifically covering population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, and religious affiliations, as well as other aspects of the Libyan population. The ...
son of
Hercules Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. The Romans adapted the ...
or ''Makeris'' (related either to the
Berber Berber or Berbers may refer to: Ethnic group * Berbers, an ethnic group native to Northern Africa * Berber languages, a family of Afro-Asiatic languages Places * Berber, Sudan, a town on the Nile People with the surname * Ady Berber (1913–19 ...
verb ''Imɣur'' "to grow", to the specific Kabyle word ''Maqqur'' "He is the greatest", or also associated with the figure of
Melqart Melqart (also Melkarth or Melicarthus) was the tutelary god of the Phoenician city-state of Tyre and a major deity in the Phoenician and Punic pantheons. Often titled the "Lord of Tyre" (''Ba‘al Ṣūr''), he was also known as the Son of ...
) revered as a deity going by '' Sardus Pater Babai'' ("Sardinian Father" or "Father of the Sardinians"), who gave the island its name.Serra, Marcello (1978). ''Enciclopedia della Sardegna : con un saggio introduttivo intitolato Alla scoperta dell'isola'', Pisa, Giardini editori e stampatori, p.29: "Origine e carattere dei Sardi" It has also been claimed that the ancient
Nuragic The nuraghe (, ; plural: Logudorese Sardinian , Campidanese Sardinian , Italian ), or also nurhag in English, is the main type of ancient megalithic edifice found in Sardinia, developed during the Nuragic Age between 1900 and 730 B.C. ...
Sards were associated with the Sherden (''šrdn'' in Egyptian), one of the
Sea Peoples The Sea Peoples are a hypothesized seafaring confederation that attacked ancient Egypt and other regions in the East Mediterranean prior to and during the Late Bronze Age collapse (1200–900 BCE).. Quote: "First coined in 1881 by the Fren ...
.E. De Rougè (1867), ''Révue Archéologique, XVI'', p.35 ff.F. J. Chabas (1872), ''Étude sur l'antiquité historique d'après les sources égyptiennes et les monuments réputés préhistoriques'', impr. de J. Dejussieu (Chalon-sur-Saône), p.191-192, 314Ugas, Giovanni (2017). ''Shardana e Sardegna : i popoli del mare, gli alleati del Nordafrica e la fine dei grandi regni (15.-12. secolo a.C.)'', Edizioni della Torre, Cagliari, pp.398-408 The ethnonym was then
romanised Romanization or romanisation, in linguistics, is the conversion of text from a different writing system to the Roman (Latin) script, or a system for doing so. Methods of romanization include transliteration, for representing written text, and ...
, with regard for the singular masculine and feminine form, as ''sardus'' and ''sarda''.


History


Prehistory

Sardinia was first colonized in a stable manner during the
Upper Paleolithic The Upper Paleolithic (or Upper Palaeolithic) is the third and last subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age. Very broadly, it dates to between 50,000 and 12,000 years ago (the beginning of the Holocene), according to some theories coin ...
and the
Mesolithic The Mesolithic ( Greek: μέσος, ''mesos'' 'middle' + λίθος, ''lithos'' 'stone') or Middle Stone Age is the Old World archaeological period between the Upper Paleolithic and the Neolithic. The term Epipaleolithic is often used synonymo ...
by people from
Continental Europe Continental Europe or mainland Europe is the contiguous continent of Europe, excluding its surrounding islands. It can also be referred to ambiguously as the European continent, – which can conversely mean the whole of Europe – and, by ...
. During the
Neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several pa ...
period and the Early Eneolithic,
early European farmers Early European Farmers (EEF), First European Farmers (FEF), Neolithic European Farmers, Ancient Aegean Farmers, or Anatolian Neolithic Farmers (ANF) are names used to describe a distinct group of early Neolithic farmers who brought agriculture to E ...
of the Neolithic
Cardium pottery Cardium pottery or Cardial ware is a Neolithic decorative style that gets its name from the imprinting of the clay with the heart-shaped shell of the '' Corculum cardissa '', a member of the cockle family Cardiidae. These forms of pottery a ...
culture from Italy, Spain and the Aegean area settled in Sardinia. In the Late Eneolithic-Early
Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...
the " Beaker folk" from
Southern France Southern France, also known as the South of France or colloquially in French as , is a defined geographical area consisting of the regions of France that border the Atlantic Ocean south of the Marais Poitevin,Louis Papy, ''Le midi atlantique'', A ...
, Northeastern Spain and then from
Central Europe Central Europe is an area of Europe between Western Europe and Eastern Europe, based on a common historical, social and cultural identity. The Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) between Catholicism and Protestantism significantly shaped the a ...
settled on the island, bringing new metallurgical techniques and ceramic styles and probably some kind of
Indo-European The Indo-European languages are a language family native to the overwhelming majority of Europe, the Iranian plateau, and the northern Indian subcontinent. Some European languages of this family, English, French, Portuguese, Russian, Du ...
speech.


Nuragic civilization

The Nuragic civilization arose in the Middle Bronze Age, during the Late Bonnanaro culture, which showed connections with the previous Beaker culture and the
Polada culture The Fouladi (alternatively Polada, Poladha, Puladi); ( prs, پولادی) is a tribe of Hazara found in Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlo ...
of
northern Italy Northern Italy ( it, Italia settentrionale, it, Nord Italia, label=none, it, Alta Italia, label=none or just it, Nord, label=none) is a geographical and cultural region in the northern part of Italy. It consists of eight administrative region ...
. Although the Sardinians were considered to have acquired a sense of national identity, at that time, the grand tribal identities of the Nuragic Sardinians were said to be three (roughly from the South to the North): the ''Iolei/
Ilienses The Ilienses (or ''Iolaes'', later known as ''Diagesbes''Strabo, Geographica V, 2,7.) were an ancient Nuragic people who lived during the Bronze and Iron Ages in central-southern Sardinia, as well as one of the three major groups among which the anc ...
'', inhabiting the area from the southernmost plains to the mountainous zone of eastern Sardinia (later part of what would be called by the Romans ''Barbaria''); the ''
Balares The Balares were one of the three major groups among which the Nuragic Sardinians considered themselves divided (along with the Corsi and the Ilienses). History Pausanias in his work ''Periegesis'' speculated that the Balares were the descendan ...
'', living in the North-West corner; and finally the '' Corsi'' stationed in today's
Gallura Gallura ( sdn, Gaddura or ; sc, Caddura ) is a region in North-Eastern Sardinia, Italy. The name ''Gallùra'' is allegedly supposed to mean "stony area". Geography Gallùra has a surface of and it is situated between 40°55'20"64 latitude ...
and the island to which they gave the name,
Corsica Corsica ( , Upper , Southern ; it, Corsica; ; french: Corse ; lij, Còrsega; sc, Còssiga) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the 18 regions of France. It is the fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of ...
. Nuragic Sardinians have been connected by some scholars to the Sherden, a tribe of the so-called
Sea Peoples The Sea Peoples are a hypothesized seafaring confederation that attacked ancient Egypt and other regions in the East Mediterranean prior to and during the Late Bronze Age collapse (1200–900 BCE).. Quote: "First coined in 1881 by the Fren ...
, whose presence is registered several times in ancient Egyptian records. The language (or languages) spoken in Sardinia during the Bronze Age is unknown, since there are no written records of such period. According to
Eduardo Blasco Ferrer Eduardo Blasco Ferrer ( Barcelona, 1956 – Bastia, 12 January 2017) was a Spanish-Italian linguist and a professor at the University of Cagliari, Sardinia. He is best known as the author of several studies about the Paleo-Sardinian and Sardini ...
, the Proto-Sardinian language was akin to
Proto-Basque Proto-Basque ( eu, aitzineuskara; es, protoeuskera, protovasco; french: proto-basque), or Pre-Basque, is the reconstructed predecessor of the Basque language before the Roman conquests in the Western Pyrenees. Background The first linguist w ...
and the ancient Iberian, while others believe it was related to Etruscan. Other scholars theorize that there were actually various linguistic areas (two or more) in Nuragic Sardinia, possibly Pre–Indo-Europeans and Indo-Europeans.


