Guide of Val Gardena, Italy

Val Gardena History And Culture, Italy

Catching your breath after your first glimpse of the Dolomites, vacationing in Val Gardena opens the doors to the traditions of the ancient Ladino culture which has dominated the valley for the last 2,000 years. Emerging around 15 B.C. from the merger between Celtic and Roman cultures, Ladino still survives in the Gardenesi's speech, in schoolbooks and in some local radio broadcasts.

There is not a lot of information on the history of Val Gardena and its population. What's certain are the rural artifacts dating back to the year 6,000 B.C: and 400 B.C: - the latter including Gallic sabers and primitive farm tools. But the first time Val Gardena is mentioned in the history books was the year 999, when Count Otto von Andechs granted Bishop Gotschalk di Freising the "Forestum ad Gredine" (literally, the woods of Val Gardena).

Significant proof of the Gardenese culture comes from the extraordinary woodwork - carved and sculpted by expert craftsmen and exported throughout the world for the last three centuries - and the magnificent Gardenesi costumes, perhaps the most interesting, rich and refined in the Alps. You can see them during the frequent religious festivals in the valley.