Lungro
Lungro is a town and comune in the Province of Cosenza in the Calabria region of Italy.
Lungro is one of the most prominent centers of the Arbëreshë people and the seat of the Eparchy of Lungro. This jurisdiction of the Catholic Church preserved the Byzantine rite and the local language, and encompasses all the Arbëreshë-speaking communities in the area. The eparchy is part of the Italo-Albanian Catholic Church.
Lungro is also part of the largest nature reserve in Italy, the Pollino National Park.
Geography
The town is situated 67 km north of Cosenza at the foot of Mount Petrosa at 650 meters above sea level on the Campolongo plateau, flanked by the rivers Galatro and Tiro. It is bordered to the east by the municipality of Saracena, to the south by Firmo and Altomonte, and to the northwest by Acquaformosa. The landscape is mostly mountainous towards the north, with beech and chestnut groves, while vineyards and fields are in the southern part.History
Lungro was founded in the second half of the 15th century CE by ethnic Albanian settlers, and developed around a Basilian monastery on lands that had been granted in 1156 from feudal landowner Ogerio del Vasto Altomonte. The Albanians who migrated were housed in the area around 1486. They were welcomed by Abbot Paul with the approval of Prince of Bisignano, Geronimo Sanseverino, when Albanian resistance led and organized by George Castriot or Skanderbeg against the Ottoman conquest dissipated shortly thereafter his death in 1468.Following these events the most significant migration of Albanians was recorded in Italy and led to the foundation of Lungro.
In 1525 the Basilian monastery was abandoned, after helping the fugitives through a period of deep crisis. It became available to the Commandery Pontiff and the inhabitants of Lungro were able to resist all attempts by the feudal lords to control civil jurisdiction and policy. In the second half of the 17th century and the 18th century, fighting intensified between the baronial families of Sanseverino Altomonte and Pescara Saracen. Many political clashes occurred over the acquisition of certain rights of barons' fiefs.
Over the years, age-old religious conflicts intensified between the Byzantine rite Albanians and the Latin rite of the neighboring populations. Many priests were imprisoned Albanians from the practice of the Eastern rite, but Lungresi gathered around them and fought to maintain their religious identity.
From 1768 Albanians of Lungro tenaciously undertook the defense of its Greek-Byzantine liturgical rite, because, coming from Southern Albania, they were under the jurisdiction of the Patriarch of Constantinople. For centuries, thanks to the work of the Byzantine Church, they retained their own rite.
In February 1897, Girolamo de Rada, Giuseppe Schirò and Anselmo Lorecchio from the Arbëreshë community organised a congress on the Albanian question that convened in Lungro. The resolution of the Lungro congress called for a unified Albanian alphabet and an Albanian dictionary, the founding of an Albanian national society and the need for the Arbëreshë to have relations with the Albanian mother country.
L 'Eparchy of Lungro is the fundamental point of reference for the Italo-Albanian mainland, and continues to cherish the traditional religious, linguistic and cultural identity Arbëreshë. The eparchy was created on February 13 of 1919 by Pope Benedict XV and the first Eparch was John Apples, succeeded by John Stamati and Ercole Lupinacci.
Etymology
The name "Lungru" appears for the first time in history around the 12th century. The etymology of "Lungrum" or "Ugrium" seems to refer to the specific humidity of its territory. According to Domenico De Marchis, its name derived from the Greek Ugros. This hypothesis is supported also by the name of the ancient monastery of the hamlet of Lungro, was rapidly gaining prestige and soon became one of the most important spiritual centers of Byzantine and Greek culture.Places of interest
The traditional architecture of Albania is mostly circular in shape. Most buildings in Lungro were built around a square with a circular facade. All openings were to the main square. Each cluster of houses was a district whose name was derived from elements in the area: Kastieli, Bregu, Konxa, Shin LLiri, Kriqi, Abbots.The village centers around two central squares along a path crossing that connects to the outside. It is located in the slope, filling a compact but irregular shape. It is characterized by buildings of popular roots, in urban and rural areas, including housing units and small chapels. Among the narrow streets of the historic district, architectural types are distinguished by gjitonia. The gjitonia is a sector of the district, forming a social group with its own rules.