Antiquity

In the 8th century BC, the
Phoenicians Phoenicia () was an ancient thalassocratic civilization originating in the Levant region of the eastern Mediterranean, primarily located in modern Lebanon. The territory of the Phoenician city-states extended and shrank throughout their his ...
founded cities and ports along the southern and western coast, such as ''Karalis'', ''Bithia'', ''Sulki'' and ''
Tharros Tharros (also spelled Tharras, Archaic Greek: , Hellenistic Greek, Tarras or Tarrae, Τάρραι) was an ancient city and former bishopric on the west coast of Sardinia, Italy. It is currently a Latin Catholic titular see and an archaeolog ...
''; starting from the same areas, where the relations between the indigenous Sardinians and the Phoenician settlers had been so far peaceful, the
Carthaginians The Punic people, or western Phoenicians, were a Semitic people in the Western Mediterranean who migrated from Tyre, Phoenicia to North Africa during the Early Iron Age. In modern scholarship, the term ''Punic'' – the Latin equivalent of the ...
proceeded to annex the Southern and Western part of Sardinia in the late 6th century BC. Well into the 1st century B.C., the native Sardinians were said to have preserved many cultural affinities with the ancient Punic-
Berber Berber or Berbers may refer to: Ethnic group * Berbers, an ethnic group native to Northern Africa * Berber languages, a family of Afro-Asiatic languages Places * Berber, Sudan, a town on the Nile People with the surname * Ady Berber (1913–19 ...
populations from
North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...
. After the
First Punic War The First Punic War (264–241 BC) was the first of Punic Wars, three wars fought between Roman Republic, Rome and Ancient Carthage, Carthage, the two main powers of the western Mediterranean in the early 3rd century BC. For 23 years ...
, the whole island was conquered by the Romans in the 3rd century BC. Sardinia and Corsica were then made into a single province; however, it took the Romans more than another 150 years to manage to subdue the more belligerent Nuragic tribes of the interior, and after 184 years since the Sardinians fell under Roman sway,
Cicero Marcus Tullius Cicero ( ; ; 3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, and academic skeptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises that led to the esta ...
noted how there was still not on the island a single community which had had friendly intercourse with the Roman people. Even from the former Sardo-Carthaginian settlements, with which the Sardinian mountaineers had formed an alliance in a common struggle against the Romans, indigenous attempts emerged aimed at resisting cultural and political assimilation: inscriptions in Bithia dating to the period of
Marcus Aurelius Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (Latin: áːɾkus̠ auɾέːli.us̠ antɔ́ːni.us̠ English: ; 26 April 121 – 17 March 180) was Roman emperor from 161 to 180 AD and a Stoic philosopher. He was the last of the rulers known as the Five Good E ...
were found, and they still followed the old Punic script at a time when even in North Africa the script was neo-Punic; Punic-style magistrates, the '' sufetes,'' wielded local control in Nora and Tharros through the end of the first century B.C., although two ''sufetes'' existed in Bithia as late as the mid-second century CE. Overall, Sardinia was quite disliked by the Romans and, as isolated as it was kept,
Romanization Romanization or romanisation, in linguistics, is the conversion of text from a different writing system to the Roman (Latin) script, or a system for doing so. Methods of romanization include transliteration, for representing written text, a ...
proceeded at a relatively slow pace. During the Roman rule, there was a considerable immigration flow from the Italian peninsula into the island; ancient sources mention several populations of Italic origin settling down in Sardinia, like the ''Patulcenses Campani'' (from
Campania (man), it, Campana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demog ...
), the '' Falisci'' (from southern
Etruria Etruria () was a region of Central Italy, located in an area that covered part of what are now most of Tuscany, northern Lazio, and northern and western Umbria. Etruscan Etruria The ancient people of Etruria are identified as Etruscans. Thei ...
), the ''Buduntini'' (from
Apulia it, Pugliese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographic ...
) and the ''Siculenses'' (from
Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...
); Roman colonies were also established in Porto Torres (''Turris Libisonis'') and '' Uselis''. The Italic immigrants were confronted with a difficult coexistence with the natives, who were reluctant to assimilate to the language and customs of the colonists; many aspects of the ancient Sardo-Punic culture are documented to have persisted well into Imperial times, and the mostly mountainous innerlands came to earn the name of '' Barbaria'' ("Land of the Barbarians", similar in origin to the word '' Barbary'') as a testament of the fiercely independent spirit of the tribes who dwelled therein (in fact, they would continue to practice their indigenous prehistoric religion up until the age of
Pope Gregory I Pope Gregory I ( la, Gregorius I; – 12 March 604), commonly known as Saint Gregory the Great, was the bishop of Rome from 3 September 590 to his death. He is known for instigating the first recorded large-scale mission from Rome, the Gregoria ...
). Nevertheless, Sardinia would eventually undergo cultural Romanization, the modern
Sardinian language Sardinian or Sard ( , or ) is a Romance language spoken by the Sardinians on the Western Mediterranean island of Sardinia. Many Romance linguists consider it the language that is closest to Latin among all its genealogical descendants. ...
being one of the most evident cultural developments thereof.
Strabo Strabo''Strabo'' (meaning "squinty", as in strabismus) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. The father of Pompey was called " Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-sighted that he could s ...
gave a brief summary about the Mountaineer tribes, living in what would be called ''civitates Barbariae'', ''
Geographica The ''Geographica'' (Ancient Greek: Γεωγραφικά ''Geōgraphiká''), or ''Geography'', is an encyclopedia of geographical knowledge, consisting of 17 'books', written in Greek and attributed to Strabo, an educated citizen of the Roman ...
'' V ch.2:
There are four nations of mountaineers, the Parati, Sossinati, Balari, and the Aconites. These people dwell in caverns. Although they have some arable land, they neglect its cultivation, preferring rather to plunder what they find cultivated by others, whether on the island or on the continent, where they make descents, especially upon the Pisatæ. The prefects sent nto Sardiniasometimes resist them, but at other times leave them alone, since it would cost too dear to maintain an army always on foot in an unhealthy place.
Like any other subjects of the Empire, Sardinians too would be granted
Roman citizenship Citizenship in ancient Rome (Latin: ''civitas'') was a privileged political and legal status afforded to free individuals with respect to laws, property, and governance. Citizenship in Ancient Rome was complex and based upon many different laws, t ...
in 212 AD with the
Constitutio Antoniniana The ''Constitutio Antoniniana'' ( Latin for: "Constitution r Edictof Antoninus") (also called the Edict of Caracalla or the Antonine Constitution) was an edict issued in AD 212, by the Roman Emperor Caracalla. It declared that all free men in t ...
by
Caracalla Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (born Lucius Septimius Bassianus, 4 April 188 – 8 April 217), better known by his nickname "Caracalla" () was Roman emperor from 198 to 217. He was a member of the Severan dynasty, the elder son of Emperor ...
.


Middle Ages

After the fall of the
Western Roman Empire The Western Roman Empire comprised the western provinces of the Roman Empire at any time during which they were administered by a separate independent Imperial court; in particular, this term is used in historiography to describe the period ...
, Sardinia was ruled in rapid succession by the
Vandals The Vandals were a Germanic peoples, Germanic people who first inhabited what is now southern Poland. They established Vandal Kingdom, Vandal kingdoms on the Iberian Peninsula, Mediterranean islands, and North Africa in the fifth century. The ...
, the Byzantines, the
Ostrogoths The Ostrogoths ( la, Ostrogothi, Austrogothi) were a Roman-era Germanic people. In the 5th century, they followed the Visigoths in creating one of the two great Gothic kingdoms within the Roman Empire, based upon the large Gothic populations who ...
and again by the Byzantines, when the island was, once again in its history, joined to North Africa as part of the Exarchate of Africa. The
Arab conquest of North Africa The Muslim conquest of the Maghreb ( ar, الْفَتْحُ الإسلَامِيُّ لِلْمَغرِب) continued the century of rapid Muslim conquests following the death of Muhammad in 632 and into the Byzantine-controlled territories of ...
caused a considerable number of Berbers, who had found themselves displaced by the war, to migrate to Sardinia as refugees, where they were welcomed and swiftly assimilated to the Sardinian ethnic element. At the same time, Sardinian colonies were established in the
Maghreb The Maghreb (; ar, الْمَغْرِب, al-Maghrib, lit=the west), also known as the Arab Maghreb ( ar, المغرب العربي) and Northwest Africa, is the western part of North Africa and the Arab world. The region includes Algeria, ...
, by which only Western
Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...
and
Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to A ...
were once referred to, and
Ifriqiya Ifriqiya ( '), also known as al-Maghrib al-Adna ( ar, المغرب الأدنى), was a medieval historical region comprising today's Tunisia and eastern Algeria, and Tripolitania (today's western Libya). It included all of what had previously ...
(broadly corresponding to modern
Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...
), like the settlement of ''Sardāniya'' ("Sardinia") in the vicinity of '' Al Qayrawān'' that, according to the scholar Giuseppe Contu, would later change its name into
Sbikha Sbikha is a town and commune in the Kairouan Governorate, Tunisia. As of 2004 it had a population of 6,776.
. During the
Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
, the "Sardinian Nation" (''Nació Sarda'' or ''Sardesca'', as reported from the native and Aragonese dispatches) was juridically divided into four independent Kingdoms (known individually in Sardinian as ''Judicadu'', ''Giudicau'' or simply ''Logu'', that is "place"; in it, Giudicato); all of them, with the exception of
Arborea Arborea is a town and '' comune'' in the province of Oristano, Sardinia, Italy, whose economy is largely based on agriculture and cattle breeding with production of vegetables, rice, fruit and milk (notably the local milk product Arborea). Hi ...
, fell under the influence of the Italian maritime republics of
Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian census, the Province of ...
and
Pisa Pisa ( , or ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for its leaning tower, the ci ...
, as well as some noble families from the two cities, like the Dorias and the
Della Gherardesca The House della Gherardesca was an old noble family of the Republic of Pisa, dating back as early as the 11th century of Longobard origin. They were an important one of the most prominent initially in Pisa, then of Volterra and eventually and of ...
s. The Dorias founded the cities of
Alghero Alghero (; ca, label= Alguerese, L'Alguer ; sc, S'Alighèra ; sdc, L'Aliera ) is a city of about 45,000 inhabitants in the Italian insular province of Sassari in northwestern Sardinia, next to the Mediterranean Sea. The city's name comes from ...
and ''Castelgenovese'' (today
Castelsardo Castelsardo ( sdc, Castheddu; sc, Casteddu Sardu) is a town and '' comune'' in Sardinia, Italy, located in the northwest of the island within the Province of Sassari, at the east end of the Gulf of Asinara. History Archaeological excavations ...
), while the Pisans founded ''Castel di Castro'' (today
Cagliari Cagliari (, also , , ; sc, Casteddu ; lat, Caralis) is an Italian municipality and the capital of the island of Sardinia, an autonomous region of Italy. Cagliari's Sardinian name ''Casteddu'' means ''castle''. It has about 155,000 inhabitant ...
) and ''Terranova'' (today
Olbia Olbia (, ; sc, Terranoa; sdn, Tarranoa) is a city and commune of 60,346 inhabitants (May 2018) in the Italian insular province of Sassari in northeastern Sardinia, Italy, in the historical region of Gallura. Called ''Olbia'' in the Roman age ...
); the famous
count Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York ...
Ugolino della Gherardesca, quoted by
Dante Alighieri Dante Alighieri (; – 14 September 1321), probably baptized Durante di Alighiero degli Alighieri and often referred to as Dante (, ), was an Italian poet, writer and philosopher. His '' Divine Comedy'', originally called (modern Italian: ...
in his ''
Divine Comedy The ''Divine Comedy'' ( it, Divina Commedia ) is an Italian narrative poem by Dante Alighieri, begun 1308 and completed in around 1321, shortly before the author's death. It is widely considered the pre-eminent work in Italian literature a ...
'', favored the birth of the mining town of ''Villa di Chiesa'' (today Iglesias), which became an Italian
medieval commune Medieval communes in the European Middle Ages had sworn allegiances of mutual defense (both physical defense and of traditional freedoms) among the citizens of a town or city. These took many forms and varied widely in organization and makeup. C ...
along with
Sassari Sassari (, ; sdc, Sàssari ; sc, Tàtari, ) is an Italian city and the second-largest of Sardinia in terms of population with 127,525 inhabitants, and a Functional Urban Area of about 260,000 inhabitants. One of the oldest cities on the island ...
and Castel di Castro. Following the Aragonese conquest of the Sardinian territories under Pisan rule, which took place between 1323 and 1326, and then the long conflict between the Aragonese Kingdom and the
Judicate of Arborea The Judicate of Arborea ( sc, Judicadu de Arbaree, it, Giudicato di Arborea, ) or the Kingdom of Arborea (, , ) was one of the four independent judicates into which the island of Sardinia was divided in the Middle Ages. It occupied the centr ...
(1353–1420), the newborn
Kingdom of Sardinia The Kingdom of Sardinia,The name of the state was originally Latin: , or when the kingdom was still considered to include Corsica. In Italian it is , in French , in Sardinian , and in Piedmontese . also referred to as the Kingdom of Savoy-S ...
became one of the Associate States of the
Crown of Aragon The Crown of Aragon ( , ) an, Corona d'Aragón ; ca, Corona d'Aragó, , , ; es, Corona de Aragón ; la, Corona Aragonum . was a composite monarchy ruled by one king, originated by the dynastic union of the Kingdom of Aragon and the County of ...
. The Aragonese repopulated the cities of Castel di Castro and Alghero with
Spaniards Spaniards, or Spanish people, are a Romance ethnic group native to Spain. Within Spain, there are a number of national and regional ethnic identities that reflect the country's complex history, including a number of different languages, both ...
, mainly
Catalans Catalans (Catalan, French and Occitan: ''catalans''; es, catalanes, Italian: ''catalani'', sc, cadelanos) are a Romance ethnic group native to Catalonia, who speak Catalan. The current official category of "Catalans" is that of the citize ...
. A local dialect of Catalan is still spoken by a minority of people in the city of Alghero.


