Siligo
Discovering Siligo: a municipality in the province of Sassari
Hello everyone! Today I want to introduce you to a small municipality located in the province of Sassari, in Sardinia: Siligo. Siligo has about 792 inhabitants and is located in the ancient region of Meilogu. In this text, I will talk about the physical geography, the origin of the city's name, and its history.
Physical geography
Territory
Siligo is located in the agricultural region number 6 - Hills of Meilogu. The territory extends over more than 4,000 hectares and is characterized by several reliefs of volcanic origin, including Mount Santo, which is 733 meters high and has a characteristic truncated cone shape (mesa), Mount Percia, and Mount Ruju, from which the "Su Muru 'e Ferru'' notable ditches depart. Additionally, there is Mount Sant'Antonio, 599 meters high, which is an important northwestern foothill of the larger basaltic plateau called Monte Pelau.
Origin of the name
The name Siligo derives from the Latin "siligo-ginis," which means "good harvests." This word can be commonly found in commercial fields to indicate a type of "first-quality wheat." However, the true origin of the city's name has nothing to do with this word. According to the Condaghe and various documents that go back to modern times, the name of the municipality was recorded in several forms, including Siloque, Siligue, Siloce, Silogi, Siloke, Siloque, Silighis, Siliche, Siloche, Sjloghe, Silogue, etc.
History
The area where Siligo stands was already inhabited in the Nuragic era in Sardinia, as evidenced by the presence of numerous Nuraghe in the territory, and in Roman times, thanks to the presence of some buildings in the Mesumundu Archaeological Park. In this area, recent findings have testified to the continuous presence of a substantial rural population who had settled in the area of the discontinued spas, confirming that "Mesumundu was a rural village between the 5th and 7th centuries."
Since the late Middle Ages, Siligo was part of the Curatoria di Meilocu in the Giudicato di Torres. Following the arrival of a group of monks from the abbey of Montecassino, who settled near the church of Our Lady of Mesumundu and the small church located on the tableland of Mount Santu, dedicated to the saints Elijah and Enoch, Siligo experienced a brief economic boom. Later, the city passed into the hands of various Genoese and Pisan merchants.
In the first phase of the village, the presence of twin or clustered villages was evident in the current area of the village, with two clusters called "Cherchedu" and "Siloghe" (the latter located on the slopes of the hill where the meager remains of the Nuraghe Su Runaghe are visible), which soon constituted a single center, taking the current name of Siligo. Additionally, between 1485 and 1627, the existence of "Biddanoa" is attested in various Spanish censuses.
In conclusion, if you are passionate about history and ancient culture, Siligo is the right place for you. With its nuragic and Roman origins and the presence of an abbey, Siligo is a melting pot of different cultures and traditions that are worth discovering.
