Rende is a

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

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 ...

'' in the province of Cosenza, Calabria, southern

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 ...

, home to the headquarters of the

University of Calabria The University of Calabria ( it, Università della Calabria, UNICAL) is a state-run university in Italy. Located in Arcavacata, a hamlet of Rende and a suburb of Cosenza, the university was founded in 1972. Among its founders there were Beniamino ...

. It has a population of about 35,000, or more than 60,000 if the university students living there are taken into account. It is divided in two parts: the old town, which is stands on a high hill, and the modern area, on level ground, which is connected to the

of Cosenza and with it is the centre of the economy of the province of Cosenza.

Geography

Rende stretches from the left river of the

Crati The Crati is a river in Calabria, southern Italy. It is the largest river of Calabria and the third largest river of southern Italy after the Volturno and the Sele. In classical antiquity it was known as the Crathis or Crater (Greek: ). Geogr ...

to the mountains called "Serre Cosentine". * Southern borders: Cosenza,

Castrolibero Castrolibero is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Cosenza in the Calabria region of southern Italy. Twin towns * Siemiatycze, Poland * Għarb, Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is a ...

, Marano Marchesato and Marano Principato. * Northern borders:

Montalto Uffugo Montalto Uffugo ( Calabrian: ) is a city and ''comune'' of the province of Cosenza in the Calabria region of southern Italy. The original name of the town was Montalto. Uffugo was added to the town's name after the unification period in the 18 ...

and San Vincenzo La Costa. * Western borders: San Fili. * Eastern borders: Castiglione Cosentino,

Rose A rose is either a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred species and tens of thousands of cultivars. They form a group of plants that can be ...

, San Pietro in Guarano and Zumpano. The municipality counts the hamlets (''

frazioni A ''frazione'' (plural: ) is a type of subdivision of a ''comune'' (municipality) in Italy, often a small village or hamlet outside the main town. Most ''frazioni'' were created during the Fascist era (1922–1943) as a way to consolidate territ ...

'') of Arcavacata, Commenda, Quattromiglia, Roges, Santo Stefano, Saporito and Surdo. The territory presents mountain areas from west that degrade slowly eastward forming hills, one of which is the historic centre, until the valley of the

. Thanks to large flat areas, it is covered by the modern city. The most important rivers crossing Rende are Crati, Campagnano, Surdo and Emoli. Castello Normanno Rende 1911

History

The Oenotrians founded here a town named ''Acheruntia'' and, later, Pandosia. However, several inhabitants later moved to a more defendable area, corresponding to the modern ''

frazione A ''frazione'' (plural: ) is a type of subdivision of a ''comune'' (municipality) in Italy, often a small village or hamlet outside the main town. Most ''frazioni'' were created during the Fascist era (1922–1943) as a way to consolidate territ ...

'' of Nogiano, founding (c. 520 BC) the new settlement of ''Aruntia'', later, ''Arintha''. This is mentioned by the ancient Greek historian Hecataeus of Miletus as a

Bruttian The Bruttians (alternative spelling, Brettii) ( la, Bruttii) were an ancient Italic people. They inhabited the southern extremity of Italy, from the frontiers of Lucania to the Sicilian Straits and the promontory of Leucopetra. This roughly corres ...

town of Oenotrian origins. During Roman times, the town followed the history of the nearby Cosentia. After a long resistance, it was sacked by

Totila Totila, original name Baduila (died 1 July 552), was the penultimate King of the Ostrogoths, reigning from 541 to 552 AD. A skilled military and political leader, Totila reversed the tide of the Gothic War, recovering by 543 almost all the t ...

's troops in 547, during the

Gothic Wars The Gothic Wars were a long series of conflicts between the Goths and the Roman Empire between the years 249 and 554. The main wars are detailed below. Gothic War (249–253) (Goths under Cniva against the Roman Empire) The War was probably in ...

. In the 8th-10th centuries, it was sometimes attacked by

Saracen upright 1.5, Late 15th-century German woodcut depicting Saracens Saracen ( ) was a term used in the early centuries, both in Greek and Latin writings, to refer to the people who lived in and near what was designated by the Romans as Arabia Pe ...

troops, until part of the population moved in what is now the territory of Castiglione Cosentino. Later it was controlled by the

Normans The Normans ( Norman: ''Normaunds''; french: Normands; la, Nortmanni/Normanni) were a population arising in the medieval Duchy of Normandy from the intermingling between Norse Viking settlers and indigenous West Franks and Gallo-Romans. ...

and subsequently other southern Italian (sometimes of foreign origin) dynasties.

Main sights

* Norman Castle, built in 1095 by Bohemond I of Antioch. *Mother church of Santa Maria Maggiore, built around 12th century but rebuilt several times, the last in the late 18th century *Sanctuary of Maria Santissima di Costantinopoli

Economy

The economy of Rende is mostly based on the

. In comparison to the rest of southern Italy, Rende has quite a strong economy and is therefore in full expansion. While full industrialization has not yet been very successful, in recent times, major companies have established offices in Rende. Among these are the Japanese Digital and Data Innovation company NTT Data, which has a Research and Development office in Rende; and JRS Silvateam Food Ingredients. Although Rende has an adequate industrial area, a lot of its area still needs to be developed.

Sports

Rende is home to the football team Rende Calcio, which competes in the official semi-professional tournament (C2)

Geography

History

Main sights

Economy

Sports

References

Sources

External links