Modern and contemporary history

In the 16th and 17th centuries, the main Sardinian cities of Cagliari (the capital of the Kingdom), Alghero and Sassari appear well placed in the trade routes of the time. The cosmopolitan composition of its people provides evidence of it: the population was not only indigenous, but also hailing from Spain, Liguria, France and the island of
Corsica Corsica ( , Upper , Southern ; it, Corsica; ; french: Corse ; lij, Còrsega; sc, Còssiga) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the 18 regions of France. It is the fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of ...
in particular.Carlo Maxia, Studi Sardo-Corsi, Dialettologia e storia della lingua fra le due isole Especially in Sassari and across the strip of territory that goes from
Anglona Anglona is a historical region of northern Sardinia, Italy. Its main center is Castelsardo. Geography Anglona is bounded by the sea northwards, from east by the Coghinas river, from south by Monte Sassu and from west by the Silis River and ...
to
Gallura Gallura ( sdn, Gaddura or ; sc, Caddura ) is a region in North-Eastern Sardinia, Italy. The name ''Gallùra'' is allegedly supposed to mean "stony area". Geography Gallùra has a surface of and it is situated between 40°55'20"64 latitude ...
, the
Corsicans The Corsicans ( Corsican, Italian and Ligurian: ''Corsi''; French: ''Corses'') are a Romance ethnic group. They are native to Corsica, a Mediterranean island and a territorial collectivity of France. Origin The island was populated since ...
became the majority of the population at least since the 15th century. This migration from the neighboring island, which is likely to have led to the birth of the Tuscan-sounding
Sassarese Sassarese (natively ''sassaresu'' or ''turritanu''; sc, tataresu ) is an Italo-Dalmatian language and transitional variety between Sardinian and Corsican. It is regarded as a Corso– Sardinian language because of Sassari's historic ties ...
and Gallurese dialects, went on continuously until the 19th century. The Spanish era ended in 1713, when Sardinia was ceded to the Austrian
House of Habsburg The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...
, followed with another cession in 1718 to the Dukes of Savoy, who assumed the title of "Kings of Sardinia" and ruled the island from
Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...
, in
Piedmont it, Piemontese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...
. During this period,
Italianization Italianization ( it, italianizzazione; hr, talijanizacija; french: italianisation; sl, poitaljančevanje; german: Italianisierung; el, Ιταλοποίηση) is the spread of Italian culture, language and identity by way of integration or ass ...
policies were implemented, so as to assimilate the islanders to the then Savoyard mainland (''stati di terraferma''). In 1738, the
Liguria Liguria (; lij, Ligûria ; french: Ligurie) is a Regions of Italy, region of north-western Italy; its Capital city, capital is Genoa. Its territory is crossed by the Alps and the Apennine Mountains, Apennines Mountain chain, mountain range and is ...
n colonists escaped from Tabarka (
Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...
) were invited by Charles Emmanuel III to settle on the little islands of San Pietro and
Sant'Antioco Sant'Antioco (; sc, Santu Antiogu) is the name of both an island and a municipality ('' comune'') in southwestern Sardinia, in the Province of South Sardinia, in Sulcis zone. With a population of 11,730, the municipality of Sant'Antioco it is t ...
(at
Carloforte Carloforte (''U Pàize'' in Ligurian, literally: ''the village, the town'') is a fishing and resort town located on Isola di San Pietro (Saint Peter's Island), approximately off the southwestern coast of Sardinia, in the Province of South Sar ...
and
Calasetta Calasetta ( Ligurian: ''Câdesédda'') is a small town (population 2,919) and '' comune'' located on the island of Sant'Antioco, off the Southwestern coast of Sardinia, Italy. History While the town itself dates to 1770. In the middle of the 16th ...
), in the south-west area of Sardinia, bringing with them a
Ligurian dialect Ligurian () or Genoese () (locally called or ) is a Gallo-Italic language spoken primarily in the territories of the former Republic of Genoa, now comprising the area of Liguria in Northern Italy, parts of the Mediterranean coastal zone of Fran ...
called "Tabarchino", still widely spoken there. Then, the Piedmontese
Kingdom of Sardinia The Kingdom of Sardinia,The name of the state was originally Latin: , or when the kingdom was still considered to include Corsica. In Italian it is , in French , in Sardinian , and in Piedmontese . also referred to as the Kingdom of Savoy-S ...
annexed the whole Italian peninsula and
Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...
in 1861 after the Risorgimento, becoming the
Kingdom of Italy The Kingdom of Italy ( it, Regno d'Italia) was a state that existed from 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Kingdom of Sardinia, Sardinia was proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, proclaimed King of Italy, until 1946, when civil discontent led to ...
. Since 1850, with the reorganization of the Sardinian mines, there had been a considerable migration flow from the Italian peninsula towards the Sardinian mining areas of Sulcis-
Iglesiente The Iglesiente is a traditional and geographical subdivision of Sardinia, Italy. It encompasses the northern province of Carbonia-Iglesias and the south-western one of the province of Medio Campidano, and its main center is Iglesias. Languages ...
; these Mainland miners came mostly from
Lombardy (man), (woman) lmo, lumbard, links=no (man), (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , ...
, Piedmont,
Tuscany it, Toscano (man) it, Toscana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Citizenship , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = Italian , demogra ...
and
Romagna Romagna ( rgn, Rumâgna) is an Italian historical region that approximately corresponds to the south-eastern portion of present-day Emilia-Romagna, North Italy. Traditionally, it is limited by the Apennines to the south-west, the Adriatic to th ...
. According to an 1882 census realised by the French engineer Leon Goüine, 10.000 miners worked in the south-western Sardinian mines, one third of whom being from the Italian mainland; most of them settled in Iglesias and ''
frazioni A ''frazione'' (plural: ) is a type of subdivision of a ''comune'' (municipality) in Italy, often a small village or hamlet outside the main town. Most ''frazioni'' were created during the Fascist era (1922–1943) as a way to consolidate territ ...
'' . At the end of the 19th century, communities of fishermen from
Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...
,
Torre del Greco Torre del Greco (; nap, Torre d' 'o Grieco; "Greek man's Tower") is a '' comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Naples in Italy, with a population of c. 85,000 . The locals are sometimes called ''Corallini'' because of the once plentiful ...
(Campania) and
Ponza Ponza (Italian: ''isola di Ponza'' ) is the largest island of the Italian Pontine Islands archipelago, located south of Cape Circeo in the Tyrrhenian Sea. It is also the name of the commune of the island, a part of the province of Latina i ...
(Lazio) migrated on the east coasts of the island, in the towns of Arbatax/
Tortolì Tortolì (; sc, Tortolì or ; la, Portus Ilii) is a town and '' comune'' in Sardinia, in the Province of Nuoro. Geography Tortolì is situated on the eastern coast of Sardinia. Its port and greatest hamlet is Arbatax, which has also an airpor ...
,
Siniscola Siniscola (; sc, Thiniscòle ) is a '' comune'' (municipality) in the province of Nuoro in the Italian region Sardinia, located about northeast of Cagliari and about northeast of Nuoro. Siniscola borders the following municipalities: Irgoli, Lo ...
and
La Maddalena La Maddalena (Gallurese: ''Madalena'' or ''La Madalena'', sc, Sa Madalena) is a town and '' comune'' located on the islands of the Maddalena archipelago in the province of Sassari, northern Sardinia, Italy. The main town of the same name is lo ...
. In 1931, only 3,2% of the island's population was estimated to be native of the Mainland. A central government policy would change this situation in the following years, which saw an immigration flow from the Italian peninsula: the
Fascist regime Fascism is a far-right, authoritarian, ultra-nationalist political ideology and movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and political and cultural liberalism, a belief in natural social hierarchy and th ...
resettled to Sardinia a number of Italians from a wide variety of regions like
Veneto Veneto (, ; vec, Vèneto ) or Venetia is one of the 20 regions of Italy. Its population is about five million, ranking fourth in Italy. The region's capital is Venice while the biggest city is Verona. Veneto was part of the Roman Empire unt ...
,
Marche Marche ( , ) is one of the twenty regions of Italy. In English, the region is sometimes referred to as The Marches ( ). The region is located in the central area of the country, bordered by Emilia-Romagna and the republic of San Marino to the ...
,
Abruzzo , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1 ...
and
Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...
, who were encouraged to found settlements of their own like the new mining town of Carbonia, or villages like ''Mussolinia di Sardegna'' ("Sardinia's Mussolinia", now
Arborea Arborea is a town and '' comune'' in the province of Oristano, Sardinia, Italy, whose economy is largely based on agriculture and cattle breeding with production of vegetables, rice, fruit and milk (notably the local milk product Arborea). Hi ...
) and
Fertilia Fertilia er-tì-liais a frazione ( hamlet) in the municipality of Alghero in the province of Sassari, Sardinia, Italy. History Fertilia was built by the Fascist government of Italy in the 1930s, after the draining of the marshes which covere ...
; after
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
,
Italian refugees Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional It ...
from the
Istrian–Dalmatian exodus The Istrian–Dalmatian exodus (; ; ) was the post- World War II exodus and departure of local ethnic Italians ( Istrian Italians and Dalmatian Italians) as well as ethnic Slovenes, Croats, and Istro-Romanians from the Yugoslav territory of ...
were relocated in the Nurra region, along the north-western coastline. As a result of the city's originally diverse composition, Carbonia developed a variety of Italian with some Sardinian influences from the neighbouring areas, while the other mainland ''coloni'' ("colonists") establishing minor centres kept their dialects of
Istriot The Istriot language () is a Romance language of the Italo-Dalmatian branch spoken by about 400 people in the southwestern part of the Istrian peninsula in Croatia, particularly in Rovinj and Vodnjan. It should not be confused with the Istri ...
,
Venetian Venetian often means from or related to: * Venice, a city in Italy * Veneto, a region of Italy * Republic of Venice (697–1797), a historical nation in that area Venetian and the like may also refer to: * Venetian language, a Romance language s ...
and
Friulan Friulian ( ) or Friulan (natively or ; it, friulano; de-AT, Furlanisch; sl, furlanščina) is a Romance language belonging to the Rhaeto-Romance family, spoken in the Friuli region of northeastern Italy. Friulian has around 600,000 speaker ...
, which are still spoken by the elderly. In the same period, a few
Italian Tunisian Italian Tunisians (or Italians of Tunisia) are Tunisians of Italian descent. Migration and colonization, particularly during the 19th century, led to significant numbers of Italians settling in Tunisia. Italian presence in Tunisia The presence ...
families settled in the sparsely populated area of Castiadas, east of Cagliari. Following the
Italian economic miracle The Italian economic miracle or Italian economic boom ( it, il miracolo economico italiano) is the term used by historians, economists, and the mass media to designate the prolonged period of strong economic growth in Italy after the Second Worl ...
, a historic migratory movement from the inland to the coastal and urban areas of
Cagliari Cagliari (, also , , ; sc, Casteddu ; lat, Caralis) is an Italian municipality and the capital of the island of Sardinia, an autonomous region of Italy. Cagliari's Sardinian name ''Casteddu'' means ''castle''. It has about 155,000 inhabitant ...
, Sassari-Alghero- Porto Torres and
Olbia Olbia (, ; sc, Terranoa; sdn, Tarranoa) is a city and commune of 60,346 inhabitants (May 2018) in the Italian insular province of Sassari in northeastern Sardinia, Italy, in the historical region of Gallura. Called ''Olbia'' in the Roman age ...
, where today most Sardinians live, took place.


