Vista di Torello dalla Chiesa di Santa Barbara

Torello is an Italian village, one of eleven 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 Italy (1922–1943), Fascist era (1922–1943) as ...

'') of the town of

Castel San Giorgio Castel San Giorgio (Campanian: ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Salerno in the Campania region of south-western Italy. In 2011, it had a population of 13,411. History The town, founded in 1810 and located near the site of the ancien ...

, in the

Province of Salerno The Province of Salerno ( it, Provincia di Salerno) is a province in the Campania region of Italy. __TOC__ Geography The largest towns in the province are: Salerno, the capital, which has a population of 131,950; Cava de' Tirreni, Battipagli ...

Campania Campania (, also , , , ) is an administrative Regions of Italy, region of Italy; most of it is in the south-western portion of the Italian peninsula (with the Tyrrhenian Sea to its west), but it also includes the small Phlegraean Islands and the i ...

History

Panoramica Torello di Castel San Giorgio

The toponym Torello most likely derives from the Latin word 'Torus", meaning small hill or mountain, and therefore with no relation with "taurus" (bull). The first written records of Torello are found in the Codex diplomaticus Cavensis, where in a notarial act from 1042 A.D. (VOL.6, 193) it is mentioned a place named ''Torellum'' near

Siano Siano is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Salerno in the Campania region of south-western Italy. Geography The municipality has its borders with Bracigliano, Castel San Giorgio, Mercato San Severino, Quindici ( AV) and Sarno Sarno i ...

within the borders of Nuceria (''infra fines de Nucerie, .Torellum vocatur''). From the same records we know that this was a rural fertile area with chestnut trees and orchards. The village lies at the foot of the north side of ''Monte castello'', the hill on top of which it is still possible to visit the ruins of the ancient St. George's castle. The Budetta, a family of

Norman Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norm ...

origin, were the most influential in this fief between the 11th and 14th centuries. They were descendants of Wirifrider one of the brave Norman knights who fought for the

Norman conquest of Southern Italy The Norman conquest of southern Italy lasted from 999 to 1139, involving many battles and independent conquerors. In 1130, the territories in southern Italy united as the Kingdom of Sicily, which included the island of Sicily, the southern th ...

. Between the 15th and 16th the noble families who owned this fief were the Pandones and Villanis. Among the oldest families from this village, as documented in the local parish registers of the Saint Barbara's church with records starting from the 1500s, are the Falco, Galluzzo, Amabile, Zambrano, Mazzariello, Costabile, Rescigno, and Capuano.

Geography

The village spans on a hill between

(1 km south) and

(2 km north). It is 2 km from

Lanzara Castel San Giorgio (Campanian: ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Salerno in the Campania region of south-western Italy. In 2011, it had a population of 13,411. History The town, founded in 1810 and located near the site of the ancien ...

, 5 from

Roccapiemonte Roccapiemonte (Campanian: ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Salerno in the Campania region of south-western Italy. Geography Located in the east of the Agro Nocerino Sarnese, it borders with the towns of Castel San Giorgio, Cava de' ...

, 6 from

Mercato San Severino Mercato San Severino ( Sanseverinese: ) is a town and ''comune'' of the province of Salerno in the Campania region of south-west Italy. Mercato San Severino shares borders with the municipalities of Baronissi, Bracigliano, Castel San Giorgio, Ca ...

and 9 from

Nocera Inferiore Nocera Inferiore ( nap, Nucèrä Inferiórë or simply , , locally ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Salerno, in Campania in southern Italy. It lies west of Nocera Superiore, at the foot of Monte Albino, some 20 km east-sou ...

Gallery

File:Chiesa di Santa Barbara in Torello Campanile.JPG, St. Barbara's church - Bell tower (2009) File:Vista della Valle dell Orco dalla Chiesa di Santa Barbara in Torello.JPG, View of the "Valley of the Orge" from St. Barbara's church (2009) File:Monte Castello - Castel San Giorgio.jpg, Longobard-Norman castle on the main hill of Castel San Giorgio (2013) File:Chiesa di Santa Barbara in Torello Dettaglio edicola portale.JPG, St. Barbara's church - Dettaglio della edicola nel portale di ingresso (2009) File:Chiesa di Santa Barbara in Torello Scenario rupestre.JPG, St. Barbara's church - Rocky scenery (2009) File:Chiesa di Santa Barbara in Torello Dettaglio soffitto interno.JPG, Chiesa di Santa Barbara in Torello - Dettaglio soffitto interno (2009)

References

External links

Castel San Giorgio municipal website

Associazione Santa Barbara Torello (in Italian)
{{authority control Frazioni of the Province of Salerno