Salento

Salento (Salentu in Salentino romance dialect, Σαλέντο in Salentino Griko) is a geographic and historical region at the southern end of the administrative region of Apulia in Southern Italy. It is a sub-peninsula of the Italian Peninsula, sometimes described as the "heel" of the Italian "boot". It encompasses the entire administrative area of the province of Lecce, a large part of the province of Brindisi and part of that of Taranto.

Salento.

The peninsula is also known as Terra d'Otranto, and in the past Sallentina. In ancient times it was called variously Calabria or Messapia.

History

Messapia (from Greek Μεσσαπία) was the ancient name of a region of Italy largely corresponding to modern Salento. It was inhabited chiefly by the Messapii in classical times. Pokorny derives the toponym from the reconstructed PIE *medhyo-, "middle" and PIE *ap-, "water" (Mess-apia, "amid waters"). Pokorny compares the toponym Messapia to another ancient Italic toponym, Salapia, "salt water", a city in Apulia.

Geography

Beach in Conca Specchiulla, north of Otranto.

Otranto harbour.

Santa Maria al Bagno seaside.

16th century coastal tower of Salento, in Roca Vecchia.

Salento peninsula is composed of limestone, dividing the Gulf of Taranto to the west from the Strait of Otranto on the east, with the Adriatic Sea to the north and the Ionian Sea to the south. Known also as "peninsula salentina", from a geo-morphologic point of view it encompasses the land borders between Ionian and the Adriatic Seas, to the “Messapic threshold”, a depression that runs along the Taranto-Ostuni line and separates it from the Murge.

Its borders are:

Taranto, in the Province of Taranto
Pilone, in the territory of Ostuni, in the Province of Brindisi
Santa Maria di Leuca, in the Province of Lecce.

Cities and towns in Salento

Language

Salento, from a cultural and linguistic point of view, does not include the city of Taranto, where the Tarantino dialect is spoken, nor the part of the province of Taranto to the west of the city (where Pugliese is the dialect generally spoken), nor the rest of the province of Brindisi to north of Ostuni (where the accent is influenced by the dialect of Bari).

To the south and east of the above areas, the Sicilian dialect of Salentino is prevalent, although an old Hellenic dialect (known as Griko) is also spoken in a few inland towns.

The most popular hypothesis on the origin of Griko is the one by Gerhard Rohlfs[1] and Georgios Hatzidakis, that Griko's roots go as far back in history as the time of the ancient Greek colonies in Southern Italy and Sicily in the eighth century BC. The Southern Italian dialect is thus considered to be the last living trace of the Greek elements that once formed Magna Graecia.

There are, however, competing hypotheses according to which Griko may have preserved some Doric elements, but its structure is otherwise mostly based on Koine Greek, like almost all other Modern Greek dialects.[2] Thus, Griko should rather be described as a Doric-influenced descendant of Medieval Greek spoken by those who fled the Byzantine Empire to Italy trying to escape the Turks. The idea of Southern Italy's Greek dialects being historically derived from Medieval Greek was proposed for the first time in the 19th century by Giuseppe Morosi [3].

Transportation

The nearest international airports are those of Brindisi and Bari (the latter is out of Salento but not far).

A 2-lane freeway connects Salento to Bari. The main railway line ends at Lecce. Other locations are served by regional railroads.

Leisure ports are those of: Taranto, Brindisi, Campomarino di Maruggio's tourist and leisure Marina, Gallipoli, Santa Maria di Leuca, Otranto.

Coastal towers

The coastal towers in Salento are coastal watchtowers, as the peninsula's coast was long subject to maritime attacks by the Saracens. The first towers may have been built by Normans. The remaining historic towers are mostly from the 15th and 16th centuries. Many are now in ruins.[4][5][6]

Food and gastronomy

Some of the popular dishes from the Salento area include:

Orecchiette, 'ear-shaped' pasta, often cooked with tomato sauce and a strong creamy cheese called ricotta schianta, or with rapini
Parmigiana di melanzane, made with aubergines and tomato sauce
Pitta di patate, a savoury pie made with mashed potatoes
Turcinieddhri, grilled lamb offal
Purciaddruzzi, fried hand-made small cookies with honey, eaten during Christmas time

Gallery

View of Torre Sant'Andrea, part of Melendugno's "marina".

Alimini Grande Lake, near Otranto.

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References

Media related to Coastal towers in Apulia at Wikimedia Commons Media related to Salento at Wikimedia Commons Salento (Italy) travel guide from Wikivoyage

G. Rohlfs, Griechen und Romanen in Unteritalien, 1924.
G. Horrocks, Greek: A history of the language and its speakers, London: Longman. 1997. Ch. 4.4.3 and 14.2.3.
G. Morosi, Studi sui dialetti greci della terra d'Otranto, Lecce, 1870.
"The Towers Of Salento in Apulia - South Italy". Nel Salento. Retrieved 2009-08-17.
"The vacances dans les Pouilles - Italy". Retrieved 2005-01-10.
"The beaches of Pouilles - Italy". Retrieved 2018-06-20.

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[1] G. Rohlfs, Griechen und Romanen in Unteritalien, 1924.

[2] G. Horrocks, Greek: A history of the language and its speakers, London: Longman. 1997. Ch. 4.4.3 and 14.2.3.

[3] G. Morosi, Studi sui dialetti greci della terra d'Otranto, Lecce, 1870.

[4] "The Towers Of Salento in Apulia - South Italy". Nel Salento. Retrieved 2009-08-17.

[5] "The vacances dans les Pouilles - Italy". Retrieved 2005-01-10.

[6] "The beaches of Pouilles - Italy". Retrieved 2018-06-20.