Farnetta is a small village in the Terre Arnolfe countryside, 16 miles northwest of the Italian city of

Terni Terni ( , ; lat, Interamna (Nahars)) is a city in the southern portion of the region of Umbria in central Italy. It is near the border with Lazio. The city is the capital of the province of Terni, located in the plain of the Nera river. It is ...

Umbria it, Umbro (man) it, Umbra (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , ...

. It is included in the ''

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 ...

'' of

Montecastrilli Montecastrilli is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Terni in the Italian region of Umbria, located about 50 km south of Perugia and about 15 km northwest of Terni Terni ( , ; lat, Interamna (Nahars)) is a city in the so ...

in the

province of Terni The Province of Terni ( it, Provincia di Terni) is the smaller of the two provinces in the Umbria region of Italy, comprising one-third of both the area and population of the region. Its capital is the city of Terni. The province came into being ...

(central Italy). It has a population of 283. Farnetta derives its name from the old Latin name ''Quercus Frainetto''. It is reputed to be one of Umbria's smallest villages. It has several farms and houses, and a church, dedicated to St Nicolaus, which has its origins in the 16th century but underwent heavy restoration in 1860. The church has been designated by Italian Heritage. On a nearby hill are the remains of a Medieval

hill fort A hillfort is a type of earthwork used as a fortified refuge or defended settlement, located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typically European and of the Bronze Age or Iron Age. Some were used in the post-Roma ...

known as Palombara, and the 10th- to 11th-century Romanesque Church of San Lorenzo in Nifili. San Lorenzo was built on the remains of a Roman building, and incorporates large stone blocks from that building. The church is located on an important Roman road (Via Amerina) connecting Amelia to

Todi Todi () is a town and ''comune'' (municipality) of the province of Perugia (region of Umbria) in central Italy. It is perched on a tall two-crested hill overlooking the east bank of the river Tiber, commanding distant views in every direction. I ...

and

Perugia Perugia (, , ; lat, Perusia) is the capital city of Umbria in central Italy, crossed by the River Tiber, and of the province of Perugia. The city is located about north of Rome and southeast of Florence. It covers a high hilltop and part o ...

History

It is likely that the area was also inhabited in the

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...

and throughout the Roman period. Close to the Roman roads Amerina and Flaminia, the area has numerous elements of early Roman infrastructure, indicating that it was extensively settled. The village's name's is traditionally connected to the toponym ''

Quercus frainetto ''Quercus frainetto'' (syn. ''Quercus conferta'' Kit., ''Quercus farnetto'' Ten.), commonly known as the Hungarian oak or Italian oak, is a species of oak, native to southeastern Europe (parts of Italy, the Balkans, parts of Hungary, Romania) and ...

'', a species of oak. The village was later part of the Terre Arnolfe, and later subjected to

and

. Farnetta was listed in the

Farfa Abbey Farfa Abbey ( it, Abbazia di Farfa) is a territorial abbey in northern Lazio, central Italy. In the Middle Ages it was one of the richest and most famous abbeys in Italy. It belongs to the Benedictine Order and is located about from Rome, in ...

Main sights

Farnetta is 385 meters above sea level. The Farnetta Natural Park is a protected area (''Zona di ripopolamento e cattura'') that covers a part of the village. Trails cross the park. Its historical center was once surrounded by medieval walls. Most of them have been dismantled, leaving only short stretches and a few cylindrical towers that served as part of the town's defenses. The church of San Nicolo (Nicolaus), in the old part of the village, was begun in the 16th century and completed in the 19th century by the Nevi family. It includes 17th- and 18th-century paintings. FarnettaMontecastrilliBorgo1.jpg, Borgo FarnettaMontecastrilliSanNicolo2.jpg, San Nicolò FarnettaMontecastrilliSantaLucia4.jpg, Santa Lucia FarnettaMontecastrilliSanLorenzoInNifili06.jpg, San Lorenzo in Nifili FarnettaMontecastrilliTorreDellaPalombara2.jpg, Torre della Palombara

Dunarobba Fossil Forest

The Fossil Forest of Dunarobba, 3 km from Farnetta, is one of the world's oldest forests. Two million years ago, the oceans withdrew from the area, leaving an ancient lake, Tiberino. Water runoff from the emerging hills and mountains carried large quantities of sediments which, along with tectonic movements, covered the forest's giant trees and preserved them.

