Calabria · Catanzaro
Cicala
A village of 887 people at 829 meters on the western foothills of the Sila Piccola, founded in 1616 by farmers asking the Count Cigala for land.
Known for
FOUNDED 1616
The village took its name from Count Cigala, who in 1616 granted land at Trempa di Castagna to local farmers.
DEMENZE
Recognized as a Borgo Amico delle Demenze for the 2018 opening of the Centro Diurno Antonio Doria, an Alzheimer's and Parkinson's day center.
SILA PICCOLA
At 829 meters on the western foothills of the Sila Piccola, with the Reventino range rising directly behind the village.
When to visit
Best · May–Oct
- J
- F
- M
- A
- M
- J
- J
- A
- S
- O
- N
- D
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Why come
Cicala sits at 829 meters in the Reventino mountain community, on the western foothills of the Sila Piccola in the northern Catanzaro province. Neolithic finds in the surrounding territory predate the modern village by thousands of years, but the settlement as it stands today was founded in 1616, when the men of the locality of Trempa di Castagna asked Count Cigala for permission to start a hamlet. The new village took the count's surname, slightly altered, first Cigala and then Cicala.
The economy is small: agriculture, livestock, chestnuts from the surrounding woods. In 2018 the village inaugurated the Centro Diurno Antonio Doria, an Alzheimer's and Parkinson's day center, and was recognized as a Borgo Amico delle Demenze, dementia-friendly village. It is part of Borghi Autentici d'Italia. The setting under the Reventino crests is closer in feel to the Sila than to the Catanzaro coast thirty kilometers south.
The Sunday letter
We haven’t written Cicala’s letter yet.
One town every Sunday, with the photo, the food, the festa. Be there when this one comes up. Free, by Peter & Sophia from Pietrasanta.
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What to see
Centro storico
Small mountain borgo of stone houses and stepped alleys, founded in 1616 and largely preserved in its original grid.
Chiesa parrocchiale
Parish church of the village, at the highest point of the centro storico.
Monte Reventino
Mountain rising to 1,417 meters behind the village, the high point of the Reventino range that separates Cicala from the Tyrrhenian.
Sila Piccola foothills
Chestnut and beech woods on the eastern side of the commune, the agricultural and gathering territory of Cicala's residents.
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Living here
- Population 887
- Off the beaten pathi
- Pharmacy in town
- High school within a 30-minute drive
- Nearest airport Lamezia / Reggio, 50 min drive
- Regional capital Catanzaro, 36 min drive
Tags & datadesignations · numbers · sources
Recognised as
The numbers
- Elevation: 829 m
- Population: 887
- Surface area: 9.28 km²
These figures were compiled from public directories — ISTAT, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata — and from the official listings of the guides named on this page. Town details change; verify with official sources before you travel.
Featured on
Cicala appears on this themed pick from our Collections:
Close by
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💎 Borghi Autentici
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