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Encyclopedia > Sorrento, Italy
Comune di Sorrento
Coat of arms of Comune di Sorrento
Municipal coat of arms
Country Italy Italy
Region Campania
Province Naples (NA)
Mayor Marco Fiorentino (since April 5, 2005)
Elevation 50 m
Area 9 km²
Population
 - Total (as of December 31, 2004) 16,506
 - Density 1,740/km²
Time zone CET, UTC+1
Coordinates 40.626° N 14.376° ECoordinates: 40.626° N 14.376° E
Gentilic Sorrentini
Dialing code 081
Postal code 80060 and 80067
Frazioni Casarlano, Sorrento Capo, Sorrento Marina Grande
Patron St. Antoninus
 - Day February 14

Location of Sorrento in Italy
Website: www.comune.sorrento.na.it
Vesuvius overlooking Sorrento and the Bay of Naples.
Vesuvius overlooking Sorrento and the Bay of Naples.

Sorrento (Latin: Surrentum) is a small city in Campania, Italy, with some 16,500 inhabitants. It is a popular tourist destination. The town can be reached easily from Naples and Pompeii, as it lies at the south-eastern end of the Circumvesuviana rail line. The town overlooks the bay of Naples, as the key place of the Sorrentine Peninsula, and many viewpoints in the city allow sight of Naples itself (visible across the bay) and Vesuvius. Image File history File links Sorrento_Stemma. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Italy. ... The Regions of Italy were granted a degree of regional autonomy in the 1948 constitution, which states that the constitutions role is: to recognize, protect and promote local autonomy, to ensure that services at the State level are as decentralized as possible, and to adapt the principles and laws... Campania is a region of Southern Italy, bordering on Lazio to the north-west, Molise to the north, Puglia to the north-east, Basilicata to the east, and the Tyrrhenian Sea to the west. ... In Italy, the province (in Italian: provincia) is an administrative division of an intermediate level, between municipality (comune) and region (Regione). ... Naples (It. ... April 5 is the 95th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (96th in leap years). ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... December 31 is the 365th day of the year (366th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Time zones of Europe: Light colours indicate countries not observing daylight saving Central European Time (CET) is one of the names of the time zone that is 1 hour ahead of Coordinated Universal Time. ... Central European Time West Africa Time British Summer Time* Irish Summer Time* Western European Summer Time* Category: ... Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ... A demonym or gentilic is a word that denotes the members of a people or the inhabitants of a place. ... Here are a list of area codes in Italy. ... A frazione, in Italy, is the name given in administrative law to a type of territorial subdivision of a comune; for other subdivisions, see municipio, circoscrizione, quartiere. ... February 14 is the 45th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Italy_Regions_220px_(including_Pelagie_Islands). ... Image File history File links Red_pog. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Sorrento_and_mtvesuvius. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Sorrento_and_mtvesuvius. ... This article is about the mountain in Italy. ... Gulf of Naples The Gulf of Naples is located off the southwestern coast of Italy. ... Campania is a region of Southern Italy, bordering on Lazio to the north-west, Molise to the north, Puglia to the north-east, Basilicata to the east, and the Tyrrhenian Sea to the west. ... The Bay of Naples Naples (Italian: , Neapolitan: Nàpule, from Greek Νεάπολη < Νέα Πόλις Néa Pólis New City) is the largest city in southern Italy and capital of the Campania region and the Province of Naples. ... A computer-generated depiction of the eruption of Vesuvius in AD 79 which buried Pompeii, from the BBCs Pompeii: The Last Day. ... Circumvesuviana is a narrow-gauge railway connecting cities near Naples, Italy. ... The Bay of Naples Naples (Italian: , Neapolitan: Nàpule, from Greek Νεάπολη < Νέα Πόλις Néa Pólis New City) is the largest city in southern Italy and capital of the Campania region and the Province of Naples. ... Sorrentine Peninsula is located in Southern Italy. ... This article is about the mountain in Italy. ...


