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Guardia Piemontese (Occitan: La Gàrdia) is a town and comune in the province of Cosenza and the region of Calabria in southern Italy.
Location and language
Guardia Piemontese is located about 55 km northwest of Cosenza at the coast of the Tyrrhenian Sea. Its neighbouring municipalities are Acquappesa, Cetraro, Fuscaldo and Mongrassano. Guardia is an Occitan linguistic enclave.
History
The date of Guardia's foundation is unknown, and the name of the place has changed several times in history. "Guardia" means watch-out or look-out, and this name is probably related to a look-out tower built in the 11th century. Such look-out towers (Italian: torri costiere) were built to warn against Arab pirates, then called Saracens, ravaging the coast. Guardia used to be called Guardia Fiscaldi, after the powerful local feudal lords Fiscaldo/Fuscaldo, originating from Fuscaldo. After the settlement of Waldensian refugees who spoke the Occitan language, the place gained the name of Guardia dei Valdi. After their suppression, the name became Guardia Lombarda, which was changed to Guardia Piemontese in 1863. The name refers to "looking at Piemonte," which is the place that the Waldensians came from.