Bagheria (; scn, Baarìa ) is a town 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

Metropolitan City of Palermo The Metropolitan City of Palermo ( it, Città metropolitana di Palermo; scn, Cità metrupulitana di Palermu) is a metropolitan city in Sicily, Italy. Its capital is the city of Palermo. It replaced the Province of Palermo and comprises the city ...

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

, Italy, located approximately 10km to the east of the city centre.

Etymology

According to some sources, the name ''Bagheria'' (by way of old Sicilian ''Baarìa'') originates from the Phoenician term ''Bayharia'' meaning "land that descends toward the sea." Other sources claim that it derives from the

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...

''Bāb al-Gerib'', or "windy gateway." However, the most plausible explanation is that it derives from Arabic ', meaning 'of the sea, marine'. According to "Deciphering the English Code", Joseph Aronesty, the BAGH refers to a "base or bottom". Eria is just "earth" or land, from Hebrew "eretz" and many old languages. Also "area" Latin. Bagheria therefore means what it is, a land at the bottom of mountains.

History

Since its founding, the town has gone by the names of ''Bayharia'', ''Baharia'', and ''Baarìa''. In 1658 Giuseppe Branciforti, Prince of

Butera Butera ( Sicilian: ''Vutera'') is an Italian town and a ''comune'' in the province of Caltanissetta, in the southern part of the island of Sicily. It is bounded by the ''comuni'' of Gela, Licata, Mazzarino, Ravanusa and Riesi. It has a populati ...

and former

Viceroy of Sicily This is a list of viceroys of Sicily: Aragonese direct rule 1409–1516 * John of Aragon, Duke of Peñafiel, later king John II of Aragon, 1458–1479, acted 1409–1416. * Domingo Ram y Lanaja, Bishop of Lleida 1416–1419 * Antonio de Cardona ...

, built a large

villa A villa is a type of house that was originally an ancient Roman upper class country house. Since its origins in the Roman villa, the idea and function of a villa have evolved considerably. After the fall of the Roman Republic, villas became ...

and established the region as the preferred location for the vacation homes of Palermo's elites. Villas like the fortified Villa San Marco (designed by Andrea Cirrincione) with angled bastions and a drawbridge soon followed. The area experienced a boom in villa building roughly coinciding with the period of Savoyard (1713–21) and Habsburg (1721–30) rule and continuing for several decades thereafter. The two most striking baroque residences, Villa Valguarnera and Villa Palagonia were designed by the architect Tommaso Napoli in 1712 and 1715 respectively. Both were completed only decades later. Napoli had been influenced by his experiences in Rome and Vienna and this is reflected in his designs. Other architects and clients like Giuseppe Mariani and the Prince of

Aragona Aragona ( scn, Araùna or ''Raona'') is a commune in the province of Agrigento, Sicily, southern Italy. It is northeast of Agrigento. It is known mainly for the Macalube natural reserve and for being the Italian municipality with the highest ...

also looked to prints of Roman exemplars when constructing the Villa Aragona (now Cutò) in 1714. By 1763, tastes were changing. The Villa Villarosa, supervised by the young G. V. Marvuglia, was directly modeled on more neoclassical plans published by

Jean-François de Neufforge Jean-François de Neufforge (1 April 1714 – 19 December 1791) was a Belgian architect and engraver, known for his ''Recueil elementaire d'architecture'', a book of architectural engravings. Biography Jean-François de Neufforge was born on 1 ...

in 1760. In 1769, one of the descendants of the original Prince of Butera redesigned his estate into a well-planned town, allowing him to collect rents from the inhabitants. Bagheria was a preferred stopping point for Europeans pursuing the Grand Tour in Sicily including

Patrick Brydone Patrick Brydone, FRSE, FRS, FSAScot, FSA (5 January 1736 – 19 June 1818) was a Scottish traveller and author who served as Comptroller of the Stamp Office. Life Brydone was born in Coldingham, Berwickshire, on 5 January 1736, the son of ...

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as t ...

John Soane Sir John Soane (; né Soan; 10 September 1753 – 20 January 1837) was an English architect who specialised in the Neo-Classical style. The son of a bricklayer, he rose to the top of his profession, becoming professor of architecture at the R ...

