| Sciacca | |
|---|---|
| — Comune — | |
| Comune di Sciacca | |
| Panorama of Sciacca | |
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Sciacca
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| Coordinates: | |
| Country | Italy |
| Region | Sicily |
| Province | Agrigento (AG) |
| Frazioni | Lazzarino |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Vito Bono |
| Area | |
| • Total | 180.98 km2 (69.9 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 60 m (197 ft) |
| Population (30 June 2009) | |
| • Total | 40,894 |
| • Density | 226/km2 (585.2/sq mi) |
| Demonym | Saccensi, Sciacchitani |
| Time zone | CET (UTC+1) |
| • Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) |
| Postal code | 92019 |
| Dialing code | 0925 |
| Patron saint | Holy Mary of Soccorso |
| Saint day | 2 February |
| Website | Official website |
Sciacca (Greek: Θέρμαι; Latin: Thermae Selinuntinae, Thermae Selinuntiae, Thermae, Aquae Labrodes and Aquae Labodes), also Schiacca, is a town and comune in the province of Agrigento on the southwestern coast of Sicily. It has noteworthy views of the Mediterranean Sea.
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Thermae was founded in the 5th century BCE by the Greeks, as its name imports, as a thermal spa for Selinunte, whose citizens came there to bathe in the sulphurous springs of Mount San Calogero, which rises up behind the town. We have no account of the existence of a town on the site during the period of the independence of Selinunte, though there is little doubt that the thermal waters would always have attracted some population to the spot. Nor even under the Romans did the place attain to anything like the same importance with the northern Thermae; and there is little doubt that Pliny is mistaken in assigning the rank of a colonia to the southern instead of the northern town of the name. Strabo mentions the waters (τὰ ὕδατα τὰ Σελινούντια[1]); and they are again noticed in the Itineraries under the name of Aquae Labodes or Labrodes.[2]
Sciacca itself owes its origins to the Saracens, who settled there in the 9th century. Although the origins of the town's name have been much debated, it is thought to have come from the Arabic word "xacca" (شاقة), meaning "water". The Saracens built the original walls and laid out the street grid, which was later expanded by the Normans.
A royal city which had remained faithful to Manfred of Sicily during the Angevine invasion, 1268 it was besieged by Charles I of Anjou and surrendered the following year. After the Sicilian Vespers, it established itself as a free commune. During the Aragonese-Angevine wars it was besieged numerous times, after which the Peralta family took possession of it and obtained by the king of Sicily the right to mint coins. In the following centuries the town was at the center of bloody feuds between rival baronial families (the Luna, of Aragonese origin, and the Perollo, of Norman stock), which nearly halved its population. In 1647 the impoverished town was the seat of an anti-Spanish rebellion.
During World War II the Italian Regia Aeronautica (Royal Air Force) had a base near Sciacca.
Sciacca still retains much of its medieval layout, which divided the town into quarters, each laid out on a strip of rock descending toward the sea. Sciacca has several points of interest, including:
Sciacca's festivals include the Carnival, celebrated during the week before the beginning of Lent (February). The highlight of the festival is the parade of bizarre figures mounted on floats, famous throughout Sicily for their gaudy expressions.
The economy of Sciacca is mainly based on agriculture, fishing and related food processing industry and tourism.