San Giuseppe Jato (
Sicilian: ''San Giuseppi''; Latin: ''Iaetia'') is a
village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred ...
in the
Metropolitan City of Palermo in
Sicily
(man) it, Siciliana (woman)
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, demographics_type1 = Ethnicity
, demographics1_footnotes =
, demographi ...
, 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 ...
.
The village sits in a hilly region of Palermo's
hinterland
Hinterland is a German word meaning "the land behind" (a city, a port, or similar). Its use in English was first documented by the geographer George Chisholm in his ''Handbook of Commercial Geography'' (1888). Originally the term was associated ...
, from the Sicilian capital.
History
The first inhabited centre in the area lies on top of the adjacent
Mount Jato, dating back to
prehistoric times, with influence of
Greek
Greek may refer to:
Greece
Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe:
*Greeks, an ethnic group.
*Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family.
**Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
culture from the 6th century BC.
[http://www.archinst.uzh.ch/Ietas.htm (]German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
** Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
) Known under the name of ''
Iaitas'' in
Greek
Greek may refer to:
Greece
Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe:
*Greeks, an ethnic group.
*Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family.
**Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
sources
Source may refer to:
Research
* Historical document
* Historical source
* Source (intelligence) or sub source, typically a confidential provider of non open-source intelligence
* Source (journalism), a person, publication, publishing institute o ...
and ''Ietas'' in
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 ...
, this ancient village lived its most flourishing period in its history from the age of
Islamic domination of Sicily to the
Hohenstaufen
The Hohenstaufen dynasty (, , ), also known as the Staufer, was a noble family of unclear origin that rose to rule the Duchy of Swabia from 1079, and to royal rule in the Holy Roman Empire during the Middle Ages from 1138 until 1254. The dynast ...
one (c. 975–1246), when it was an important stronghold. It is believed that the last remnants of the original Muslim stronghold were demolished in 1246 by the troops of
Frederick II of Sicily.
The modern village was founded in 1779 at the foot of Mount Jato. It was known simply as San Giuseppe, until 1864 when the
suffix Jato was added to differentiate it from
San Giuseppe Vesuviano
San Giuseppe Vesuviano is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Naples in Italy, region Campania, located about 20 km east of Naples.
Sights include the sanctuary dedicated to St. Joseph that stands in the center of the ci ...
, near
Naples
Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...
.
San Giuseppe Jato is the birthplace of
Giovanni Brusca
Giovanni Brusca (; born 20 February 1957) is an Italian mobster and former member of the Corleonesi clan of the Sicilian Mafia. He had a major role in the 1992 murders of Antimafia Commission prosecutor Giovanni Falcone and businessman Ignazio ...
, a notorious
mafioso who, in 1996, was arrested for the
assassination of Judge
Giovanni Falcone
Giovanni Falcone (; 18 May 1939 – 23 May 1992) was an Italian judge and prosecuting magistrate. From his office in the Palace of Justice in Palermo, Sicily, he spent most of his professional life trying to overthrow the power of the Sicilian ...
, a prominent
Sicilian anti-mafia The Italian parliamentary Antimafia Commission ( it, Commissione parlamentare antimafia) is a bicameral commission of the Italian Parliament, composed of members from the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate. The first commission, formed in 1963, was ...
campaigner.
Economy
Like many villages and towns in the north of
Sicily
(man) it, Siciliana (woman)
, population_note =
, population_blank1_title =
, population_blank1 =
, demographics_type1 = Ethnicity
, demographics1_footnotes =
, demographi ...
, its inhabitants rely on the production of corn, olives and grapes for their livelihood. Each September the village holds a
Festival
A festival is an event ordinarily celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, mela, or eid. A festival ...
of Grapes and Wine where these
commodities and other agricultural produce is displayed. The area around San Giuseppe Jato is also known for its beef cattle
breeding
Breeding is sexual reproduction that produces offspring, usually animals or plants. It can only occur between a male and a female animal or plant.
Breeding may refer to:
* Animal husbandry, through selected specimens such as dogs, horses, and ra ...
and as a centre for
woodturning
Woodturning is the craft of using a wood lathe with hand-held tools to cut a shape that is symmetrical around the axis of rotation. Like the potter's wheel, the wood lathe is a simple mechanism that can generate a variety of forms. The operator ...
and iron works.
In media
The movie ''
Sicilian Ghost Story
''Sicilian Ghost Story'' is a 2017 Italian drama film directed by Fabio Grassadonia and Antonio Piazza. It is based on the real-life "The White Knight" short story in the ''We Won't Be Confused Forever'' volume by Marco Mancassola. and was screen ...
'' tells the real story of 11-year-old Giuseppe Di Mateo's 1993 kidnapping,
strangling and disposal in an acid vat after 779 days in captivity on 11 January 1996 in San Giuseppe Jato by
Sicilian Mafia boss
Giovanni Brusca
Giovanni Brusca (; born 20 February 1957) is an Italian mobster and former member of the Corleonesi clan of the Sicilian Mafia. He had a major role in the 1992 murders of Antimafia Commission prosecutor Giovanni Falcone and businessman Ignazio ...
in retaliation for Giuseppe's father
Santino Di Matteo's turning state witness ("
pentito
''Pentito'' (; lit. "repentant"; plural: ''pentiti'') is used colloquially to designate collaborators of justice in Italian criminal procedure terminology who were formerly part of criminal organizations and decided to collaborate with a public ...
") in the case of anti-Mafia Judge
Giovanni Falcone
Giovanni Falcone (; 18 May 1939 – 23 May 1992) was an Italian judge and prosecuting magistrate. From his office in the Palace of Justice in Palermo, Sicily, he spent most of his professional life trying to overthrow the power of the Sicilian ...
's murder.
Photos
References
Municipalities of the Metropolitan City of Palermo
{{Sicily-geo-stub