The area retains architectural, religious and civil structures, as well as small industrial facilities. These remnants reflect symbolic "protection" in the region, particularly of shrines like those of St. Leonard and St. Elias on the streets of the same name. To commemorate the mines of rock salt, a monument-stage course of Skanderbeg has been established, next to the town house. A museum of the salt mine was created that is complete with costumes, tools, artifacts and writings of the time. In Lungro, as in most Arbëreshë settlements, the main square displays a bust of Skanderbeg, to honor their ethnic and linguistic origins.
Religious architecture
Cathedral of St. Nicholas of Myra
The Cathedral of St. Nicholas of Myra, is the principal church of the Eparchy of Lungro. The building was built in 1721, after the late 17th century earthquake destroyed its predecessor. The cathedral is large relative to local churches. It is in the Romanesque-Baroque style, with three aisles, a large Apse and Dome center.Mosaics, icons and Byzantine paintings, reflected the beauty of Eastern Christian sacred structures. The sanctuary is separated from the rest of the Church 'Iconostasis, the first made in a church after the establishment of the eparchy. In 1825 the structure of the church was complete, although it was not possible to fix a precise date of completion of the art installation. The mosaic works decorative elements of the nave and aisles of the Temple. Since 1921, after the erection of the Eparchy of Lungro in 1919 by Pope Benedict XV, the Church of St. Nicholas of Myra, elevated to a cathedral, undergoes profound changes, to be adapted to the needs of the Byzantine rite-Greek. The Romanesque-Baroque Church, while not altering the walls and the original design of the sacred building, lends itself, with its wide open spaces, to be aligned with the philosophy and liturgical needs of the Church of 'East. The cathedral is full of Mosaics. The mosaic of Pantocrator covers the entire surface of the 120 m² central dome, which is internal and does not leak from the roof and has a height of 18 meters.
Also important is the vast mosaic of the apse, surmounted by a mosaic of Platitera and surrounded by figures of the archangels Gabriel and Michael, from King David and the prophet Isaiah, and the mosaic of the Chapel of the baptismal font, designed by painter and mosaic artist Albanian Joseph Droboniku, who executed the great mosaic of Christ Pantocrator with the central dome. He also did the mosaic of Judgement, overlooking the central nave.
In the vestry is a valuable record of ancient medieval Byzantine church of Santa Maria delle Fonti, consisting of a fragment of fresco, which depicts St. Paraskeva, together with valuable paintings of the Neapolitan school and wooden statues of exquisite workmanship. The aisles of the Temple, already painted by K. Tsitlavidis Macedonian painter, were recently enriched with paintings of Greek artists Charalambos and Gregory of Thessaloniki, which respect the canons of the Byzantine traditional color. Placed on the left aisle, the six canvases depicting the life of St. Nicholas of Myra, the patron of Lungro. The works of the south aisle represent the life of Jesus Christ. Of great artistic workmanship are the three bronze doors with reliefs made using the lost wax sculptor Calabrian Talarico representing Gospel scenes. The windows of the Temple and the two aisles depict prophets.
Church of Santa Maria Icon
Church of Santa Maria Icon is located on a cliff near the river Tyre. In the 16th century the river was the border between Lungro and Saracen. It was the first church built in honor of Our Lady of Albanians Odigitria, much venerated in the East. Inside sits the first evidence of Byzantine iconography of stone that represents the Madonna and Child. The coffered wooden ceiling was built in 1663 by Angelo The Calabrian artist Petra. The poster, stolen recently, framed the precious icon. Its building is located on the northeast border of the medieval village.The Albanians settled in the highest part of the village and built their houses near the village. The village began at the monastery of Santa Maria delle Fonti southwest and ended with the church of Santa Maria.