Canicattì (; ) is a town and ''

comune A (; : , ) is an administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions () and provinces (). The can also have the City status in Italy, titl ...

'' (municipality) in the Province of Agrigento in the Italian region

Sicily Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4. ...

, located about southeast of

Palermo Palermo ( ; ; , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan province. The ...

and about east of Agrigento. In 2024, it had a population of 34,295.

History

The archaeological remains in the city and in the neighbourhood testify the presence of a settlement before the Roman age. The name of Canicattì is of

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

origin, from ', meaning 'clay ditch'. During the conquest of Sicily by the

Normans The Normans (Norman language, Norman: ''Normaunds''; ; ) were a population arising in the medieval Duchy of Normandy from the intermingling between Norsemen, Norse Viking settlers and locals of West Francia. The Norse settlements in West Franc ...

, the local Muslim lord was besieged and defeated by baron Salvatore Palmieri (1087), a follower of Roger I of Sicily: the latter, as reward, offered him a sword and the lordship over the fief. Under the Palmieri rule the Arab fortress was enlarged, becoming a true castle with a tower. The Normans were followed by 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 ...

and the French Angevines, in turn ousted by the

House of Barcelona The House of Barcelona was a medieval dynasty that ruled the County of Barcelona continuously from 878 and the Crown of Aragon from 1137 (as kings from 1162) until 1410. They descend from the Bellonids, the descendants of Wilfred the Hairy. Th ...

. In 1448 the fief of Canicattì was ceded by Antonio Palmieri, who was heirless, to his nephew Andrea De Crescenzio, who obtained by king John II of Aragon the ''Licentia populandi'', i.e. the permission to enlarge the fief's boundaries, increase its population and administer justice. Under Andrea De Crescenzio Canicattì was a rural community including some 1000/1500 inhabitants, living in the upper part of the town. Andrea De Crescenzio was succeeded by his son Giovanni, who, having no sons, left the barony to his father-in-law Francesco Calogero Bonanno, in 1507. Under the Bonannos the town experienced a considerable demographic growth, and several large edifices and fountains were erected. The Bonanno seigniory started to decline from the later 18th century. In 1819 the last Bonanno left Canicattì to baron Gabriele Chiaramonte Bordonaro. After the riots of 1848 and 1859/1861, and the

unification of Italy The unification of Italy ( ), also known as the Risorgimento (; ), was the 19th century Political movement, political and social movement that in 1861 ended in the Proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, annexation of List of historic states of ...

, banks, mills and plants were built in the town, increasing its trades. For the whole 20th century the economy remained based on agriculture (mostly grapes), trades and services. In 1943 it was the seat of the Canicattì massacre, in which American troops killed several Italian civilians who were looting a factory and refusing to disperse despite warnings.

Geography

The municipality, located in the eastern area of the province, at the borders with the one of Caltanissetta, borders with

Caltanissetta Caltanissetta (Sicilian language, Sicilian: ''Cartanissètta)'' is an Italian comune with a population of 58,012 inhabitants, serving as the capital of the Province of Caltanissetta, free municipal consortium of Caltanissetta in Sicily. The earl ...

(CL), Castrofilippo, Delia (CL), Montedoro (CL),

Naro Naro ( ) is a ''comune'' in the province of Agrigento, on the island of Sicily, Italy. It is bounded by the comuni of Agrigento, Caltanissetta, Camastra, Campobello di Licata, Canicattì, Castrofilippo, Delia, Favara, Licata, Palma di ...

, Racalmuto and Serradifalco (CL). The old town of Canicattì is divided into the wards of Borgalino and Badia. Other wards are Acquanova, Rovitelli, and other minor wards named after the local parish churches. Canicattì is 21 km from Favara, 29 from Caltanissetta, 34 from Agrigento, 38 from

Licata Licata (, ; , whence or ''Plintis''), formerly also Alicata (), is a city and ''comune'' located on the south coast of Sicily, at the mouth of the Salso River (the ancient ''Himera''), about midway between Agrigento and Gela. It is a major se ...

, 61 from Enna and 68 from Gela.

Main sights

San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

* San Giuseppe * Chiesa del Purgatorio * San Francesco * San Domenico * Santa Lucia * Chiesa Madre or San Pancrazio * Maria SS. Degli Agonizzanti * Santo Spirito * Santi Filippo e Giacomo * San Biagio * San Calogero * Santa Maria Ausiliatrice * San Eduardo

Transport

Canicattì station is an important hub for local rail transport and, until 2011, it was served by express trains linking Agrigento with

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

and

Turin Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...

. It is a junction point between the lines

-Canicattì- Agrigento and Canicattì- Gela- Syracuse and, until the 1950s, the terminus of two narrow-gauge lines: the Canicattì-

(a branch of the Agrigento- Favara-Naro-

) and the Canicattì- Riesi- Caltagirone.The Canicattì-Riesi-Caltagirone railway on lestradeferrate.it
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People

* Giovanni Canova (1880–1960), fencer * Gioacchino La Lomia (1831–1905), capuchin missionary * Rosario Livatino (1952–1990), magistrate

References

External links

Official website

History of Canicattì and photos
{{DEFAULTSORT:Canicatti Cities and towns in Sicily