Sant'Angelo Muxaro (; scn, Sant'Àngilu Muxaru or , aae, Shënt'Ëngjëlli) is a ''

comune The (; plural: ) is a local administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions ('' regioni'') and provinces (''province''). The can also ...

'' (municipality) in the

Province of Agrigento The Province of Agrigento ( it, Provincia di Agrigento; scn, Pruvincia di Girgenti; officially ''Libero consorzio comunale di Agrigento'') is a province in the autonomous island region of Sicily in Italy, situated on its south-western coast. Follo ...

in the

Italian 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 Ita ...

region

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

, located about south of Palermo and about north of

Agrigento Agrigento (; scn, Girgenti or ; grc, Ἀκράγας, translit=Akrágas; la, Agrigentum or ; ar, كركنت, Kirkant, or ''Jirjant'') is a city on the southern coast of Sicily, Italy and capital of the province of Agrigento. It was one o ...

. The town was founded and historically inhabited by the

Arbëreshë Arbën/Arbër, from which derived Arbënesh/Arbëresh originally meant all Albanians, until the 18th century. Today it is used for different groups of Albanian origin, including: * Arbër (given name), an Albanian masculine given name * Arbëresh ...

community.

History

Four

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile me ...

and

silver Silver is a chemical element with the symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical ...

bowls dating from 650 to 600 BC were found in a tomb in the vicinity of the village in the 18th Century. Only one gold bowl remains, now in the

British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...

's collection. The BM's phiale is decorated with 6 striding bulls and has become a symbol of Sant'Angelo Muxaro. Following the Ottoman invasion of Albania in the late fifteenth century, the present town was colonized by Albanian refugees. The centre of the town was founded in 1506 with further building in 1511. The town retained a distinct Italo-Albanian or ''

'' culture for many years. In the early 17th century the town was still an ''Arbëreshë'' settlement but now the Arbëresh language has disappeared from usage. In 1600, the barony was acquired by the Princes of Castelvetrano, D'Aragona and Tagliavia and finally came under the jurisdiction of Pignatelli, Dukes of Monteleone, who kept it until 1812, when feudalism was suppressed in Sicily.

Geography

Sant'Angelo Muxaro borders the following municipalities:

, Alessandria della Rocca, Aragona,

Casteltermini Casteltermini is a '' comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Agrigento in the Italian region Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 ...

Cattolica Eraclea Cattolica Eraclea (; scn, Catòlica) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Agrigento in the Italian region Sicily, located about south of Palermo and about northwest of Agrigento Agrigento (; scn, Girgenti or ; grc, Ἀκρ ...

Cianciana Cianciana is a '' comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Agrigento in the Italian region Sicily, located in the middle valley of the Platani river, about south of Palermo and about northwest of Agrigento. The Monte Cammarata, elevation ...

, Raffadali,

San Biagio Platani San Biagio Platani ( Sicilian: ''San Mrasi or San Brasi'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Agrigento in the Italian region Sicily, located about south of Palermo and about north of Agrigento. As of 31 December 2004, it had a p ...

Santa Elisabetta Santa Elisabetta ( Sicilian: ''Sabbetta'') is a small town (municipality) in the Province of Agrigento in the Italian region Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , ...

References

External links

Official website
Arbëresh settlements Cities and towns in Sicily Populated places established in 1506 {{Sicily-geo-stub