Karl Friedrich Schinkel Karl Friedrich Schinkel (13 March 1781 – 9 October 1841) was a Prussian architect, city planner and painter who also designed furniture and stage sets. Schinkel was one of the most prominent architects of Germany and designed both neoclassic ...

and many others. In the 20th and 21st centuries, the

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including ...

and

Neoclassical architecture Neoclassical architecture is an architectural style produced by the Neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century in Italy and France. It became one of the most prominent architectural styles in the Western world. The prevailing sty ...

of Bagheria was largely obscured by unregulated building.

Main sights

* Villa Palagonia, renowned for its complex external staircase, curved

façade A façade () (also written facade) is generally the front part or exterior of a building. It is a loan word from the French (), which means ' frontage' or ' face'. In architecture, the façade of a building is often the most important aspect ...

s, and

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite. Marble is typically not foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the term ''marble'' refers to metamorphose ...

. Designed by Tommaso Maria Napoli, it is today open to the public. * Other notable building include Villa Butera, Villa Valguarnera, Villa Trabia, Villa Spedalotto, Villa San Cataldo, Villa Villarosa, Villa San Marco, Villa Filangeri, Villa Sant'Isidoro, Villa Ramacca, Villa Serradifalco, Villa Larderia, Villa Campofranco. * The Museum of the painter

Renato Guttuso Renato Guttuso (26 December 1911 – 18 January 1987) was an Italian painter and politician. His best-known works include ''Flight from Etna'' (1938–39), ''Crucifixion'' (1941) and ''La Vucciria'' (1974). Guttuso also designed for the theatre ( ...

with a permanent exhibition of his work is placed in Villa Cattolica. A famous collection of old sicilian toys, il Museo del Giocattolo di Pietro Piraino, is placed in Villa Cuto.

Religion

Although the official

feast day The calendar of saints is the traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the day as the feast day or feast of said saint. The word "feast" in this context do ...

of St. Joseph, the town's

patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, or Eastern Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or perso ...

, is March 19, it is celebrated in Bagheria the first Sunday of August; religious celebrations are held throughout the week leading up to Sunday, when more solemn ceremonies are initiated; the following Monday evening festivities conclude with a

fireworks display Fireworks are a class of Explosive, low explosive Pyrotechnics, pyrotechnic devices used for aesthetic and entertainment purposes. They are most commonly used in fireworks displays (also called a fireworks show or pyrotechnics), combining a l ...

Culture

Bagheria was the birthplace of many well-known 20th century figures: poet

Ignazio Buttitta Ignazio Buttitta (19 September 1899 – 5 April 1997) was an Italian poet who wrote predominantly in Sicilian. Biography Born at Bagheria, Italy into a merchant's family, after having taken part in World War I Buttitta joined the Italian Soci ...

, photographer Ferdinando Scianna, artists

and Nino Garajo (1918—1977, Rome), gangster

Joe Aiello Giuseppe "Joe" Aiello (; September 27, 1890 – October 23, 1930) was a Sicilian bootlegger and organized crime leader in Chicago during the Prohibition era. He was best known for his long and bloody feud with Chicago Outfit boss Al Capone. ...

, and film director

Giuseppe Tornatore Giuseppe Tornatore (born 27 May 1956) is an Italian film director and screenwriter. He is considered one of the directors who brought critical acclaim back to Italian cinema.Katz, Ephraim, "Italy," ''The Film Encyclopedia'' (New York: HarperR ...

. Tornatore portrayed his love for his town in the multiple award-winning film

Nuovo Cinema Paradiso ''Cinema Paradiso'' ( it, Nuovo Cinema Paradiso, , literally "New Paradise Cinema") is a 1988 coming-of-age drama film written and directed by Giuseppe Tornatore. Set in a small Sicilian town, the film centers on the friendship between a young bo ...

in 1989 and the 2009 film '' Baarìa'', featuring the history of the town from the 1930s to the 1980s through the life of a local family. The town is also depicted in ''

The Godfather Part III ''The Godfather Part III'' is a 1990 American crime film produced and directed by Francis Ford Coppola from the screenplay co-written with Mario Puzo. The film stars Al Pacino, Diane Keaton, Talia Shire, Andy García, Eli Wallach, Joe Mantegn ...

''. Bagheria is the setting of Dacia Maraini's eponymous autobiographical work.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Sicilian Baroque