The Orba is a

torrent Torrent or torrents may refer to: * A fast flowing stream Animals * Torrent duck, a species of the family Anatidae * Torrent fish * Torrent frog, various unrelated frogs * Torrent robin, a bird species * Torrent salamander, a family of sala ...

( it, torrente — a stream whose flow shows a very marked seasonal variation) of northern

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 ...

Toponimy

''Orba'' is a

toponym 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 ...

which is quite frequent in Europe, especially in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

and

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

in a variety of different forms and spelling. The name has a

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language * Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Fo ...

origin related with Celtic mythology and as toponym is often associated with rivers whose sand were found to be rich in gold.

Geography

Orba c. 70 km course runs northwards through

Piedmont it, Piemontese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

from its springs in the

Apennines The Apennines or Apennine Mountains (; grc-gre, links=no, Ἀπέννινα ὄρη or Ἀπέννινον ὄρος; la, Appenninus or – a singular with plural meaning;''Apenninus'' (Greek or ) has the form of an adjective, which wou ...

(from the northern slopes of

Monte Reixa Monte Reixa is a mountain in Liguria, northern Italy, part of the Ligurian Apennines. Geography The mountain stands on the Adriatic / Ligurian drainage divide between Passo del Faiallo and Monte Beigua. It is located between the provinces of ...

) to its confluence with the Bormida, a

right tributary A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainage ...

of the Po. The Orba flows from a mountain region, where there are attractive villages such as

Tiglieto Tiglieto ( lij, Tijê, Orbasco dialect: ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Genoa in the Italian region Liguria, located about northwest of Genoa. Tiglieto borders the following municipalities: Campo Ligure, Genoa, Mason ...

Molare Molare is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Alessandria in the Italy, Italian region Piedmont, located about southeast of Turin and about south of Alessandria. Molare borders the following municipalities: Cassinelle, Cremolino, Ovad ...

and then it comes to

Monferrato Montferrat (, ; it, Monferrato ; pms, Monfrà , locally ; la, Mons Ferratus) is part of the region of Piedmont in northern Italy. It comprises roughly (and its extent has varied over time) the modern provinces of Province of Alessandria, ...

's hills.

Ovada Ovada (''Uà'' and ''Guà'' in Ligurian, ''Ovà'' in Piedmontese) is a ''comune'' (municipality) of 11,484 inhabitants in the Province of Alessandria in the northern Italian region Piedmont, located about southeast of Turin and about south of ...

is the biggest town in Orba's valley, and it has a central role among all other villages on top of hills:

Rocca Grimalda Rocca Grimalda (''Ra Roca'' in dialect) is a village and ''comune'' in the province of Alessandria, Piedmont, Northern Italy. It lies in Upper Montferrat, a historical region of Piedmont, and it was built upon a rocky hill on the Orba's left bank, ...

Tagliolo Monferrato Tagliolo Monferrato is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Alessandria in the Italian region Piedmont, located about southeast of Turin and about south of Alessandria. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 1,499 and an area o ...

Cremolino Cremolino is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Alessandria in the Italian region Piedmont, located about southeast of Turin and about south of Alessandria. Cremolino borders the following municipalities: Cassinelle, Molare, Morbell ...

Silvano d'Orba Silvano d'Orba is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Alessandria in the Italian region Piedmont, located about southeast of Turin and about south of Alessandria. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 1,856 and an area of .All ...

Carpeneto Carpeneto is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Alessandria in the Italian region Piedmont, located about southeast of Turin and about south of Alessandria Alessandria (; pms, Lissandria ) is a city and ''comune'' in Piedmont, I ...

Castelletto d'Orba Castelletto d'Orba is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Alessandria in the Italian region Piedmont, located about southeast of Turin and about south of Alessandria. Castelletto d'Orba borders the following municipalities: Capriat ...

