Villa Santa Lucia degli Abruzzi, the oldest village in Italy

Its origins are very ancient and its church of Santa Lucia è cited in a papal bull of Paschal II of 1112The original settlement would have been in the area called “The Little Castle”, where there are also particular testimonies of ancient peasant life: approximately 25 tholos, dry stone buildings once used by farmers and shepherds. A unique place for its historical and artistic value.

But today the record of Villa Santa Lucia degli Abruzzi, the town immersed in the Gran Sasso and Monti della Laga National Park, At 900 meters above sea level, among the woods, overlooking the Tirino Valley, in the province of L'Aquila, is another: according to the latest ISTAT census, it is the oldest town in Italy, with an average age of 65,2 years among its 83 inhabitants.

Statistics aside, the scenario of Villa Santa Lucia degli Abruzzi is already shared by many small Italian villages, and could become a veritable template for the country's less populated towns. No schools, the nearest pharmacy is a quarter of an hour's drive away, only a bar that doubles as a general store, and no shops to buy groceries. Not a single baby has been born here since 2023, and today there are only two children. On the other hand, there is a return emigration, particularly among retirees, who, after decades, return to their homeland to settle permanently in Italy's oldest town.

The other thing that is indicative of the demographic curve of this small village is that the depopulation has been in waves: the first at the beginning of the twentieth century, when many inhabitants left to look for work, especially towards United States and CanadaIn the post-war period, as in many mountain villages in Abruzzo, young people gradually left the town to find employment in larger centers. There were no industries or a labor market capable of absorbing the new generations. By 1991, the population had already dropped to 305, in 2001 a 206, in 2011 a 141, today there are 83. With a loss of approximately 96% of the population in just over a century.