Demographics

With a population density of 69/km2,Sardinia Travel Guide, Eupedia.com
/ref> slightly more than a third of the national average, Sardinia is the fourth least populated region in Italy. The population distribution is anomalous compared to that of other Italian regions lying on the sea. In fact, contrary to the general trend, urban settlement has not taken place primarily along the coast but towards the centre of the island. Historical reasons for this include the repeated
Moorish The term Moor, derived from the ancient Mauri, is an exonym first used by Christian Europeans to designate the Muslim inhabitants of the Maghreb, the Iberian Peninsula, Sicily and Malta during the Middle Ages. Moors are not a distinct or s ...
raids during the
Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
, which made the coast unsafe, widespread pastoral activities inland, and the swampy nature of the coastal plains that were reclaimed only in the 20th century. Similarly to the Celtic clans, the Sardinians have in fact tended to retreat into the less accessible interior to keep their own independence and way of life. The situation has been recently reversed with the expansion of seaside tourism; today all Sardinia's major urban centres are located near the coast, while the island's interior is very sparsely populated. It is the region of Italy with the lowest
total fertility rate The total fertility rate (TFR) of a population is the average number of children that would be born to a woman over her lifetime if: # she were to experience the exact current age-specific fertility rates (ASFRs) through her lifetime # she were t ...
(1.087 births per woman), and the region with the second-lowest
birth rate The birth rate for a given period is the total number of live human births per 1,000 population divided by the length of the period in years. The number of live births is normally taken from a universal registration system for births; populati ...
. However, the population in Sardinia has increased in recent years because of immigration, mainly proceeding from continental Italy and Sicily, but also from
Eastern Europe Eastern Europe is a subregion of the European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russia, whi ...
(esp.
Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...
),
Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
and
Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...
. As of 2013, there were 42.159 foreign (that is, any people who have not applied for Italian citizenship) national residents, forming 2.5% of the total population.Rapporto Istat – La popolazione straniera residente in Italia al 31º dicembre 2013
/ref>


Life expectancy and longevity

Average
life expectancy Life expectancy is a statistical measure of the average time an organism is expected to live, based on the year of its birth, current age, and other demographic factors like sex. The most commonly used measure is life expectancy at birth ...
is slightly over 82 years (85 for women and 79.7 for men). Sardinia is the first discovered Blue Zone, a demographic and/or geographic area of the world where people live measurably longer lives. Sardinians share with the Ryukyuans from
Okinawa is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 Square kilometre, km2 (880 sq mi). ...
(Japan) the highest rate of centenarians in the world (22 centenarians/100,000 inhabitants). The key factors of such a high concentration of centenarians are identified in the genetics of the Sardinians,Francesco Cucca: “Caratteri immutati da diecimila anni, ecco perché la Sardegna è speciale” (di Elena Dusi) - Sardegna Soprattutto
/ref> lifestyle such as diet and nutrition, and the social structure.


Demographic indicators

*
Birth Rate The birth rate for a given period is the total number of live human births per 1,000 population divided by the length of the period in years. The number of live births is normally taken from a universal registration system for births; populati ...
: 8.3 (per 1,000 inhabitants – 2005) ISTATbr>Tassi generici di natalità, mortalità e nuzialità per regione 2002–2005
/ref> *
Fertility Rate The total fertility rate (TFR) of a population is the average number of children that would be born to a woman over her lifetime if: # she were to experience the exact current age-specific fertility rates (ASFRs) through her lifetime # she were ...
: 1.07 (births per woman – 2005) *
Mortality rate Mortality rate, or death rate, is a measure of the number of deaths (in general, or due to a specific cause) in a particular population, scaled to the size of that population, per unit of time. Mortality rate is typically expressed in units of d ...
: 8.7 (per 1,000 inhabitants – 2005) *
Infant mortality rate Infant mortality is the death of young children under the age of 1. This death toll is measured by the infant mortality rate (IMR), which is the probability of deaths of children under one year of age per 1000 live births. The under-five morta ...
males: 4.6 (per 1,000 births- 2000) Ministero della Salutebr>Speranza di vita e mortalità
*
Infant mortality rate Infant mortality is the death of young children under the age of 1. This death toll is measured by the infant mortality rate (IMR), which is the probability of deaths of children under one year of age per 1000 live births. The under-five morta ...
females: 3.0 (per 1,000 births – 2000) * Marriage rate: 2.9 (per 1,000 inhabitants – 2014) *
Suicide rate The following are lists of countries by suicide rate as published by the World Health Organization (WHO) and other sources. About one person in 5,000–15,000 dies by suicide every year, with an estimated global rate of 10.5 per 100,000 popula ...
males: 20.4 (per 100,000 inhabitants) *
Suicide rate The following are lists of countries by suicide rate as published by the World Health Organization (WHO) and other sources. About one person in 5,000–15,000 dies by suicide every year, with an estimated global rate of 10.5 per 100,000 popula ...
females: 4.5 (per 100,000 inhabitants)''Isola prima in Italia per suicidi'', Ansa.it
/ref>Sardegna, il paradiso dei suicidi, Sardegna Dìes
/ref>La Sardegna prima in Italia nella classifica dei suicidi, La Nuova Sardegna
/ref> *Total
literacy rate Literacy in its broadest sense describes "particular ways of thinking about and doing reading and writing" with the purpose of understanding or expressing thoughts or ideas in written form in some specific context of use. In other words, huma ...
: 98.2%Analfabetismo Italia – Censimento 2001
/ref>Sardegna Statistiche: Analfabeti
/ref> *
Literacy rate Literacy in its broadest sense describes "particular ways of thinking about and doing reading and writing" with the purpose of understanding or expressing thoughts or ideas in written form in some specific context of use. In other words, huma ...
under 65 years old: 99.5%


Historical population

Colors= id:lightgrey value:gray(0.9) id:darkgrey value:gray(0.7) id:sfondo value:rgb(1,1,1) id:barra value:rgb(0.6,0.7,0.8) ImageSize = width:455 height:373 PlotArea = left:50 bottom:50 top:30 right:30 DateFormat = x.y Period = from:0 till:1700 TimeAxis = orientation:vertical AlignBars = justify ScaleMajor = gridcolor:darkgrey increment:100 start:0 ScaleMinor = gridcolor:lightgrey increment:100 start:0 BackgroundColors = canvas:sfondo BarData= bar:1861 text:1861 bar:1871 text:1871 bar:1881 text:1881 bar:1901 text:1901 bar:1911 text:1911 bar:1921 text:1921 bar:1931 text:1931 bar:1936 text:1936 bar:1951 text:1951 bar:1961 text:1961 bar:1971 text:1971 bar:1981 text:1981 bar:1991 text:1991 bar:2001 text:2001 bar:2008 text:2008 PlotData= color:barra width:20 align:left bar:1861 from:0 till: 609.000 bar:1871 from:0 till: 636.000 bar:1881 from:0 till: 680.000 bar:1901 from:0 till: 796.000 bar:1911 from:0 till: 868.000 bar:1921 from:0 till: 885.000 bar:1931 from:0 till: 984.000 bar:1936 from:0 till: 1034.000 bar:1951 from:0 till: 1276.000 bar:1961 from:0 till: 1419.000 bar:1971 from:0 till: 1474.000 bar:1981 from:0 till: 1594.000 bar:1991 from:0 till: 1648.000 bar:2001 from:0 till: 1632.000 bar:2008 from:0 till: 1673.000 TextData= fontsize:S pos:(20,20) text:Fonte istat – Elaborazione grafica di Wikipedia


Division by gender and age

Colors= id:lightgrey value:gray(0.9) id:darkgrey value:gray(0.7) id:sfondo value:rgb(1,1,1) id:barra value:rgb(0.6,0.7,0.8) id:barra2 value:rgb(0.8,0.6,0.7) ImageSize = width:405 height:500 PlotArea = left:50 bottom:50 top:30 right:30 DateFormat = x.y Period = from:-80 till:80 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal AlignBars = late ScaleMajor = gridcolor:darkgrey increment:20 start:-80 ScaleMinor = gridcolor:lightgrey increment:10 start:-80 BackgroundColors = canvas:sfondo BarData= bar:100 text:100+ bar:959 text:95–99 bar:904 text:90–94 bar:859 text:85–89 bar:804 text:80–84 bar:759 text:75–79 bar:704 text:70–74 bar:659 text:65–69 bar:604 text:60–64 bar:559 text:55–59 bar:504 text:50–54 bar:459 text:45–49 bar:404 text:40–44 bar:359 text:35–39 bar:304 text:30–34 bar:259 text:25–29 bar:204 text:20–24 bar:159 text:15–19 bar:104 text:10–14 bar:59 text:5–9 bar:04 text:0–4 PlotData= color:barra2 width:12 align:left bar:100 from:0 till: 0.168 bar:959 from:0 till: 1.471 bar:904 from:0 till: 6.007 bar:859 from:0 till: 11.460 bar:804 from:0 till: 24.951 bar:759 from:0 till: 33.738 bar:704 from:0 till: 40.397 bar:659 from:0 till: 44.093 bar:604 from:0 till: 48.919 bar:559 from:0 till: 52.534 bar:504 from:0 till: 56.636 bar:459 from:0 till: 60.279 bar:404 from:0 till: 66.558 bar:359 from:0 till: 67.588 bar:304 from:0 till: 66.668 bar:259 from:0 till: 60.175 bar:204 from:0 till: 50.627 bar:159 from:0 till: 43.784 bar:104 from:0 till: 39.019 bar:59 from:0 till: 32.965 bar:04 from:0 till: 32.407 color:barra width:12 align:left bar:100 from:0 till: -0.069 bar:959 from:0 till: -0.680 bar:904 from:0 till: -3.069 bar:859 from:0 till: -6.015 bar:804 from:0 till: -15.159 bar:759 from:0 till: -24.059 bar:704 from:0 till: -32.837 bar:659 from:0 till: -38.642 bar:604 from:0 till: -44.946 bar:559 from:0 till: -51.726 bar:504 from:0 till: -56.135 bar:459 from:0 till: -59.627 bar:404 from:0 till: -65.613 bar:359 from:0 till: -68.125 bar:304 from:0 till: -68.727 bar:259 from:0 till: -62.627 bar:204 from:0 till: -53.570 bar:159 from:0 till: -46.228 bar:104 from:0 till: -41.205 bar:59 from:0 till: -35.979 bar:04 from:0 till: -34.494 TextData= fontsize:S pos:(20,20) text:Fonte ISTAT 2005 – Elaborazione grafica di Wikipedia