Culture

Farnetta is known for its Feast of

St. Rita Rita of Cascia, born Margherita Lotti (1381 – 22 May 1457), was an Italians, Italian widow and Augustinian nuns, Augustinian nun venerated as a List of Catholic saints, saint in the Roman Catholic Church. After Rita's husband died, she joine ...

, held the last week of May. During the feast, local residents organize a

trattoria A ''trattoria'' (plural: ''trattorie'') is an Italian-style eating establishment that is generally much less formal than a '' ristorante'', but more formal than an ''osteria''. A ''trattoria'' rooted in tradition may typically provide no pri ...

with traditional food. Other medieval towns and villages are present near Farnetta:

(17 km),

Sangemini San Gemini is a ''comune'' (municipality) of c. 5,000 inhabitants in the province of Terni in the Italian region Umbria, located about 60 km south of Perugia and about 10 km northwest of Terni. San Gemini borders the municipalities of Mo ...

, (10 km),

Spoleto Spoleto (, also , , ; la, Spoletum) is an ancient city in the Italian province of Perugia in east-central Umbria on a foothill of the Apennines. It is S. of Trevi, N. of Terni, SE of Perugia; SE of Florence; and N of Rome. History Spolet ...

(42 km),

Carsulae Carsulae is an archaeological site in the region of Umbria in central Italy. It is located approximately north of San Gemini, a small comune in the province of Terni. Origins and History Most historians fix the town's foundation about 220-219 ...

(12 km) and

Orvieto Orvieto () is a city and ''comune'' in the Province of Terni, southwestern Umbria, Italy, situated on the flat summit of a large butte of volcanic tuff. The city rises dramatically above the almost-vertical faces of tuff cliffs that are compl ...

(38 km).

Transport

Farnetta is served by Bus Italia services to Terni, Todi, Sangemini, Montecastrilli, Avigliano and Amelia.

Economy

Agriculture was important for Farnetta's rural development and poverty reduction. Today the village has made use of its past and created a tourist industry; many people enjoy ''agriturismi'' (farm holidays) in the area.

Demography

The population of the civil parish, recorded in the 2001 census, is 246. In the 13th century the population was about 500 (96 fireplaces).Corradi, M., (2005), ''Castrum Farnectae: le famiglie, la storia, le cronache di un castello umbro'', Del Gallo, Spoleto

List of people from Farnetta

* Angelo Nevi, Prior of the Comune di Montecastrilli in the 19th century

References

* Alvi, G. B. (1765), ''Dizionario topografico tudertino'', manoscritto, Archivio Storico Comunale, Todi. * Alvi, G. B., ''Genealogie di famiglie tuderti'', Archivio Storico Comunale, Todi. * Cerquaglia, Z., (1999), ''Il comune di Montecastrilli: da Napoleone all'Unità d’Italia'', Ediart, Todi. * Cerquaglia, Z., (2002), ''Il Comune di Montecastrilli dall'Unità d'Italia alla Prima Guerra Mondiale'', Ediart, Todi. * Covino, R., (1999), ''Dal decentramento all'autonomia: la provincia di Terni dal 1927 al 1997'', Umbriagraf, Terni. * Contoli, L., Spada, F., (1974), ''Ricerche sulle Querce caducifiglie italiane: su alcune stazioni a Quercus Frainetto ten. in comune di Montecastrilli (Terni, Umbria)'', n. 147, Firenze, Istituto Botanico dell'Università, Webbia, 29: 81-86, 1974.

External links

www.comune.montecastrilli.tr.it/

www.farnetta.it/
{{authority control Cities and towns in Umbria