Gratosoglio (; lmo, label=

Milanese Milanese (endonym in traditional orthography , ') is the central variety of the Western dialect of the Lombard language spoken in Milan, the rest of its metropolitan city, and the northernmost part of the province of Pavia. Milanese, due to t ...

, Grattasoeuj ) is a district (''

quartiere A (; plural: ) is a territorial subdivision of certain Italian towns. The word derives from (‘fourth’) and was thus properly used only for towns divided into four neighborhoods by the two main roads. It has been later used as a synonymous ...

'') of the city of

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

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 re ...

, part of the Zone 5 administrative division. It is located at southernmost end of the city, bordering on 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

Rozzano Rozzano ( lmo, Rozzan ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Milan in the Italian region Lombardy, located about south of Milan. Rozzano borders the following municipalities: Milan, Assago, Zibido San Giacomo, Opera, Pieve ...

, and it is traversed by the

Lambro The Lambro ( lmo, Lamber or ''Lambar'' ) is a river of Lombardy, northern Italy, a left tributary of the Po. The Lambro rises from the Monte San Primo, elevation , near the Ghisallo, in the province of Como, not far from Lake Como. After Magr ...

river. The district has an area of about 400,000 m², centered on the main thoroughfare Via dei Missaglia. Having started as a

commuter town A commuter town is a populated area that is primarily residential rather than commercial or industrial. Routine travel from home to work and back is called commuting, which is where the term comes from. A commuter town may be called by many o ...

in the 1960s, with large prefabricated apartment blocks destined to house immigrant workers coming from the

South of Italy Southern Italy ( it, Sud Italia or ) also known as ''Meridione'' or ''Mezzogiorno'' (), is a macroregion of the Italian Republic consisting of its southern half. The term ''Mezzogiorno'' today refers to regions that are associated with the peop ...

, the district is usually listed among those most degraded (e.g., having the highest crime rates) in the surroundings of Milan. The name ''Gratosoglio'' is derived from the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the 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 the power of the ...

words "agreeable throne", which

apostle An apostle (), in its literal sense, is an emissary, from Ancient Greek ἀπόστολος (''apóstolos''), literally "one who is sent off", from the verb ἀποστέλλειν (''apostéllein''), "to send off". The purpose of such sending ...

Barnabas Barnabas (; arc, ܒܪܢܒܐ; grc, Βαρνάβας), born Joseph () or Joses (), was according to tradition an early Christian, one of the prominent Christian disciples in Jerusalem. According to Acts 4:36, Barnabas was a Cypriot Jew. Name ...

(founder of the Milanese church), according to a local legend, pronounced when he was about to leave Milan.Storia di Casina Basmetto
/ref>

History

Gratosoglio developed from a

Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...

that was founded between 1107 and 1130 on the road connecting Milan to

Pavia Pavia (, , , ; la, Ticinum; Medieval Latin: ) is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy in northern Italy, south of Milan on the lower Ticino river near its confluence with the Po. It has a population of c. 73,086. The city was the capit ...

. Despite being a very little community (less than a dozen monks), the monastery became very wealthy, and for about three centuries it also actively influenced the city of Milan.Parrocchia San Barnaba in Gratosoglio - La storia della chiesa
(in Italian) In the mid 15th century the community fell in decay, and by 1545 the monastery was abandoned by the Benedictine. Both

Carmelites , image = , caption = Coat of arms of the Carmelites , abbreviation = OCarm , formation = Late 12th century , founder = Early hermits of Mount Carmel , founding_location = Mount Car ...

and

Franciscans , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...

would later be sent to officiate in the monastery's church and would thus inhabit the monastery. The local rural community survived the decay of the monastery, and in the 18th century was annexed to the Corpi Santi ''comune''. The area was urbanized in the early 1960s, in response to the increasing demand of low price residential areas caused by immigration from

Southern Italy Southern Italy ( it, Sud Italia or ) also known as ''Meridione'' or ''Mezzogiorno'' (), is a macroregion of the Italian Republic consisting of its southern half. The term ''Mezzogiorno'' today refers to regions that are associated with the peop ...

. Between 1962 and 1965, over 50 large buildings (9 to 16 floors high) were constructed, largely using

prefabricated Prefabrication is the practice of assembling components of a structure in a factory or other manufacturing site, and transporting complete assemblies or sub-assemblies to the construction site where the structure is to be located. The term is u ...

blocks. Gratosoglio thus earned its fame of a degraded and marginal dormitory district.

Footnotes

{{coord, 45, 24, 31, N, 9, 10, 18, E, source:kolossus-itwiki, display=title Districts of Milan