The "Amalfi drive" (connecting Sorrento and Amalfi) is the narrow road that threads around the high cliffs above the Mediterranean.


Ferry boats and hydrofoils provide services to Naples, Amalfi, Positano, Capri and Ischia. Sorrento's sea cliffs are impressive and its luxury hotels have attracted famous personalities including Enrico Caruso and Luciano Pavarotti. The Pride of Rotterdam, One of the P&O Ferriess Flagships operating the Hull-Rotterdam Route A ferry is a boat or a ship carrying passengers, and sometimes their vehicles, on scheduled services. ... The Jetfoil Toppi is a ferry which connects Yakushima, Tanegashima Island and Kagoshima port in Japan. ... The Bay of Naples Naples (Italian: , Neapolitan: Nàpule, from Greek Νεάπολη < Νέα Πόλις Néa Pólis New City) is the largest city in southern Italy and capital of the Campania region and the Province of Naples. ... The Amalfi coast. ... Positano is a beautiful but small town on the Amalfi Coast (Costiera Amalfitana), in Campania, Italy. ... Overlooking Capri harbor from the rotunda in Villa San Michele. ... The island of Ischia near Naples, Italy. ... Enrico Caruso (February 25, 1873–August 2, 1921) was one of the most famous tenors in the history of opera. ... Luciano Pavarotti (born October 12, 1935), an Italian tenor, is one of the most famous living singers, not only in the world of opera, but across all genres. ...


Sorrento is famous for the production of Limoncello, an alcoholic digestif made from lemon rinds, alcohol, water and sugar. Other agricultural production includes citrus fruit, wine, nuts and olives. Wood craftsmanship is also developed. Limoncello is a lemon liqueur produced in the south of Italy, mainly in the region around the Gulf of Naples and the coast of Amalfi and Islands of Ischia and Capri, but also in Sicily, Sardinia and the Maltese island of Gozo. ... French: Something, exp. ...

Contents

History

Roman origins

The legends indicate a close connexion between Lipara and Surrentum, as though the latter had been a colony of the former; and even through the Imperial period Surrentum remained largely Greek. The oldest ruins are Oscan, dating from about 600 BCE. Before the Roman supremacy, Surrentum was one of the towns subject to Nuceria, and shared its fortunes up to the Social War; it seems to have joined in the revolt of 90 BCE like Stabiae; and was reduced to obedience in the following year, when it seems to have received a colony. Lipari Castle above the town of Lipari. ... Nocera Inferiore, formerly Nocera dei Pagani, is a town and comune in Campania, Italy, in the province of Salerno, at the foot of Monte Albino, 20 km east-south-east of Naples by rail, 135 ft. ... Template:Campaignbox Social War This article is about the conflict between Rome and her allies between 91 and 88 BC The Social War (also called the Italian War or the Marsic War, Social come from Socii meaning ¨Allies¨) was a war from 91 – 88 BC between the Roman Republic and... The city of Stabiae was at the foot of Mount Vesuvius, and therefore was one of the communities damaged by its eruption in 79 AD. Some few people got away from the initial lava, and told others of the coming erruption, but succumbed to the ash as it started to...


Its prosperity dates from the imperial period, when Capreae was a favourite residence of Augustus and Tiberius. Numerous sepulchral inscriptions of Imperial slaves and freedmen have been found at Surrentum. An inscription shows that Titus in the year after the earthquake of 79 CE restored the horologium of the town and its architectural decoration. A similar restoration of an unknown building in Naples in the same year is recorded in an inscription from the last-named town. Overlooking Capri harbor from Villa San Michele Capri is an island off the coast of Italy, in the Bay of Naples that has been a celebrated beauty spot and resort since the time of the Roman Republic. ... Augustus (Latin: IMP•CAESAR•DIVI•F•AVGVSTVS;[1] September 23, 63 BC–August 19, AD 14), known as Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus (English Octavian; Latin: C•IVLIVS•C•F•CAESAR•OCTAVIANVS) for the period of his life prior to 27 BC, was the first and among the most important of... Tiberius Caesar Augustus, born Tiberius Claudius Nero (November 16, 42 BC – March 16 AD 37), was the second Roman Emperor, from the death of Augustus in AD 14 until his own death in 37. ... For other uses, see Titus (disambiguation). ... Horologium (Latin for clock) is one of the lesser southern constellations (declination around -60 degrees). ...


