Acquaviva Collecroce
Encyclopedia
Acquaviva Collecroce is a small town and comune
in the province of Campobasso
, in the Molise
region of southern Italy, between the Biferno
and Trigno
rivers.
Like the smaller towns of Montemitro
and San Felice del Molise
, Acquaviva Collecroce is home to a community of Molisian Croats
, most of whom speak a particular Croatian dialect
(known as simply na-našo or naš jezik, meaning "our language") as well as Italian. There are differences in the dialects of the three towns, but they all descend from the Shtokavian-Ikavian dialect of Dalmatia
. The language is considered an endangered
diaspora language
.
Acquaviva is known for the production of a small, dark, zerniza fig
s grown there, as well as the fennel
and white celery
.
.
Though there is evidence of an earlier Slavic settlement in 1297, it is believed that the current inhabitants are not their descendants, but rather come from later migrations in the 15th and 16th centuries. These migrations may have been caused by Ottoman
incursions into the Balkans
.
Numerous inhabitants emigrated in two flows during the 20th century, and population is currently still decreasing (there were some 2,500 inhabitants in 1951, compared to the c. 730 of 2007). The first emigration took place between, roughly, 1900–1920, the emigrees heading towards the United States and Argentina
. The second major flow took place in the 1950s, chiefly to Australia.
Comune
In Italy, the comune is the basic administrative division, and may be properly approximated in casual speech by the English word township or municipality.-Importance and function:...
in the province of Campobasso
Province of Campobasso
The Province of Campobasso is a province in the Molise region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Campobasso.It has an area of 2,909 km², and a total population of 230,692...
, in the Molise
Molise
Molise is a region of Southern Italy, the second smallest of the regions. It was formerly part of the region of Abruzzi e Molise and now a separate entity...
region of southern Italy, between the Biferno
Biferno
The Biferno is a river of Molise, in southern Italy. Its source is in the comune of Bojano and during the first few kilometres of its course it receives the waters of numerous streams which flow from the Matese mountains...
and Trigno
Trigno
The Trigno is an 85 km Italian river. It originates in the Apennine Mountains, in the province of Isernia and flows into the Adriatic Sea near Vasto. It also forms the border between the regions Abruzzo and Molise.-See also:...
rivers.
Like the smaller towns of Montemitro
Montemitro
Montemitro is a small town and comune in the province of Campobasso in the Molise region of Italy, near the Trigno river....
and San Felice del Molise
San Felice del Molise
San Felice del Molise is a small town and comune in the province of Campobasso in the Molise region of Italy, near the Trigno river....
, Acquaviva Collecroce is home to a community of Molisian Croats
Molise Croats
Molise Croats live in the Molise region of Italy in the villages Acquaviva Collecroce , San Felice del Molise , Montemitro and elsewhere. In these three villages they are a majority. There are about 5,000 speakers of the Molise Croatian dialect...
, most of whom speak a particular Croatian dialect
Molise Croatian dialect
Molise Croatian dialect is a Croatian dialect spoken in the province of Campobasso, in the Molise Region of southern Italy, in the villages of Montemitro , Acquaviva Collecroce and San Felice del Molise...
(known as simply na-našo or naš jezik, meaning "our language") as well as Italian. There are differences in the dialects of the three towns, but they all descend from the Shtokavian-Ikavian dialect of Dalmatia
Dalmatia
Dalmatia is a historical region on the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea. It stretches from the island of Rab in the northwest to the Bay of Kotor in the southeast. The hinterland, the Dalmatian Zagora, ranges from fifty kilometers in width in the north to just a few kilometers in the south....
. The language is considered an endangered
Endangered language
An endangered language is a language that is at risk of falling out of use. If it loses all its native speakers, it becomes a dead language. If eventually no one speaks the language at all it becomes an "extinct language"....
diaspora language
Diaspora language
The term diaspora language, coined in the 1980s, is a sociolinguistic idea referring to a variety of language spoken in a place of migration. For example, the great number of Hindi speakers in the United Kingdom has produced a strain of the language unlike that spoken on the Indian subcontinent...
.
Acquaviva is known for the production of a small, dark, zerniza fig
Ficus
Ficus is a genus of about 850 species of woody trees, shrubs, vines, epiphytes, and hemiepiphyte in the family Moraceae. Collectively known as fig trees or figs, they are native throughout the tropics with a few species extending into the semi-warm temperate zone. The Common Fig Ficus is a genus of...
s grown there, as well as the fennel
Fennel
Fennel is a plant species in the genus Foeniculum . It is a member of the family Apiaceae . It is a hardy, perennial, umbelliferous herb, with yellow flowers and feathery leaves...
and white celery
Celery
Apium graveolens is a plant species in the family Apiaceae commonly known as celery or celeriac , depending on whether the petioles or roots are eaten: celery refers to the former and celeriac to the latter. Apium graveolens grows to 1 m tall...
.
History
In the 12th century, Acquaviva was a base for the Knights of MaltaKnights Hospitaller
The Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta , also known as the Sovereign Military Order of Malta , Order of Malta or Knights of Malta, is a Roman Catholic lay religious order, traditionally of military, chivalrous, noble nature. It is the world's...
.
Though there is evidence of an earlier Slavic settlement in 1297, it is believed that the current inhabitants are not their descendants, but rather come from later migrations in the 15th and 16th centuries. These migrations may have been caused by Ottoman
Ottoman Turks
The Ottoman Turks were the Turkish-speaking population of the Ottoman Empire who formed the base of the state's military and ruling classes. Reliable information about the early history of Ottoman Turks is scarce, but they take their Turkish name, Osmanlı , from the house of Osman I The Ottoman...
incursions into the Balkans
Balkans
The Balkans is a geopolitical and cultural region of southeastern Europe...
.
Numerous inhabitants emigrated in two flows during the 20th century, and population is currently still decreasing (there were some 2,500 inhabitants in 1951, compared to the c. 730 of 2007). The first emigration took place between, roughly, 1900–1920, the emigrees heading towards the United States and Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
. The second major flow took place in the 1950s, chiefly to Australia.