Predosa Predosa is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Alessandria in the Italian region Piedmont, located about southeast of Turin and about south of Alessandria. Predosa borders the following municipalities: Basaluzzo, Bosco Marengo, Capria ...

are only some of villages which were built around their own castles on top of rocky hills close to the river, surrounded by vineyard and woods. Wines produced in this valley include:

Dolcetto di Ovada Piemonte wine is the range of Italian wines made in the region of Piedmont in the northwestern corner of Italy. The best-known wines from the region include Barolo and Barbaresco. They are made from the Nebbiolo grape. These wines are ideal for ...

, Barbera del Monferrato,

Cortese di Gavi Cortese di Gavi, or simply Gavi, is an Italian dry white wine produced in a restricted area of the Province of Alessandria, Piedmont, close to the Ligurian border. The wine was awarded DOC status in 1974 and elevated to DOCG in 1998. The name der ...

Main tributaries

Right Bank In geography, a bank is the land alongside a body of water. Different structures are referred to as ''banks'' in different fields of geography, as follows. In limnology (the study of inland waters), a stream bank or river bank is the terrai ...

: **Carpescio, **

Stura di Ovada The Stura di Ovada is a stream of Liguria and Piedmont (Italy); it is the main tributary of the Orba. Geography The stream rises from monte Orditano (Ceranesi municipality), in the Ligurian Apennine, with the name ''Sturetta'' (''little St ...

, **

Piota The Piota is an Apennine torrent in the Province of Alessandria, north-west Italy. Geography The Piota passes through the territory of the communes of Bosio, Casaleggio Boiro, Lerma, Tagliolo Monferrato, Silvano d'Orba and Rocca Grimalda. A ...

, **Albedosa, **

Lemme The Lemme is a 35 km torrent, a right tributary of the Orba, which flows through the Province of Alessandria in northern Italy. Geography Its source is near Monte Calvo; from there it passes through the communes of Fraconalto, Voltaggio, ...

. *Left Bank: ** Orbarina, **Olbicella, ** rio Meri, ** Amione.

History

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 met ...

was extracted from Orba's sand long before the

Romans 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 lette ...

founded a town in this forested area. Rondinaria is supposed to have been an important centre for gold extraction until the end 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 fr ...

: during the following centuries almost all traces of this old centre disappeared and the valley was again completely covered by forests. From 1700, many and expensive efforts were done in order to find out the gold field where the precious metal came from but nobody managed to detect it. Gold extraction from sand grew up during the

Fascist Fascism is a far-right, Authoritarianism, authoritarian, ultranationalism, ultra-nationalist political Political ideology, ideology and Political movement, movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and pol ...

period, as answer to the embargo imposed by other nations on Italian gold trade. Today this activity turned into a local popular hobby and a museum of gold extraction was founded in

, with collections of relics from the past of this old and glorious activity. A

reservoir A reservoir (; from French ''réservoir'' ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam. Such a dam may be either artificial, built to store fresh water or it may be a natural formation. Reservoirs can be created in a number of ways, including contro ...

named Lago di Ortiglieto built from 1917 to 1925 on the Orba collapsed after a period of heavy rains in August

1935 Events January * January 7 – Italian premier Benito Mussolini and French Foreign Minister Pierre Laval conclude Franco-Italian Agreement of 1935, an agreement, in which each power agrees not to oppose the other's colonial claims. * ...

causing 111 deaths, mainly in the

area.
Daniela Prato. ''In settanta alla camminata in ricordo delle 111 vittime del crollo della diga di Molare'', article from «

La Stampa ''La Stampa'' (meaning ''The Press'' in English) is an Italian daily newspaper published in Turin, Italy. It is distributed in Italy and other European nations. It is one of the oldest newspapers in Italy. History and profile The paper was fou ...

- Alessandria» of 13 August 2015.

References

Rivers of the Province of Alessandria Rivers of the Province of Genoa Rivers of the Province of Savona Rivers of Italy Rivers of the Apennines {{Italy-river-stub

Toponimy

Geography

Main tributaries

History

See also

References