The most important temples of Surrentum were those of Athena and of the Sirens (the latter the only one in the Greek world in historic times); the former gave its name to the promontory. In antiquity Surrentum was famous for its wine (oranges and lemons which are now so much cultivated there not having been introduced into Italy in antiquity), its fish, and its red Campanian vases; the discovery of coins of Massilia, Gaul and the Balearic Islands here indicates the extensive trade which it carried on. Helmeted Athena, of the Velletri type. ... Odysseus and the Sirens. ... Marseilles redirects here. ... Map of Gaul circa 58 BC Gaul (Latin: ) was the name given, in ancient times, to the region of Western Europe comprising present-day northern Italy, France, Belgium, western Switzerland and the parts of the Netherlands and Germany on the west bank of the Rhine river. ... Capital Palma Official language(s) Spanish and Catalan Area  â€“ Total  â€“ % of Spain Ranked 17th  4,992 km²  1. ...

Vintage near Sorrento, Jacob Philipp Hackert, c. 1784.
Vintage near Sorrento, Jacob Philipp Hackert, c. 1784.

The position of Surrentum was very secure, protected by deep gorges. The only exception to its natural protection was 300 yards on the south-west where it was defended by walls, the line of which is necessarily followed by those of the modern town. The arrangement of the modern streets preserves that of the ancient town, and the disposition of the walled paths which divide the plain to the east seems to date in like manner from Roman times. No ruins are now perserved in the town itself, but there are many remains in the villa quarter to the east of the town on the road to Stabiae, of which traces still exist, running much higher than the modern road, across the mountain; the site of one of the largest (possibly belonging to the Imperial house) is now occupied by the Hotel Victoria, under the terrace of which a small theatre was found in 1855; an ancient rock-cut tunnel descends hence to the shore. Remains of other villas may be seen, but the most important ruin is the reservoir of the (subterranean) aqueducts just outside the town on the east, which had no less than twenty-seven chambers each about 270 by 60 cm. Greek and Oscan tombs have also been found. Download high resolution version (1576x2388, 443 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Download high resolution version (1576x2388, 443 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Italian landscape, 1778. ... This article or section may contain original research or unverified claims. ...


Another suburb lay below the town and on the promontory on the west of it; under the Hotel Sirena are substructions and a rock-hewn tunnel. To the north-west on the Capo di Sorrento is another villa, the so-called Bagni della Regina Giovanna, with baths, and in the bay to the south-west was the villa of Pollius Felix, the friend of Statius, which he describes in Silvae ii. 2, of which remains still exist. Farther west again are villas, as far as the temple of Athena on the promontory named after her at the extremity of the peninsula (now Punta Campanella). Neither of this nor of the famous temple of the Sirens are any traces existing. Publius Papinius Statius, (c. ...


According to the Roman historian Diodorus Siculus, Sorrento was founded by Liparus, son of Ausonus, who was king of the Ausoni and the son of Ulysses and Circe. The ancient city was probably connected to the Ausoni tribe indeed, one of the most ancient ethnical group in the area. In the pre-Roman age Sorrento was influenced by the Greek civilization: this can be seen in its plant and in the presence of the Athenaion, a great sanctuary, also, according to the legend, founded by Ulysses and originally devoted to the cult of the Sirens, whence Sorrento's name. Diodorus Siculus (c. ... The Ausones (Italian: Ausoni) were an ancient Italics tribe settled in the southern Italy. ... Head of Odysseus from a Greek 2nd century BC marble group representing Odysseus blinding Polyphemus, found at the villa of Tiberius at Sperlonga Odysseus (Greek Odusseus), pronounced ō-díss-ee-uhs, is the main hero in Homers epic poem, the Odyssey and plays a key role in Homers... Circe, a painting by Edward Burne-Jones. ... Odysseus and the Sirens. ...


