Villasanta | |
|---|---|
| Comune di Villasanta | |
 Church of St. Anastasia | |
 Coat of arms | |
Location of Villasanta  | |
  Villasanta Location of Villasanta in Italy Show map of Italy Villasanta Villasanta (Lombardy) Show map of Lombardy | |
| Coordinates:45°36′N9°18′E / 45.600°N 9.300°E /45.600; 9.300 | |
| Country | Italy |
| Region | Lombardy |
| Province | Monza and Brianza (MB) |
| Frazioni | La Santa (communal seat), San Fiorano e Sant'Alessandro |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Emilio Merlo |
| Area | |
• Total | 4.9 km2 (1.9 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 173 m (568 ft) |
| Population | |
• Total | 13,480 |
| • Density | 2,800/km2 (7,100/sq mi) |
| Demonym | Villasantesi |
| Time zone | UTC+1 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+2 (CEST) |
| Postal code | 20852 |
| Dialing code | 039 |
| Website | Official website |
Villasanta (La Santa) is acomune (municipality) in theProvince of Monza and Brianza in theItalian regionLombardy, located about 20 kilometres (12 mi) northeast ofMilan.
Villasanta borders the following municipalities:Arcore,Biassono,Monza,Concorezzo.
The comune of Villa San Fiorano existed from the 14th century until 1757.[4]
It is believed that the original core of the town center emerged during the Roman era, serving as a resting place along the road fromMilan andMonza toOlginate, at the junction leading toVimercate.
The existence of the church dedicated toSaint Anastasia is confirmed by a document from AD 768, though its founding is likely much older. According to historian Oleg Zastrow, who conducted a study on the parish's history, the church can be dated to the time ofTheodoric the Great (c. 500) or earlier.[5]
Another document confirms the presence, in 961, of the church and attached hospice (in Latin,xenodochium) ofSaint Alexander in the area where the homonymous district now stands. The hospice operated for several centuries, likely abandonedc. 1300.
The settlement that developed around the church of Saint Anastasia adopted its name over the centuries, first known as the "Place of the Saint," and later simply "La Santa." The areas corresponding to the districts of Sant'Alessandro and San Fiorano were calledVillola orColiate in medieval documents and laterVilla.
In 1578, the church of Saint Anastasia, which until then had been dependent on theMonza Cathedral, was elevated to aparish bySaint Charles Borromeo,Archbishop of Milan. The parish encompassed the entire municipal territory, though it remained administratively divided: La Santa continued to be part ofMonza, while Villa became a separate municipality namedVilla San Fiorano.[6] In 1791, the municipality of Villa San Fiorano remained under the jurisdiction of the Monza court, part of the XIII "censual district" of the province of Milan.
In 1928, La Santa was separated fromMonza and merged with Villa San Fiorano. Since it constituted a significant part of the new municipality, in 1929, the name was changed to Villasanta, a fusion of the two original names.
Per fess: in the 1st, argent, a watermelon proper placed in fess; in the 2nd, argent, three bends sable, charged in the center with a seated dog, argent; on the partition, a red fess, charged on the right with a horse bit, argent, and on the left with three rings interlaced, proper.[7]
The elements in the coat of arms are taken from the heraldry of three ancient families. The watermelon or melon refers to the Mellerio family; the silver and black stripes and the dog are symbols of the Taverna family;[8] the fess with a horse bit and three rings refers to the Somaglia family.[9]
Thegonfalon is a split drape of blue and green.
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