Sperlonga

Sperlonga
Country	Italy
region	Lazio
province	Latina (LT)
Coordinates	41 ° 16 ' N , 13 ° 26' E Coordinates: 41 ° 16 '0 " N , 13 ° 26' 0" E
height	55 m slm
surface	18 km²
Residents	3,236 (Dec. 31, 2019)
Population density	180 inhabitants / km²
Post Code	04029
prefix	0771
ISTAT number	059030
Popular name	Spelongani
Patron saint	San Pietro
Website	Sperlonga
	; Sperlonga

Sperlonga is an Italian municipality in the province of Latina in the Lazio region with 3236 inhabitants (as of December 31, 2019) and is a member of the association I borghi più belli d'Italia (The most beautiful places in Italy).

geography

Location of Sperlonga in the province of Latina

Sperlonga is located 129 km southeast of Rome , 38 km southeast of Latina and 117 km northwest of Naples on the coast of the Tyrrhenian Sea .

The historic center is in a picturesque location on a rock spur, an extension of the Monti Aurunci , which protrudes over the coastline into the sea. The town center is only accessible on foot, as it consists of small alleys with many stairs. The municipality has a share in the north and east of the Monti Aurunci, which reach the coast east of Sperlongas and form a steep coast. In the west it has a share in the Fondi plain, which is used intensively for agriculture. Here are the Lago San Puoto, a karst lake with fresh water and the Lago Lungo, a coastal lake with changing salinity . Both lakes are connected by a canal. The municipality extends from 0 to 489 m slm

The community is located in earthquake zone 2 (medium risk).

The neighboring communities are Fondi in the west and Itri in the east .

history

Grotto of Tiberius

Scylla and Charybdis group

The long history of the place is evident in ancient Roman villas and a cave, which in local stories is associated with the Roman emperor Tiberius . There is also a medieval old town , which was originally designed as a fortress .

Today Sperlonga is a tourist attraction. The Tiberius grotto with its excavations is particularly noteworthy. In this grotto, where, according to tradition, Tiberius held decadent dinners, an extremely important find from an art-historical point of view was made: an oversized group of figures depicting Odysseus fighting the sea monsters Scylla and Charybdis , created by the great Polydoros, who is also the famous one Laocoon group originates.

population

Population development

year	1871	1901	1921	1936	1951	1971	1991	2001	2011
Residents	1,575	1.933	2,446	2,647	2,823	3,493	3,400	3,102	3,326

Source ISTAT

dialect

Sperlonga is about ten kilometers south of the former border of the old Vatican State , whose border is still visible today through a boundary stone on the road between Terracina and Fondi . Sperlonga is therefore - south of Terracina - the first place whose dialect in the pronunciation of Italian belongs to the area of the Neapolitan dialect . In Terracina you can still hear the influence of the dialect of Rome .

politics

Armando Cusani ( Forza Italia ) was elected mayor in June 2016 with 58.00% of the vote and replaced his party colleague Rocco Scalingi, who had been in office since 2006 and died on July 5, 2015. His list of citizens, Lista Cusani , received eight of the 12 municipal council seats . Cusani was Mayor of Sperlonga from 1997 to 2006 and President of the Province of Latina from 2004 to 2014. He was suspended from this post in November 2013 because of an abuse conviction of 20 months in prison with probation.

Infrastructure

tourism

The long beach with its very fine sand is an attraction for tourists and those looking for recreation from the region as far as Rome. In contrast, the rocky coast is a popular destination for sport climbing . A leisure harbor was opened in 1972.

traffic

Sperlonga is crossed along the coast by the SR 213 Via Flacca , which leads from Terracina to Formia .
The nearest train station is 8 km away in Formia on the Roma – Formia – Napoli line .
The Fondi-Sperlonga train station on the Roma-Formia-Napoli line is 12 km north of the town center, and it is also a stop for the FL6 regional train from Roma Termini to Minturno .