Folklore and events

• Sagra di S. Efisio: on 1^st May a procession celebrates a promise made by citizens during a plague in 1656. Many folk groups arrive in town from all over Italy: they take part to the parade wearing traditional costumes. The parade is followed by the statue of the Saint. There are two other protagonists: Alternos (in the past it represented the viceroy, today it is the mayor) and the ‘Guardiania’. The golden carriage brings the statue of the saint and it is preceded by the members of the Confraternity. They wear a penitential dress. There are also allegorical carts. The typical instruments called ‘launeddas’ are played; people walk very slowly and throw petals of red, pink and yellow roses, that cover the street like carpets. After the procession, in the early afternoon, the parade leaves the town and stops in a village inhabited by fishermen, Giorgino, in a chapel dedicated to the saint. The parade stops in several places: Capoterra, Sarroch, Villa San Pietro, Pula and Nora. In Nora many people wait for the saint singing the traditional songs, called “goccius”. On 3^rd May the Saint is brought on a procession along the beach of Nora where he was martyrized. On 4^th May the Saint goes back to Cagliari. When the parade arrives in the small church of Stampace district there is a short religious rite in Latin and the traditional “goccius” are sung.
• Hospitando Sardegna: in the area called Fiera Internazionale di Sardegna there is a fair specialized in the fields of tourism, restaurants, bars, patisseries, “pizzerie”.
• Sandalion Tiscali Cup: this is a sport – tourist event known at an international level. It aims to promote tourism in Cagliari during the whole year. The event takes place in the port of the town where all the boats that participate arrive. They arrive after short regattas from the town they come from to Cagliari. During this meeting and competitions, there are also other events that aim to promote the knowledge of Sardinia, of Cagliari, of their natural and cultural heritage, of their traditions.
• Festività dell’Assunta: in the first days of August the women belonging to local families Amat, Manca di Villahermosa and Sanjust, dress the sleeping statue of Our Lady of the Assumption in the cathedral and put it in the central nave. This rite has been celebrated since 1800, when Savoy family moved to Cagliari and elected the town as their temporary seat. In the royal palace, Palazzo Regio, near the cathedral, Maria Cristina, Carlo Felice’s wife, together with the local noblewomen, decided to restore the old traditions linked to the feast of the Assumption. In 1815 Savoy family left Cagliari, and Maria Cristina gave to the noble ladies the honour to dress the Virgin for the feast of 15^th August.
• Nostra Signora di Bonaria: in 1370 in the sea in front of Cagliari there was a terrible storm that involved a ship coming from Spain. The sailors tried to save the ship and threw everything in the water. One of the boxes stopped the storm when it touched the water: it was a miracle. The box arrived to the port of Bonaria and it was opened by some friars: inside there was a wood statue portraying Our Lady. People started immediately to worship it, especially the sailors who consider this statue as their patron. On 13^th September 1907 Pope Pio X proclaimed the Madonna of Bonaria the patron of Sardinia. The feast is on 24^th April.
• Festività di S. Agostino: on 28^th August Saint Augustine is celebrated with religious rites, concerts and seminars about his life and his thought.
• Settimana Santa: during the Holy Week there are many touching celebrations. The celebrations start on the Friday before Palm Sunday when the Procession of the mysteries takes place with the seven statues portraying the seven mysteries of Christ. The statues date back to XVIII century and were made by sculptor Giuseppe Antonio Lonis and his pupils. The statues are brought in seven different churches of Cagliari. On Good Friday there is the procession of the Dead Christ. The celebrations end on Easter morning when in town there are two processions that meet at a certain point, representing the meeting between Christ and his mother.
• Sa die de sa Sardigna: this feast aims to celebrate the population of Sardinia and has taken place since 14^th September 1993. There are many events in the whole isle. On 28^th of April people recall the so-called “Vespri sardi”, that is a popular revolution that took place on 28^th April 1794 against rulers from Piedmont. Inhabitants asked to be employed in the administrative and military sectors together with those workers coming from Piedmont. But the rulers didn’t accept their request and so people rebelled. In 1793 a French fleet tried to occupy the isle. But inhabitants resisted and defended their land and their rulers, who were Piedmontese. They thought that Piedmontese rulers would have thanked them for this strong resistance and for their loyalty. Instead the viceroy ordered to arrest two leaders of the patriotic party, the lawyers from Cagliari Vincenzo Cabras and Efisio Pintor. On 28^th April 1794 the population rebelled and sent away the viceroy Balbiano and all the Piedmonteses.

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Written by Stefania Maffeo
Translation by Linda Liguori