Rodi Garganico

Rodi Garganico
Comune
Comune di Rodi milici
Coat of arms of Rodi Garganico
Coat of arms
Rodi Garganico

Location of Rodi Garganico in Italy

Coordinates: 41°55′46″N 15°53′05″E / 41.92944°N 15.88472°E
Country Italy
Region  Apulia
Province Province of Foggia (FG)
Frazioni Lido del Sole
Government
  Mayor Nicola Pinto
Area
  Total 13.23 km2 (5.11 sq mi)
Elevation 46 m (151 ft)
Population (31 December 2010)[1]
  Total 3,704
  Density 280/km2 (730/sq mi)
Demonym Rodiani
Time zone CET (UTC+1)
  Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code 71012
Dialing code 0884
Patron saint Madonna della Libera
Saint day 2 July
Website Official website

Rodi Garganico (Italian pronunciation: [ˈrɔːdi ɡarˈɡaːniko]; locally Roud' IPA: [ˈroɵːd̪(ĕ)] or Rur' [ˈrʊːɾ])[2] is a town and commune in the province of Foggia, Apulia, south-eastern Italy. Located on a promontory east of the Lago di Varano, it is part of the Gargano National Park and of the Mountain Community of Gargano.

Rodi is center for the production of citrus fruits[3] such us Arance del Gargano (Gargano Oranges) and Lemon "Femminiello" of Gargano, both DOP products cultivated since the Middle Ages[4]

It is a seaside resort with several long beaches located both north and south to the town.

History

Rodi is located in an area inhabited since prehistoric (Palaeolithic and Neolithic) times. According to early 19th century historian Michelangelo Manicone[5] its origins are connected to the Dauni ancient people, while, according to other version, it could have been founded by Greek colonists from Rhodes.[6] Pliny the Elder mentions a Portus Garnae[7] which has been identified as the modern Rodi Garganico.

After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, Rodi was destroyed by the Ostrogoths in 485 AD and rebuilt in 553 after the Gothic War. In 950 it was attacked by the Saracens. In 1461 it was occupied by the Aragonese. Starting from the 16th century, it became one of the main center for the production and trading of agrumes in southern Italy.[8]

References

  1. All demographics and other statistics from the Italian statistical institute (Istat)
  2. (Canepàri, 1999 page 433)
  3. (Manicone, 1806 pages 155–156)
  4. (Hardy, Hole, Pozzan, 2008 page 95)
  5. Manicone, Michelangelo (1806). La Fisica Appula. Naples: Domenico San Giacomo Editore.
  6. History of Rodi Garganico website
  7. Pliny the Elder, 77, Naturalis Historia, III, xi, p. 103
  8. Giarè, Francesca; Sabrina Giuca. Cultura, Tradizioni e Qualità degli agrumi. Rome: INEA, 2008. ISBN 978-88-8145-138-8.

External links

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