The Giara horse ( Sardinian: ''Cuaddeddu de sa Jara'', it, Cavallino della Giara) is a

horse breed A horse breed is a selectively bred population of domesticated horses, often with pedigrees recorded in a breed registry. However, the term is sometimes used in a broader sense to define landrace animals of a common phenotype located within a lim ...

native to the island of

Sardinia Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label=Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after ...

. It is one of the fifteen indigenous horse "breeds of limited distribution" recognised by the AIA, the Italian breeders' association. While of small size due to the hostile environment in which it lives, and sometimes called a "

pony A pony is a type of small horse ('' Equus ferus caballus''). Depending on the context, a pony may be a horse that is under an approximate or exact height at the withers, or a small horse with a specific conformation and temperament. Compared ...

," it is considered a true horse."Cavallino della Giara"
Sardegna Agricoltura. IL SISTEMA AGRICOLO DELLA SARDEGNA. (official Sardinian Regional Administration page)(Italian) Accessed web page 12 March 2011

Etymology

In older literature, the name ''achetta'' (for a mare, ''achettu'' for a stallionSpano, Giovanni ''Vocabulario Sardo-Italiano e Italiano-Sardo'' (1851) (reprint)) is also sometimes encountered. It is no longer used because the Sardinian term it is derived from, ''acheta'' (variants: ''achetu, akkètta, akkéttu'') describes any small to medium sized horse.Wagner, Max Leopold ''Dizionariu Etimologico Sardo'' (1960)

University of Heidelberg } Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg, (german: Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg; la, Universitas Ruperto Carola Heidelbergensis) is a public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, ...

The Sardinian term ''acheta'' itself is a

diminutive A diminutive is a root word that has been modified to convey a slighter degree of its root meaning, either to convey the smallness of the object or quality named, or to convey a sense of intimacy or endearment. A (abbreviated ) is a word-formati ...

based on the root ''ácha'' and entered the language via

Catalan Catalan may refer to: Catalonia From, or related to Catalonia: * Catalan language, a Romance language * Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia Places * 13178 Catalan, asteroid #1 ...

Algherese Algherese or Alguerese (Algherese: ) is the variant of Catalan spoken in the city of Alghero ( in Catalan), in the northwest of Sardinia, Italy. The dialect has its roots in 1372, when Catalan-speaking colonists were allowed to repopulate Al ...

''(h)aca'' "small horse", itself from

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

''haca, jaca''. The word ''jaca'' again is derived from

Old Spanish Old Spanish, also known as Old Castilian ( es, castellano antiguo; osp, romance castellano ), or Medieval Spanish ( es, español medieval), was originally a dialect of Vulgar Latin spoken in the former provinces of the Roman Empire that provided ...

''haca'', itself from

Old French Old French (, , ; Modern French: ) was the language spoken in most of the northern half of France from approximately the 8th to the 14th centuries. Rather than a unified language, Old French was a linkage of Romance dialects, mutually intelligib ...

''haque'', which in turn is ultimately derived from the English place-name Hackney, a place famous for its horses. The term ''Giara'' ( sc, Jara, variants: ''ghiaia, yára, ǧár(r)a'') literally means "plateau, tableland", meaning the

Giara di Gesturi The Giara di Gesturi, sc, Sa Jara Manna, is a high, steep-sided basaltic plateau which extends for about in the districts (comuni) of Gesturi, Tuili and Setzu in the province of Medio Campidano, and Genoni in the province of Oristano, in the s ...

, so literally "plateau horse".

Characteristics

The Giara was developed in an area of south-central Sardinia noted for a stony basaltic plateau at about above sea level with steep terrain. Due to this harsh environment, the horse is small, averaging between , but hardy and able to acclimate to unfavorable conditions. It has a horse

phenotype In genetics, the phenotype () is the set of observable characteristics or traits of an organism. The term covers the organism's morphology or physical form and structure, its developmental processes, its biochemical and physiological proper ...

rather than that of a pony. Most are

bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a Gulf (geography), gulf, sea, sound (geography), sound, or bight (geogra ...

chestnut The chestnuts are the deciduous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Castanea'', in the beech family Fagaceae. They are native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The name also refers to the edible nuts they produce. The unrelat ...

black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have o ...