Total population by age

Colors= id:lightgrey value:gray(0.9) id:darkgrey value:gray(0.7) id:sfondo value:rgb(1,1,1) id:barra value:rgb(0.6,0.7,0.8) ImageSize = width:415 height:500 PlotArea = left:50 bottom:50 top:30 right:30 DateFormat = x.y Period = from:0 till:150 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal AlignBars = late ScaleMajor = gridcolor:darkgrey increment:10 start:0 ScaleMinor = gridcolor:lightgrey increment:10 start:0 BackgroundColors = canvas:sfondo BarData= bar:100 text:100+ bar:959 text:95–99 bar:904 text:90–94 bar:859 text:85–89 bar:804 text:80–84 bar:759 text:75–79 bar:704 text:70–74 bar:659 text:65–69 bar:604 text:60–64 bar:559 text:55–59 bar:504 text:50–54 bar:459 text:45–49 bar:404 text:40–44 bar:359 text:35–39 bar:304 text:30–34 bar:259 text:25–29 bar:204 text:20–24 bar:159 text:15–19 bar:104 text:10–14 bar:59 text:5–9 bar:04 text:0–4 PlotData= color:barra width:12 align:left bar:100 from:0 till: 0.237 bar:959 from:0 till: 2.151 bar:904 from:0 till: 9.076 bar:859 from:0 till: 17.475 bar:804 from:0 till: 40.141 bar:759 from:0 till: 57.797 bar:704 from:0 till: 73.234 bar:659 from:0 till: 82.735 bar:604 from:0 till: 93.865 bar:559 from:0 till: 104.260 bar:504 from:0 till: 112.771 bar:459 from:0 till: 119.906 bar:404 from:0 till: 132.171 bar:359 from:0 till: 135.713 bar:304 from:0 till: 135.395 bar:259 from:0 till: 122.847 bar:204 from:0 till: 104.197 bar:159 from:0 till: 90.012 bar:104 from:0 till: 80.224 bar:59 from:0 till: 68.944 bar:04 from:0 till: 66.901 TextData= fontsize:S pos:(20,20) text:Fonte ISTAT 2005 – Elaborazione grafica di Wikipedia


Geographical distribution

Most Sardinians are native to the island but a sizable number of people have settled outside Sardinia: it had been estimated that, between 1955 and 1971, 308,000 Sardinians emigrated to the Italian mainland. Sizable Sardinian communities are located in
Piedmont it, Piemontese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...
, Liguria,
Lombardy (man), (woman) lmo, lumbard, links=no (man), (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , ...
, Tuscany and
Latium Latium ( , ; ) is the region of central western Italy in which the city of Rome was founded and grew to be the capital city of the Roman Empire. Definition Latium was originally a small triangle of fertile, volcanic soil ( Old Latium) on w ...
. Sardinians and their descendants are also numerous in Germany, France,
Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to ...
, Switzerland and the USA (part of the Italian-American community). Almost all the Sardinians migrating to the
Americas The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America, North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World. ...
settled down in the Southern part of the continent, especially in
Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest ...
(between 1900 and 1913 about 12,000 Sardinians lived in
Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...
and neighbourhoods) and
Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...
(in
Montevideo Montevideo () is the capital and largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2011 census, the city proper has a population of 1,319,108 (about one-third of the country's total population) in an area of . Montevideo is situated on the southern co ...
in the 1870s lived 12,500 Sardinians). Between 1876 and 1903, 92% of the Sardinians that moved towards the Americas settled in
Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
.http://lipari.istat.it/digibib/Annuari/TO00176482Annuario_statistico_emigrazione_italiana_1876_1925.pdf Commissariato generale dell'emigrazione (a cura di), Annuario statistico della emigrazione italiana dal 1876 al 1925 Between 1876 and 1925 34,190 Sardinians migrated to Africa, in particular towards the then French
Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...
and
Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...
. Small communities with Sardinians ancestors, about 5000 people, are also found in
Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
(mostly in the cities of
Belo Horizonte Belo Horizonte (, ; ) is the sixth-largest city in Brazil, with a population around 2.7 million and with a metropolitan area of 6 million people. It is the 13th-largest city in South America and the 18th-largest in the Americas. The metropol ...
, Rio de Janeiro and
São Paulo São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for ' Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the GaW ...
), the UK, and Australia. The Region of Sardinia keeps a register of overseas Sardinians who have managed to set up, in the Italian mainland and the rest of the world, a number of cultural associations: these are meant to provide the people of Sardinian descent, or those with an interest on Sardinian culture, an opportunity to enjoy a wide range of activities. As of 2012, there are 145 clubs registered on it. Unlike the rest of Italian emigration, where migrants were mainly males, between 1953 and 1974 an equal number of females and males emigrated from Sardinia to the Italian mainland.


Surnames and given names

Fewer than a hundred Sardinian surnames are needed to group together as much as a third of the whole Sardinian population. The most common Sardinian surnames, like ''Sanna'' (fang), ''Piras'' (pears), ''Pinna'' (feather, pen) and ''Melis'' (honey), derive from the
Sardinian language Sardinian or Sard ( , or ) is a Romance language spoken by the Sardinians on the Western Mediterranean island of Sardinia. Many Romance linguists consider it the language that is closest to Latin among all its genealogical descendants. ...
and developed among the Judicates in the
Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
as a result of being registered in documents like the condaghes for administrative purposes; most of them derive either from Sardinian place namesManconi, Lorenzo (1987). ''Dizionario dei cognomi sardi'', Edizioni della Torre, p.15 (e.g. ''Fonnesu'' "from Fonni",''Rivista italiana di onomastica'', Mauro Maxia, ''Cognomi sardi medioevali formati da toponimi''
/ref> ''Busincu'' "from
Bosa Bosa is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Oristano (until May 2005 it was in the province of Nuoro), part of the Sardinia region of Italy. Bosa is situated about two-thirds of the way up the west coast of Sardinia, on a small hill, abo ...
" etc.), from animal names (e.g. ''Porcu'' "pig", ''Piga'' "
magpie Magpies are birds of the Corvidae family. Like other members of their family, they are widely considered to be intelligent creatures. The Eurasian magpie, for instance, is thought to rank among the world's most intelligent creatures, and is on ...
", ''Cadeddu'' "puppy" etc.) or from a person's occupation, nickname (e.g. ''Pittau'' "Sebastian"Pittau, Massimo, 2014. ''I cognomi della Sardegna: Significato e origine di 8.000 cognomi indigeni e forestieri'', Ipazia Books), distinctive trait (e.g. ''Mannu'' "big"), and filiation (last names ending in -''eddu'' which could stand for "son of", e.g. ''Corbeddu'' "son/daughter of Corbu"); a number of them have undergone
Italianization Italianization ( it, italianizzazione; hr, talijanizacija; french: italianisation; sl, poitaljančevanje; german: Italianisierung; el, Ιταλοποίηση) is the spread of Italian culture, language and identity by way of integration or ass ...
over the most recent centuries (e.g. ''Pintori'', ''Scano'', ''Zanfarino'', ''Spano'', etc.).Manconi, Lorenzo (1987). ''Dizionario dei cognomi sardi'', Edizioni della Torre, p.12 Some local surnames also derive from terms of the Paleo-Sardinian substrate. The largest percentage of last names originating from outside the island is from
Southern Corsica Corse-du-Sud (; co, link=no, Corsica suttana , or ; en, Southern Corsica) is (as of 2019) an administrative department of France, consisting of the southern part of the island of Corsica. The corresponding departmental territorial collect ...
(like ''Cossu'', ''Cossiga'', ''Alivesi'' and ''Achenza'', originally from the towns of Olivese and Quenza respectively), followed by Italian (especially
Piedmont it, Piemontese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...
ese but also
Campania (man), it, Campana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demog ...
n, Sicilian and
Liguria Liguria (; lij, Ligûria ; french: Ligurie) is a Regions of Italy, region of north-western Italy; its Capital city, capital is Genoa. Its territory is crossed by the Alps and the Apennine Mountains, Apennines Mountain chain, mountain range and is ...
n, originating from the days of the Savoyard rule and the assimilation policy: some of them have been "Sardinianized", like ''Accardu'', ''Calzinu'', ''Gambinu'', ''Raggiu'', etc.) and Spanish (especially
Catalan Catalan may refer to: Catalonia From, or related to Catalonia: * Catalan language, a Romance language * Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia Places * 13178 Catalan, asteroid #1 ...
) surnames. The Sardinian personal names (like ''Baínzu'' or ''Gavine'' "Gavin", ''Bachis'' "Bachisius", ''Bobore'' "Salvator", ''Iroxi'' "George", ''Chìrigu'' "Cyricus", ''Gonare'' "Gonarius", ''Elianora'' "Eleanor", ''Boele'' "Raphael", ''Sidore'' "Isidore", ''Billía'' "William", ''Tiadora'' "Theodora", ''Itria'', etc.) are historically attested and were common among the islanders up until the contemporary era, when they switched in full measure to the Italian names.


Self-identification

Population surveys have been carried out, on repeated occasions, to provide information about the Sardinians' identity, as well as their conciliation with the institutional layers of political governance. The most detailed survey, conducted by the
University of Cagliari The University of Cagliari ( it, Università degli Studi di Cagliari) is a university in Cagliari, Sardinia, Italy. It was founded in 1606 and is organized in 11 faculties. History The ''Studium Generalis Kalaritanum'' was founded in 1606 alon ...
and
Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
, made use of a Moreno Question which gave the following results: (1) just Sardinian, 26%; (2) more Sardinian than Italian, 37%; (3) equally Sardinian and Italian, 31%; (4) more Italian than Sardinian, 5%; (5) only Italian and not Sardinian, 1%. A 2017 poll by the Ixè Institute reported that 51% of the Sardinians questioned identified themselves as Sardinian (as opposed to an Italian average of 15% who identified by their region of origin) rather than Italian (19%), European (11%), and/or citizen of the world (19%).