Origins of modern Sorrento

View of Sorrento from Piazza Tasso.
View of Sorrento from Piazza Tasso.

Sorrento became an archbishopric around 420 CE. After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, it was ruled by the Ostrogoths and then returned to the Eastern Empire. The Lombards, who conquered much of southern Italy in second half of the 6th century, sieged it in vain. Image File history File linksMetadata Sorrento. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Sorrento. ... The Western Roman Empire is the western half of the Roman Empire after its division by Diocletian in 286. ... This article deals with the continental Ostrogoths. ... Byzantine Empire is the term conventionally used to describe the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages, centered around its capital in Constantinople. ... The Lombards (Latin Langobardi, whence the alternative name Longobards found in older English texts), were a Germanic people originally from Northern Europe that entered the late Roman Empire. ...


As in the following centuries the authority of the far Byzantium faded, Sorrento turned into an autonomous duchy. It fought against the neighbour rival Amalfi and the Saracens. In 1133 it was conquered by the Norman Roger II of Hauteville, and thenceforth Sorrento's history followed that of the newly created Kingdom of Sicily. Byzantium, present day Istanbul, was an ancient Greek city-state, which according to legend was founded by Greek colonists from Megara in 667 BC and named after their king Byzas or Byzantas (Βύζας or Βύζαντας in Greek). ... A duchy is a territory, fief, or domain ruled by a duke or duchess. ... The Amalfi coast. ... In older Western historical literature, the Saracens were the people of the Saracen Empire, another name for the Arab Caliphate under the rule of the Umayyad and Abbasid dynasties. ... Roger II, from Liber ad honorem Augusti of Petrus de Ebulo, 1196. ... The following is a list of monarchs of Naples and Sicily: See also: List of Counts of Apulia and Calabria Hauteville Counts of Sicily, 1071-1130 Roger I 1071-1101 Simon 1101-1105 Roger II 1105-1130 Hauteville Kings of Sicily, 1130-1198 Roger II 1130-1154 William I 1154...


On June 13, 1558 it was sacked by Muslim pirates, and a new line of walls was therefore built. The most striking event of the following century was the revolt against the Spanish domination of 1648, led by Giovanni Grillo. In 1656 a plague struck the city, which remained anyway one of the most important centres of the southern Campania. June 13 is the 164th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (165th in leap years), with 201 days remaining. ... Events January 7 - French troops led by Francis, Duke of Guise take Calais, the last continental possession of England July 13 - Battle of Gravelines: In France, Spanish forces led by Count Lamoral of Egmont defeat the French forces of Marshal Paul des Thermes at Gravelines. ... A Muslim (Arabic: مسلم, Turkish: Müslüman, Persian and Urdu: مسلمان, Bosnian: Musliman) is an adherent of Islam. ... Campania is a region of Southern Italy, bordering on Lazio to the north-west, Molise to the north, Puglia to the north-east, Basilicata to the east, and the Tyrrhenian Sea to the west. ...


Sorrento entered also in the Neapolitan Republic of 1799, again in vain. In the 19th century the economy of the city improved markedly, favoured by the development of agriculture, tourism and trade. A route connecting Sorrento to Castellammare di Stabia was opened under the reign of Ferdinand II (1830-1859). The flag of the Parthenopaen Republic was the French tricolor, with the a yellow stripe in the place of the white one The Parthenopaean Republic (Italian: Repubblica Napolitana) formed a brief interlude in the history of the Kingdom of Naples, the result of activities of France in the aftermath of... Castellammare di Stabia is a comune in the Province of Naples, Campania region, Italy. ... Ferdinand II (Ferdinando Carlo, January 12, 1810 – May 22, 1859) was the King of the Two Sicilies (Southern Italy) from 1830 until his death. ...