. They have an abundant

forelock The forelock or foretop is a part of a horse's mane, that grows from the animal's poll and falls forward between the ears and onto the forehead. Some breeds, particularly pony breeds, have a naturally thick forelock, while other breeds, such as ...

and mane. Their head is relatively large with a wide jaw, the neck is not very long, but described as "strong." The breed tends to be a bit straight in the shoulder with relatively low

withers The withers is the ridge between the shoulder blades of an animal, typically a quadruped. In many species, it is the tallest point of the body. In horses and dogs, it is the standard place to measure the animal's height. In contrast, cattle ar ...

, a somewhat long back and loin, and the

croup Croup, also known as laryngotracheobronchitis, is a type of respiratory infection that is usually caused by a virus. The infection leads to swelling inside the trachea, which interferes with normal breathing and produces the classic symptoms o ...

is sloped with a low-set tail. They have good bone, characterized by an average cannon circumference of , large joints and

hooves The hoof (plural: hooves) is the tip of a toe of an ungulate mammal, which is covered and strengthened with a thick and horny keratin covering. Artiodactyls are even-toed ungulates, species whose feet have an even number of digits, yet the rumi ...

that are small but strong. The Giara has

sure-footed Sure-footedness is the ability, especially when hiking or mountain climbing, to negotiate difficult or rough terrain safely. Such situations place demands on a person's coordination and reserves of strength as well as requiring sufficient appreciat ...

gaits and a temperament that is spirited.

Habitat and population

The total population is estimated at around 700 individuals. Present throughout Sardinia until Medieval times, the wild population now lives only in a restricted area of Southern Sardinia, on the large basalt plateau ''La Giara di Gesturi'', at 500–600 meters above sea level. The Giara Plateau has sides that are steep cliffs, and the difficulty of access and the isolated location have protected the wild stock in recent centuries. Used in agriculture until the 1950s, the Giara horse was largely supplanted by machinery in the 1960s and many were slaughtered. In 1971, considering the breed to be at risk of extinction, the Istituto di Incremento Ippico della Sardegna (Sardinian horse-breeding institution) of Ozieri established a breeding centre at Foresta Burgos, in central northern Sardinia. A small number of individuals were reintroduced elsewhere (Regional Park of

Monte Arci The Monte Arci is an isolated massif in the Uras plain in Campidano, south-western Sardinia, Italy. It is composed by three volcanic basalt towers, the highest one reaching an elevation of 812 m. The inner part of the massif is composed of ...

and the Regional Park of Capo Caccia, in

Alghero Alghero (; ca, label= Alguerese, L'Alguer ; sc, S'Alighèra ; sdc, L'Aliera ) is a city of about 45,000 inhabitants in the Italian insular province of Sassari in northwestern Sardinia, next to the Mediterranean Sea. The city's name comes from ...

). Today, some are used for farming and riding. Recently the Istituto di Incremento Ippico has crossed Giara horses with

Arabian The Arabian Peninsula, (; ar, شِبْهُ الْجَزِيرَةِ الْعَرَبِيَّة, , "Arabian Peninsula" or , , "Island of the Arabs") or Arabia, is a peninsula of Western Asia, situated northeast of Africa on the Arabian Plate. ...

horses to create the Giarab, a new breed suited to equestrian sports.

References

*Salvatore Colomo, ''La fauna della Sardegna'' vol. 1, 2008, Nuoro, Ed. Archivio Fotografico Nuoro. 74-85.

External links

The Civic Museum of the Giara Horse

The Giara HorseNature documentary about the Giara horseBrief documentary about the Giara horse

List of Horses (including Giara) at Ozieri Remount Station
{{DEFAULTSORT:Giara Horse Horse breeds Horse breeds originating in Italy Fauna of Sardinia