Culture


Languages

Italian (''italiano'') was first introduced to Sardinia by the
House of Savoy The House of Savoy ( it, Casa Savoia) was a royal dynasty that was established in 1003 in the historical Savoy region. Through gradual expansion, the family grew in power from ruling a small Alpine county north-west of Italy to absolute rule of ...
in July 1760 and is the most commonly spoken language nowadays, albeit in a regional variety, as a result of policies fostering
language shift Language shift, also known as language transfer or language replacement or language assimilation, is the process whereby a speech community shifts to a different language, usually over an extended period of time. Often, languages that are percei ...
and
assimilation Assimilation may refer to: Culture * Cultural assimilation, the process whereby a minority group gradually adapts to the customs and attitudes of the prevailing culture and customs ** Language shift, also known as language assimilation, the prog ...
that facilitated
Italianization Italianization ( it, italianizzazione; hr, talijanizacija; french: italianisation; sl, poitaljančevanje; german: Italianisierung; el, Ιταλοποίηση) is the spread of Italian culture, language and identity by way of integration or ass ...
. On the other hand, Sardinian (''sardu'') has been the native language of the indigenous Sards ever since
Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...
supplanted the Pre-Indo-European Paleo-Sardinian, a language supposedly related to Basque with some
Berber Berber or Berbers may refer to: Ethnic group * Berbers, an ethnic group native to Northern Africa * Berber languages, a family of Afro-Asiatic languages Places * Berber, Sudan, a town on the Nile People with the surname * Ady Berber (1913–19 ...
influence and of which remnants can be still be found in vocabulary and local
toponyms Toponymy, toponymics, or toponomastics is the study of '' toponyms'' (proper names of places, also known as place names and geographic names), including their origins, meanings, usage and types. Toponym is the general term for a proper name of ...
. The historical loss of the islanders' political autonomy has kept the language at a stage of dialectal fragmentation, reflecting the coexistence of the various other languages (namely
Catalan Catalan may refer to: Catalonia From, or related to Catalonia: * Catalan language, a Romance language * Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia Places * 13178 Catalan, asteroid #1 ...
, Spanish, and finally Italian) imposing themselves in a position of political and thereby social prestige. Because of a movement, described by some authors as a "linguistic and cultural revival" that gained traction in the postwar period, the Sardinians' cultural heritage was recognized in 1997 and 1999, which makes them the largest ethnolinguistic minority group in Italy, with around a million Sardinians still able to speak the language to some degree. However, because of a rigid model of Italian education system that has strongly promoted Italian to the detriment of Sardinian, the language has been in decline over the past century, since the people effectively retaining Sardinian have gradually become a minority in their own island (in fact, most Sardinians are linguistically Italianized nowadays, and it has been estimated that only 10-13 percent of the young native population have some active and passive competence in the languageLa Nuova Sardegna, 04/11/10, Per salvare i segni dell'identità – di Paolo Coretti). Therefore, Sardinian is facing challenges analogous to other definitely endangered
minority language A minority language is a language spoken by a minority of the population of a territory. Such people are termed linguistic minorities or language minorities. With a total number of 196 sovereign states recognized internationally (as of 2019) ...
s across Europe, and its two main Logudorese and
Campidanese Campidanese Sardinian ( sc, sardu campidanesu, it, sardo campidanese) is one of the two written standards of the Sardinian language, which is often considered one of the most, if not the most conservative of all the Romance languages. The ort ...
varieties, as defined by their standard orthographies, have been designated as such by
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international coope ...
. The other languages spoken in Sardinia, all also endangered but with much fewer speakers than Sardinian in absolute numbers, developed after the arrival of certain communities from outside the island, namely
Corsicans The Corsicans ( Corsican, Italian and Ligurian: ''Corsi''; French: ''Corses'') are a Romance ethnic group. They are native to Corsica, a Mediterranean island and a territorial collectivity of France. Origin The island was populated since ...
,
Catalans Catalans (Catalan, French and Occitan: ''catalans''; es, catalanes, Italian: ''catalani'', sc, cadelanos) are a Romance ethnic group native to Catalonia, who speak Catalan. The current official category of "Catalans" is that of the citize ...
and
Italians , flag = , flag_caption = The national flag of Italy , population = , regions = Italy 55,551,000 , region1 = Brazil , pop1 = 25–33 million , ref1 = , region2 ...
from
Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian census, the Province of ...
and
Pisa Pisa ( , or ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for its leaning tower, the ci ...
, settling in specific regions of Sardinia over the recent centuries; because of these dynamics, Sardinia's society has been characterized by situational
plurilingualism Plurilingualism is the ability of a person who has competence in more than one language to switch between multiple languages depending on the situation for ease of communication. Plurilingualism is different from code-switching in that plurilingua ...
since the late Middle Ages. These languages include
Sassarese Sassarese (natively ''sassaresu'' or ''turritanu''; sc, tataresu ) is an Italo-Dalmatian language and transitional variety between Sardinian and Corsican. It is regarded as a Corso– Sardinian language because of Sassari's historic ties ...
(''sassaresu'') and Gallurese (''gadduresu''), which are of remote Corso-Tuscan origin but often socially associated with Sardinian, Algherese Catalan (''alguerés''), and Ligurian Tabarchino (''tabarchin'').


Flag

The so-called flag of the Four Moors is the historical and official flag of Sardinia. The flag is composed of the St George's Cross and four Moor's heads wearing a white bandana in each quarter. Its origins are basically shrouded in mystery, but it is presumed it originated in
Aragon Aragon ( , ; Spanish and an, Aragón ; ca, Aragó ) is an autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces (from north to s ...
to symbolize the defeat of the
Moorish The term Moor, derived from the ancient Mauri, is an exonym first used by Christian Europeans to designate the Muslim inhabitants of the Maghreb, the Iberian Peninsula, Sicily and Malta during the Middle Ages. Moors are not a distinct or s ...
invaders in the
battle of Alcoraz The Battle of Alcoraz took place between 1094 and 1096 outside Huesca, pitting the besieging forces of Peter I of Aragon and Navarre against the allied forces of Al-Musta'in II of the Taifa of Zaragoza and García Ordóñez de Nájera and Go ...
.


Sardinia's Day

''
Sa die de sa Sardigna Sardinia's Day ( sc, sa die de sa Sardigna ; sdc, la dì di la Sardigna; sdn, la dì di la Saldigna; ca, label=Algherese, lo dia de la Sardenya; it, il giorno della Sardegna), also known as Sardinian people's Day ( it, Giornata del popolo sa ...
'' ("Sardinia's Day" in English) is a holiday celebrated each 28 April to commemorate the
revolt Rebellion, uprising, or insurrection is a refusal of obedience or order. It refers to the open resistance against the orders of an established authority. A rebellion originates from a sentiment of indignation and disapproval of a situation and ...
occurring from 1794 to 1796 against the feudal privileges, and the execution or expulsion of the Savoyard officials (including the then Piedmontese
viceroy A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the French word ''roy'', meaning " ...
, Carlo Balbiano) from Sardinia on 28 April 1794. The revolt was spurred by the King's refusal to grant the island the autonomy the locals demanded in exchange for defeating the French. The holiday has been formally recognised by the Sardinian Council since 14 September 1993. Some public events are annually held to commemorate the episode, while the schools are closed.


Religion

The vast majority of the Sardinians are baptized as
Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...
, however church attendance is one of the lowest in Italy (21.9%). Our Lady of Bonaria is the Patroness Saint of Sardinia.


Traditional clothes

Colourful and of various and original forms, the Sardinian traditional clothes are an ancient symbol of belonging to specific collective identities, as well as one of the most genuine ethnic expressions of the Mediterranean folklore. Although the basic model is homogeneous and common throughout the island, each town or village has its own traditional clothing which differentiates it from the others. The Sardinians' traditional garments, as well as their jewellery, have been defined as an object of study in
ethnography Ethnography (from Greek ''ethnos'' "folk, people, nation" and ''grapho'' "I write") is a branch of anthropology and the systematic study of individual cultures. Ethnography explores cultural phenomena from the point of view of the subject ...
since the late 19th century, at a time in which they first started to be slowly displaced in favour of the "Continental fashion" in the various contexts of everyday life, and their primary function has since switched to become a marker of ethnic identity. In the past, the clothes diversified themselves even within the communities, performing a specific function of communication as it made it immediately clear the marital status and the role of each member in the social area. Until the mid-20th century the traditional costume represented the everyday clothing in most of Sardinia, but even today in various parts of the island it is possible to meet elderly people dressed in costume. Herbert Kubly, writing for
The Atlantic ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher. It features articles in the fields of politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 in Boston, ...
in 1955, said that «for Sardinians, traditional costumes are daily dress and not a holiday or touristic get-up. In the arid brown autumn landscape the population blossoms like flowers on the desert». The materials used for their packaging are among the most varied, ranging from the typical Sardinian woollen fabric (''orbace'') to silk and from
linen Linen () is a textile made from the fibers of the flax plant. Linen is very strong, absorbent, and dries faster than cotton. Because of these properties, linen is comfortable to wear in hot weather and is valued for use in garments. It also ...
to leather. The various components of the feminine apparel are: the headgear (''mucadore''), the shirt (''camisa''), the bodice (''palas'', ''cossu''), the jacket (''coritu'', ''gipone''), the skirt (''unnedda'', ''sauciu''), the apron (''farda'', ''antalena'', ''defentale''). Those of the male are: the headdress ('' berrita''), the shirt (''bentone'' or ''camisa''), the jacket (''gipone''), the trousers (''cartzones'' or ''bragas''), the skirt (''ragas'' or ''bragotis''), the overcoat (''gabbanu'' and ''colletu''), and finally the piece of clothing most associated with the Sardinians, the ''mastruca'', a sheep or goatskin leather jacket without sleeves: "''Sardi pelliti''" and "''mastrucati latrones''" " ardinianthieves with rough wool cloaks" were names by which
Cicero Marcus Tullius Cicero ( ; ; 3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, and academic skeptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises that led to the esta ...
and other authors mentioned the Sardinians.