In 1861 Sorrento was officially annexed to the new Kingdom of Italy. In the following years, as well as in the 20th century, it confirmed and increased its status of one of the most renowned tourist destinations of Italy. Famous people who visited it include Lord Byron, Keats, Goethe and Walter Scott. Italian unification, also known as Risorgimento (resurrection), was a historical process by which the Kingdom of Sardinia (ruled by the Savoy dynasty with Turin as its capital) gradually conquered the Italian peninsula, including the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, the Duchy of Modena, the Grand Duchy of Tuscany, the Duchy... Lord Byron, English poet Lord Byron (1803), as painted by Elisabeth Vigee-Lebrun George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron, (January 22, 1788 &#8211; April 19, 1824) was the most widely read English language poet of his day. ... δе|}:Keats redirects here. ... Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (pronounced [gø t&#601;]) (August 28, 1749&#8211;March 22, 1832) was a German writer, politician, humanist, scientist, and philosopher. ... Portrait of Sir Walter Scott, by Sir Edwin Henry Landseer Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832) was a prolific Scottish historical novelist and poet popular throughout Europe during his time. ...


Culture

Sorrento was the birthplace of the poet Torquato Tasso (1544-1595), author of the Gerusalemme Liberata. Torquato Tasso (March 11, 1544 – April 25, 1595) was an Italian poet of the 16th century, best known for his poem La Gerusalemme liberata (Jerusalem Delivered; 1575), in which he describes the imaginary combats between Christians and Muslims at the end of the First Crusade, during the siege of Jerusalem. ...


In the 1920s, famous Soviet writer Maxim Gorky lived in Sorrento. Gorkys autographed portrait Aleksei Maksimovich Peshkov (In Russian Алексей Максимович Пешков) (March 28 [O.S. March 16] 1868–June 14, 1936), better known as Maxim Gorky (Максим Горький), was a Soviet/Russian author, a founder of the socialist realism literary method and a political activist. ...


Sister cities

Image File history File links Flag_of_the_United_States. ... Nickname: The City Different Location in the State of New Mexico Coordinates: Country United States State New Mexico County Santa Fe Founded 1607 Mayor David Coss Area    - City 96. ...

Weblinks

  • Sorrento Fotos

This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain. Encyclopædia Britannica, the 11th edition The Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition (1910–1911) is perhaps the most famous edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica. ... The public domain comprises the body of all creative works and other knowledge&#8212;writing, artwork, music, science, inventions, and others&#8212;in which no person or organization has any proprietary interest. ...


  Results from FactBites:
 
Sorrento, Italy - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (1092 words)
To the north-west on the Capo di Sorrento is another villa, the so-called Bagni della Regina Giovanna, with baths, and in the bay to the south-west was the villa of Pollius Felix, the friend of Statius, which he describes in Silvae ii.
In 1861 Sorrento was officially annexed to the new Kingdom of Italy.
Sorrento was the birthplace of the poet Torquato Tasso (1544-1595), author of the Gerusalemme Liberata.
Sorrento Italy Hotel Accommodation (503 words)
Sorrento Italy Hotels is a directory of hotels, bed and...
The hotel is situated in a residential area of Sorrento, a plesant and peaceful spot surrounded by Mediterranean gardens and villas shaded by secular trees.
The hotel is situated on the main street of Sorrento, “Corso Italia”, 100 meters from Piazza Tasso and the Circumvesuviana train station where one can also pick up the SITA bus to go to Positano or Am...
  More results at FactBites »


 

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