Calasetta (
Ligurian: ''Câdesédda'') is a small town (population 2,919) and ''
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 ...
'' located on the island of
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 the ...
, off the Southwestern coast of
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, after ...
,
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
.
History
While the town itself dates to 1770. In the middle of the 16th century a group of Ligurian families - many of them from
Pegli
Pegli is a neighbourhood in the west of Genoa, Italy.
With a mild climate and a sea promenade, Pegli is mainly a residential area with four public parks and several villas and mansions. It is also known as a tourist resort with some hotels, campi ...
near
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 ...
- moved to a deserted island off the coast of the
Tunisia
)
, image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg
, map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa
, image_map2 =
, capital = Tunis
, largest_city = capital
, ...
n city of
Tabarka
Tabarka ( ar, طبرقة ') is a coastal town located in north-western Tunisia, close to the border with Algeria. Tabarka's history is a mosaic of Berber, Punic, Hellenistic, Roman, Arabic, Genoese and Turkish culture. The town is dominated by ...
in order to work the waters as coral fishermen. These families worked under the tutelage of the wealthy Genoese Lomellini family. These enterprising Ligurian families of Tabarka quickly expanded from coral fishing to trade between the African interior and European markets. Soon, they rose to positions of wealth and success and were awarded the titles of Marquis of Tabarka. Originally the Tabarkini (as descendants in Calasetta are sometimes still called) were protected by the Spanish crown, but increasing population strain, incursions by Barbary pirates, and expansionist competition by France began a long period of trials for many Tabarkini.
In 1738 a group of Tabarkini decided to leave the island off the Tunisian coast permanently. They were received by King
Charles Emmanuel III
Charles Emmanuel III (27 April 1701 – 20 February 1773) was Duke of Savoy and King of Sardinia from 1730 until his death.
Biography
He was born in Turin to Victor Amadeus II of Savoy and his first wife the French Anne Marie d'Orléans. Hi ...
of Savoy in the
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 ...
, who gave them the Island of San Pietro to settle. When the
Bey of Tunis
Bey ( ota, بك, beğ, script=Arab, tr, bey, az, bəy, tk, beg, uz, бек, kz, би/бек, tt-Cyrl, бәк, translit=bäk, cjs, пий/пек, sq, beu/bej, sh, beg, fa, بیگ, beyg/, tg, бек, ar, بك, bak, gr, μπέης) is ...
learned that the Lomellini family intended to cede control of the island to his enemies the French, he invaded the island, destroying homes and warehouses and capturing and enslaving much of the population. Part of the liberated Tabarkini settled in
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 ...
, in the San Pietro Island, while other received permission to settle the unhinabited Sant'Antioco, then originating the village of Calasetta. In 1773, more colonists from Piedmont asked for permission to settle Calasetta, but illness and unexpected conditions caused them to return almost immediately.
Culture
The local dialect, called ''Tabarkino'', is still today similar to that spoken in Pegli and Genoa.
Calasetta is the birthplace of criminal
Pietro De Negri (known as ''Il Canaro'').
Economy
Today Calasetta is a favored tourist destination with beaches, a port, and a fishing industry.
Twin towns
*
Pegli
Pegli is a neighbourhood in the west of Genoa, Italy.
With a mild climate and a sea promenade, Pegli is mainly a residential area with four public parks and several villas and mansions. It is also known as a tourist resort with some hotels, campi ...
, Italy
*
Arenzano, Italy
See also
* Genoese-Tabarka diaspora
**
Tabarka
Tabarka ( ar, طبرقة ') is a coastal town located in north-western Tunisia, close to the border with Algeria. Tabarka's history is a mosaic of Berber, Punic, Hellenistic, Roman, Arabic, Genoese and Turkish culture. The town is dominated by ...
**
San Pietro Island
San Pietro Island (Italian: ''Isola di San Pietro'', Ligurian Tabarchino: ''Uiza de San Pé'', Sardinian: ''Isula 'e Sàntu Pèdru'') is an island approximately off the South western Coast of Sardinia, Italy, facing the Sulcis peninsula. Wit ...
**
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 ...
**
Tabarca
References
{{Authority control
Cities and towns in Sardinia
1770 establishments in Italy
States and territories established in 1770
Populated places established in 1770