Cuisine


Music


Genetics


Autosomal studies

Sardinians, while being part of the European
gene pool The gene pool is the set of all genes, or genetic information, in any population, usually of a particular species. Description A large gene pool indicates extensive genetic diversity, which is associated with robust populations that can surv ...
, are well-known outliers in the European genetic landscape (together with the
Basques The Basques ( or ; eu, euskaldunak ; es, vascos ; french: basques ) are a Southwestern European ethnic group, characterised by the Basque language, a common culture and shared genetic ancestry to the ancient Vascones and Aquitanians. Ba ...
, the Chuvash, the Sami, the
Finns Finns or Finnish people ( fi, suomalaiset, ) are a Baltic Finnic ethnic group native to Finland. Finns are traditionally divided into smaller regional groups that span several countries adjacent to Finland, both those who are native to these ...
and the
Icelanders Icelanders ( is, Íslendingar) are a North Germanic ethnic group and nation who are native to the island country of Iceland and speak Icelandic. Icelanders established the country of Iceland in mid 930 AD when the Althing (Parliament) met f ...
). Studies analyzing the DNA of both ancient and modern individuals from the island confirm that the current population is mostly derived from the Early Neolithic Farmers, plus some contribution of the historical colonizers, with the highest
Neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several pa ...
ancestry being found in the mountainous region of
Ogliastra The province of Ogliastra ( it, provincia dell'Ogliastra , sc, provìntzia de s'Ogiastra) was a former province in eastern Sardinia, Italy. Ogliastra was the most mountainous province in Sardinia. With only some 57,642 inhabitants, it was also ...
.Chiang et al., Genomic history of the Sardinian population
/ref> Several studies have been carried out on the genetics of the Sardinian population to investigate some pathologies to which the Sardinians seem to be predisposed in a unique way, likely linked due to
founder effect In population genetics, the founder effect is the loss of genetic variation that occurs when a new population is established by a very small number of individuals from a larger population. It was first fully outlined by Ernst Mayr in 1942, us ...
s and
genetic drift Genetic drift, also known as allelic drift or the Wright effect, is the change in the frequency of an existing gene variant (allele) in a population due to random chance. Genetic drift may cause gene variants to disappear completely and there ...
of this island population,''Genetica, malattie e caratteri dei sardi'', Francesco Cucca - Sardegna Ricerche
/ref> like
diabetes mellitus type 1 Type 1 diabetes (T1D), formerly known as juvenile diabetes, is an autoimmune disease that originates when cells that make insulin (beta cells) are destroyed by the immune system. Insulin is a hormone required for the cells to use blood sugar for ...
, beta thalassemia and favism,
multiple sclerosis Multiple (cerebral) sclerosis (MS), also known as encephalomyelitis disseminata or disseminated sclerosis, is the most common demyelinating disease, in which the insulating covers of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord are damaged. This ...
and
coeliac disease Coeliac disease (British English) or celiac disease (American English) is a long-term autoimmune disorder, primarily affecting the small intestine, where individuals develop intolerance to gluten, present in foods such as wheat, rye and barle ...
. Some other genetic peculiarities have been noted, like the high frequency of rare uniparental haplotypes, extensive linkage disequilibrium of autosomal markers, high levels of homozygosity, the lowest frequency of RH-negative genes in the Mediterranean, the highest frequency in the world of the ''MNS*M'' gene, the highest frequency of ''HLAB*18'' together with some typical North African alleles, and the highest frequency of the thalassemia variant ''β39''. Recent comparisons between the Sardinians' genome and that of some individuals from the Neolithic and the early Chalcolithic, who lived in the
Alpine Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to: Places Europe * Alps, a European mountain range ** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range Australia * Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village * Alpine National P ...
( Oetzi), German, and Hungarian regions, showed considerable similarities between the two populations, while at the same time consistent differences between the prehistoric samples and the present inhabitants of the same geographical areas were noted.Genome flux and stasis in a five millennium transect of European prehistory
/ref> From this it can be deduced that, while
central Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known a ...
and northern Europe have undergone significant demographic changes due to post-Neolithic migrations, presumably from the eastern periphery of Europe (
Pontic–Caspian steppe The Pontic–Caspian steppe, formed by the Caspian steppe and the Pontic steppe, is the steppeland stretching from the northern shores of the Black Sea (the Pontus Euxinus of antiquity) to the northern area around the Caspian Sea. It extend ...
), Southern Europe and Sardinia in particular were affected less; Sardinians appear to be the population that has best preserved the
Neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several pa ...
legacy of Western Europe.Keller at al 2011, Nature
/ref>
/ref>supp. info (p.16)
/ref>''A Common Genetic Origin for Early Farmers from Mediterranean Cardial and Central European LBK Cultures'', Olalde et al 2015, Molecular Biology and Evolution
/ref>
/ref>[http://www.cell.com/current-biology/abstract/S0960-9822%2815%2901516-X Omrak et al 2016, ''Genomic Evidence Establishes Anatolia as the Source of the European Neolithic Gene Pool'', Current Biology, Volume 26, Issue 2, p270–275, 25 January 2016]Haak et al 2015, ''Massive migration from the steppe was a source for Indo-European languages in Europe''
/ref>supp. info (p.120)
/ref> A 2016 study, published on the journal
Genetics Genetics is the study of genes, genetic variation, and heredity in organisms.Hartl D, Jones E (2005) It is an important branch in biology because heredity is vital to organisms' evolution. Gregor Mendel, a Moravian Augustinian friar work ...
, traced the origin of the Sardinians in conjunction with a genetically isolated
landrace A landrace is a domesticated, locally adapted, often traditional variety of a species of animal or plant that has developed over time, through adaptation to its natural and cultural environment of agriculture and pastoralism, and due to isolatio ...
dog breed A dog breed is a particular strain of dog that was purposefully bred by humans to perform specific tasks, such as herding, hunting, and guarding. Dogs are the most variable mammal on Earth, with artificial selection producing around 450 globall ...
from the island, the Sardinian Shepherd Dog or Fonni's dog, pinpointing a
Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...
ern and
Central Europe Central Europe is an area of Europe between Western Europe and Eastern Europe, based on a common historical, social and cultural identity. The Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) between Catholicism and Protestantism significantly shaped the a ...
an lineage. A 2018 study by Llorente et al. found that the present-day Sardinians are the closest population to the genome of the
West Eurasia Eurasia (, ) is the largest continental area on Earth, comprising all of Europe and Asia. Primarily in the Northern and Eastern Hemispheres, it spans from the British Isles and the Iberian Peninsula in the west to the Japanese archipelago ...
n backflow to the
Horn of Africa The Horn of Africa (HoA), also known as the Somali Peninsula, is a large peninsula and geopolitical region in East Africa.Robert Stock, ''Africa South of the Sahara, Second Edition: A Geographical Interpretation'', (The Guilford Press; 2004 ...
in ancient times. A 2020 study by Fernandes et al. estimated that the current Sardinian genome derives roughly 62.5% from
Neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several pa ...
Early European Farmers Early European Farmers (EEF), First European Farmers (FEF), Neolithic European Farmers, Ancient Aegean Farmers, or Anatolian Neolithic Farmers (ANF) are names used to describe a distinct group of early Neolithic farmers who brought agriculture to E ...
(EEF), 9.7% from the
Mesolithic The Mesolithic ( Greek: μέσος, ''mesos'' 'middle' + λίθος, ''lithos'' 'stone') or Middle Stone Age is the Old World archaeological period between the Upper Paleolithic and the Neolithic. The term Epipaleolithic is often used synonymo ...
Western Hunter-Gatherers (WHG), 13.9% from ancestry related to Neolithic Iranians of Ganj Dareh (or also
Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range, have historica ...
-related ancestry), 10.6% from the
Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...
Western Steppe Herders (WSH) of the Yamnaya culture and, lastly, 3.4% from Late Neolithic Moroccans (partly of European origin). Fernandes concluded that: "Major immigration into Sardinia began in the first millennium BC and, at present, no more than 56–62% of Sardinian ancestry is from its first farmers. This value is lower than previous estimates, highlighting that Sardinia, similar to every other region in Europe, has been a stage for major movement and mixtures of people". Sardinians as a whole are not simply a homogeneous genetic population: several studies have found some differences among the various villages and sub-regions of the island. In this regard, the mountainous area of
Ogliastra The province of Ogliastra ( it, provincia dell'Ogliastra , sc, provìntzia de s'Ogiastra) was a former province in eastern Sardinia, Italy. Ogliastra was the most mountainous province in Sardinia. With only some 57,642 inhabitants, it was also ...
(part of the wider region of
Barbagia Barbagia (; sc, Barbàgia or ) is a geographical, cultural and natural region of inner Sardinia, contained for the most part in the province of Nuoro and Ogliastra and located alongside the Gennargentu massif. The name comes from Cicero, who d ...
) is more distant from the rest of Europe and the Mediterranean than other Sardinian sub-regions located in the plains and in the coastal areas. This occurs in part because these more accessible areas show the highest genetic influxes of Bronze Age
steppe In physical geography, a steppe () is an ecoregion characterized by grassland plains without trees apart from those near rivers and lakes. Steppe biomes may include: * the montane grasslands and shrublands biome * the temperate gras ...
, Iranian farmer-related and North African ancestries in Sardinia, although still moderate in comparison to the predominant Neolithic farmer ancestry. By contrast, the more isolated area of Ogliastra retains the highest amount of earlier Mesolithic and Neolithic ancestry on the island. According to a study released in 2014, the
genetic diversity Genetic diversity is the total number of genetic characteristics in the genetic makeup of a species, it ranges widely from the number of species to differences within species and can be attributed to the span of survival for a species. It is dis ...
among some Sardinian individuals from different regions of the island is between 7 and 30 times higher than the one found among other European ethnicities living thousands kilometers away from each other, like
Spaniards Spaniards, or Spanish people, are a Romance ethnic group native to Spain. Within Spain, there are a number of national and regional ethnic identities that reflect the country's complex history, including a number of different languages, both ...
and
Romanians The Romanians ( ro, români, ; dated exonym '' Vlachs'') are a Romance-speaking ethnic group. Sharing a common Romanian culture and ancestry, and speaking the Romanian language, they live primarily in Romania and Moldova. The 2011 Romania ...
. A similar phenomenon is commonly found in other isolated populations, like the Ladin groups from the Italian region of
Veneto Veneto (, ; vec, Vèneto ) or Venetia is one of the 20 regions of Italy. Its population is about five million, ranking fourth in Italy. The region's capital is Venice while the biggest city is Verona. Veneto was part of the Roman Empire unt ...
and in the
Alpine Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to: Places Europe * Alps, a European mountain range ** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range Australia * Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village * Alpine National P ...
area, where the local orography did not facilitate intraregional communications. However, despite a high degree of interindividual genetic differentiation being detected on multiple occasions, other studies have also stated that such variability does not occur among the main macro-regions of the island: a Sardinian region like the
Barbagia Barbagia (; sc, Barbàgia or ) is a geographical, cultural and natural region of inner Sardinia, contained for the most part in the province of Nuoro and Ogliastra and located alongside the Gennargentu massif. The name comes from Cicero, who d ...
has been proven not to be significantly different from the regions on the coast, like the area of
Cagliari Cagliari (, also , , ; sc, Casteddu ; lat, Caralis) is an Italian municipality and the capital of the island of Sardinia, an autonomous region of Italy. Cagliari's Sardinian name ''Casteddu'' means ''castle''. It has about 155,000 inhabitant ...
and
Oristano Oristano (; sc, Aristanis ) is an Italian city and '' comune'', and capital of the Province of Oristano in the central-western part of the island of Sardinia. It is located on the northern part of the Campidano plain. It was established as the ...
. A study by Contu et al. (2008) found a relatively high degree of genetic homogeneity between Sardinian individuals from three different regions of the island: the northernmost area ( Tempio,
Gallura Gallura ( sdn, Gaddura or ; sc, Caddura ) is a region in North-Eastern Sardinia, Italy. The name ''Gallùra'' is allegedly supposed to mean "stony area". Geography Gallùra has a surface of and it is situated between 40°55'20"64 latitude ...
), a central zone (
Sorgono Sorgono ( sc, Sòrgono) is a '' comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Nuoro in the Italian region Sardinia, located about north of Cagliari and about southwest of Nuoro. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 1,927 and an area of .A ...
,
Barbagia Barbagia (; sc, Barbàgia or ) is a geographical, cultural and natural region of inner Sardinia, contained for the most part in the province of Nuoro and Ogliastra and located alongside the Gennargentu massif. The name comes from Cicero, who d ...
of Mandrolisai) and the southernmost area (
Cagliari Cagliari (, also , , ; sc, Casteddu ; lat, Caralis) is an Italian municipality and the capital of the island of Sardinia, an autonomous region of Italy. Cagliari's Sardinian name ''Casteddu'' means ''castle''. It has about 155,000 inhabitant ...
, Campidano). Other studies have suggested again a certain degree of homogeneity within the Sardinian population. The 2015 SardiNIA study showed, by using the ''FST'' differentiation statistic, a clear genetic differentiation between Sardinians (whole genome sequence of 2120 individuals from across the island and especially the
Lanusei Lanusei (; ) is a town and '' comune'' in Sardinia in the Province of Nuoro. References Cities and towns in Sardinia {{Sardinia-geo-stub ...
valley) and populations from the Italian peninsula (1000 genomes), and reported an even more significant amount of difference between the Sardinians from the above-mentioned Lanusei valley (in the mountainous
Barbagia Barbagia (; sc, Barbàgia or ) is a geographical, cultural and natural region of inner Sardinia, contained for the most part in the province of Nuoro and Ogliastra and located alongside the Gennargentu massif. The name comes from Cicero, who d ...
region) and the other European populations. This pattern of differentiation is also evident in the lengths for haplotypes surrounding rare variants loci, with a similar haplotype length for Sardinian populations and shorter length for populations with low grade of common ancestry.


Y-DNA and mtDNA studies

The most common Y-DNA haplogroups among the Sardinian males, comprising ~70% of the population, are, in descending order, I2 (particularly I2a1a-M26), R1b-M269 and G2a.Paolo Francalacci et a
Low-Pass DNA Sequencing of 1200 Sardinians Reconstructs European Y-Chromosome Phylogeny
2013
They are found respectively in the Western Hunter-Gatherers, Western Steppe Herders, and
Early European Farmers Early European Farmers (EEF), First European Farmers (FEF), Neolithic European Farmers, Ancient Aegean Farmers, or Anatolian Neolithic Farmers (ANF) are names used to describe a distinct group of early Neolithic farmers who brought agriculture to E ...
. As in the rest of
Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
, the most common mitochondrial DNA haplogroup is H.


Notable Sardinians


Gallery

File:Costume_di_Ovodda.jpg, Children from Ovodda File:Fonni - Urthos e Buttudos (06).jpg, Urthos mask of Fonni File:Costume di maracalagonis.jpg, Robes from Maracalagonis File:Costume di Ollolai.jpg, Woman from
Ollolai Ollolai is a ''comune'' at the centre of Barbagia, in the province of Nuoro (Sardinia, Italy). Its territory covers an area of . It is the main town of the Barbagia di Ollolai. Places of interest Architecture The main square of the village ...
File:Costumi sardi.jpg, Robes from
Cagliari Cagliari (, also , , ; sc, Casteddu ; lat, Caralis) is an Italian municipality and the capital of the island of Sardinia, an autonomous region of Italy. Cagliari's Sardinian name ''Casteddu'' means ''castle''. It has about 155,000 inhabitant ...
File:Costume di busachi.jpg, Robes from Busachi File:Olbia - Costume tradizionale (02).JPG, Robes from
Olbia Olbia (, ; sc, Terranoa; sdn, Tarranoa) is a city and commune of 60,346 inhabitants (May 2018) in the Italian insular province of Sassari in northeastern Sardinia, Italy, in the historical region of Gallura. Called ''Olbia'' in the Roman age ...
File:Sardinian Woman.jpg, Robe from Sennori File:Costume di Oristano.jpg, Robe from Oristano File:Costume giornaliero di dorgali.jpg, Daily traditional clothe from Dorgali File:Costume di quartu sant' elena.jpg, Folk robes from Quartu Sant'Elena File:Costume di selargius.jpg, Robes from
Selargius Selargius, Ceràrgius or Ceraxius in Sardinian, is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Cagliari in the Italian region Sardinia, located about northeast of Cagliari. , it has a population of 28,905. The village exists since t ...
File:Assemini - Costume tradizionale (06).JPG, Robes from
Assemini Assemini (; sc, Assèmini ) is a '' comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Cagliari in the Italian region Sardinia, located about northwest of Cagliari in the plain of the Cixerri, Flumini Mannu and Sa Nuxedda rivers. It includes ...
File:Aritzo - Costume tradizionale (08).JPG, Child from
Aritzo Aritzo ( sc, Arìtzo) is a '' comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Nuoro in the Italian region Sardinia, located about north of Cagliari and about southwest of Nuoro. Aritzo borders the following municipalities: Arzana, Belvì, Desul ...
File:Women of sardinia.jpg, Women dressed in traditional Sardinian clothing (
Quartucciu Quartucciu ( sc, Cuartùcciu) is a '' comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Cagliari in the Italian region Sardinia, located about northeast of Cagliari. History Human presences in the territory of Quartucciu is attested since prehi ...
) File:Costume di settimo san pietro.jpg, Robes from
Settimo San Pietro Settimo San Pietro, Sètimu in Sardinian language, is a ''comune'' (municipality) of the Metropolitan City of Cagliari in the Italian region Sardinia, located about northeast of Cagliari. Settimo San Pietro borders the following municipalities: ...
File:Costume dolianova 1.jpg, Robe from
Dolianova Dolianova ( sc, Patiolla) is an Italian town and '' comune'' in the province of South Sardinia, Sardinia. The town was born on 25 June 1905 from the fusion of two centers: Sicci San Biagio and San Pantaleo. Its economy is based on agriculture ( w ...
File:LANUSEI (1).jpg, Men from
Lanusei Lanusei (; ) is a town and '' comune'' in Sardinia in the Province of Nuoro. References Cities and towns in Sardinia {{Sardinia-geo-stub ...
File:Costume di Nuragus.jpg, Robe from
Nuragus Nuragus ( Latin: Valentia) is a small town, in administrative terms a '' comune'' (municipality), in the Province of South Sardinia in the Italian autonomous region of Sardinia, located about north of the local capital Cagliari. Nuragus border ...
File:BULTEI 2.jpg, Robe from
Bultei Bultei ( sc, Urtei) is a '' comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Sassari in the Italian region Sardinia, located about north of Cagliari and about southeast of Sassari. Bultei borders the following municipalities: Anela, Benetutti, Bon ...
File:VILLANOVA MONTELEONE 2.jpg, children from Villanova Monteleone File:Cavalieri di Teulada-Sardinia.jpg, Knights from Teulada File:Costume di Laconi.jpg, Traditional robe from
Laconi Laconi, Làconi in Sardinian language, is a '' comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Oristano in the Italian region Sardinia, located about north of Cagliari and about east of Oristano. Laconi borders the following municipalities: Aritzo, ...
File:Costume di tonara.jpg, Robe from Tonara Costume_tradizionale_di_Fonni_(03).jpg, Robes from Fonni File:LANUSEI (5).jpg, Man from Lanusei File:Mamuthone e Issohadore di Mamoiada.jpg, A ''Mamuthone'' and an ''Issohadore'', traditional carnival garments from Mamoiada File:Oristano Sa Sartiglia.jpg, Sardinian knights on ''Sa Sartiglia'' day (
Oristano Oristano (; sc, Aristanis ) is an Italian city and '' comune'', and capital of the Province of Oristano in the central-western part of the island of Sardinia. It is located on the northern part of the Campidano plain. It was established as the ...
). File:Traditional costumes of busachi (SARDINIA).jpg, People in traditional dress ( Busachi) File:Costume of orgosolo.jpg, Robe from Orgosolo File:Sardinians girl 3.jpg, Robe from Iglesias File:Orgosolo folk.jpg, Orgosolo dress File:Sardinians .jpg, Robe from Oliena File:Sartiglia-712848.jpg, Sartiglia Medieval Festival in Oristano File:Costume di Florinas.jpg, Robe from Florinas File:Costume di Cagliari.jpg, People from Cagliari File:Festa redentore 2009 224.jpg, Sardinian men and children in traditional dress at the ''Sagra del Redentore'' (
Nuoro Nuoro ( or less correctly ; sc, Nùgoro ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in central-eastern Sardinia, Italy, situated on the slopes of the Monte Ortobene. It is the capital of the province of Nuoro. With a population of 36,347 (2011), ...
) File:Festa redentore 2009 091.JPG, Children from Ovodda in traditional dress File:Issohadoreandmamuthones.jpg, An ''Issohadore'', typical mask of the Sardinian carnival ( Mamoiada) File:Mamoiada 3.jpg, A ''Mamuthone'', another typical mask of the Sardinian carnival ( Mamoiada) File:Maschera carnevalesca - sardegna.jpg, ''Boe and Merdule'' (
Ottana Ottana ( sc, Otzàna) is a '' comune'' (municipality), former bishopric and Latin titular see in the Province of Nuoro in the Italian region Sardinia, located about north of Cagliari and about southwest of Nuoro. The town is known for its t ...
) File:Sartiglia di Oristano.jpg, Mask of Sartiglia File:Costume di orgosolo.jpg, Sardinians in traditional dress ( Orgosolo) File:Costume di Atzara.jpg, Robe from
Atzara Atzara ( sc, Atzàra) is a '' comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Nuoro in the Italian region Sardinia, located about north of Cagliari and about southwest of Nuoro. Atzara borders the following municipalities: Belvì, Meana Sardo, Samugh ...
File:Folk Costume of Sardinia in Oliena 2.jpg, Robe from
Oliena Oliena (, less correctly ; sc, Ulìana ) is a commune in the province of Nuoro, Sardinia, Italy. History The territory of Oliena has been inhabited since the Palaeolithic Era until today. The first proofs about the above-mentioned presences ...
File:Festa redentore 2009 084.JPG, Robe from
Orune Orune ( sc, Orùne) is a '' comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Nuoro in the Italian region Sardinia, located about north of Cagliari Cagliari (, also , , ; sc, Casteddu ; lat, Caralis) is an Italian municipality and the capital ...
File:Austis - Costume tradizionale (05).JPG, Man from
Austis Austis ( la, Augustae, sc, Aùstis) is a '' comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Nuoro in the Italian region Sardinia, located about north of Cagliari and about southwest of Nuoro. Austis borders the following municipalities: Neoneli, Nug ...
File:Costume di ittiri.jpg, Robe from Ittiri File:FONNI (4).jpg, Woman from Fonni File:Costume_sassari.jpg, Robe from
Sassari Sassari (, ; sdc, Sàssari ; sc, Tàtari, ) is an Italian city and the second-largest of Sardinia in terms of population with 127,525 inhabitants, and a Functional Urban Area of about 260,000 inhabitants. One of the oldest cities on the island ...
File:Launeddas Player.jpg, Sardinian man in traditional dress playing the Launeddas File:Costume tipico di Cossoine.jpg, Robe from
Cossoine Cossoine is a '' comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Sassari in the Italian region Sardinia, located about north of Cagliari and about southeast of Sassari. Cossoine borders the following municipalities: Bonorva, Cheremule, Giave, Ma ...
File:Sardinian girl.jpg, Robe from
Isili Isili, Ìsili in sardinian language, is a '' comune'' (municipality) in the province of South Sardinia, southern Sardinia, Italy, located about north of Cagliari in the Sarcidano traditional region. Isili borders the following municipalities: ...


See also

*
List of Sardinians Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, with a population of about 1.6 million people. The list includes notable natives of Sardinia, as well as those who were born elsewhere but spent a large part of their active life in S ...
*
Sardinia Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label= Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, aft ...
* History of Sardinia *
Nuragic civilization The Nuragic civilization, also known as the Nuragic culture, was a civilization or culture on Sardinia (Italy), the second largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, which lasted from the 18th century BC (Middle Bronze Age) (or from t ...
*
List of Nuragic tribes This is a list of ancient Corsican and Sardinian tribes, listed in order of ethnic kinship or the general area in which they lived. Some closely fit the concept of a tribe. Others are confederations or even unions of tribes. Overview Before the ...
*
Sardinian language Sardinian or Sard ( , or ) is a Romance language spoken by the Sardinians on the Western Mediterranean island of Sardinia. Many Romance linguists consider it the language that is closest to Latin among all its genealogical descendants. ...
*
Sassarese Sassarese (natively ''sassaresu'' or ''turritanu''; sc, tataresu ) is an Italo-Dalmatian language and transitional variety between Sardinian and Corsican. It is regarded as a Corso– Sardinian language because of Sassari's historic ties ...
* Gallurese * Sardinian surnames * Corsican people *
Italian people , flag = , flag_caption = The national flag of Italy , population = , regions = Italy 55,551,000 , region1 = Brazil , pop1 = 25–33 million , ref1 = , region2 ...
*
Spanish people Spaniards, or Spanish people, are a Romance ethnic group native to Spain. Within Spain, there are a number of national and regional ethnic identities that reflect the country's complex history, including a number of different languages, both i ...


References

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *. * * * *


Notes

{{Authority control * Romance peoples Ethnic groups in Italy