The nuraghe “Aspru” of Benetutti in the shots of Bruno Sini and Francesca Cossu. Regarding the meaning of its name, the linguist Salvatore Dedola believes it is an Italianization and derives from the Babylonian “arbu,” which has given many Sardinian terms in “arbu” or “albo” (see entries that generally indicate Jurassic mountains but also towns like “Torralba” or powerful nuraghi like “Nuraghe Alvo” in the “Supramonte” of Baunei). In turn, the Sardinian “arbu” means “area unused by agriculture, wild, grazing.” With this adjective, the Sardinians indicated all sites unsuitable for agriculture or otherwise very harsh, usable exclusively by untamed livestock.
Near the nuraghe Aspru, there is also the homonymous “domus” – depicted in the photo by Sergio Melis – as evidence of a continuity of presence in this territorial area, between the Neolithic, the Bronze Age, and beyond.
Also regarding the term “alvo” or “alvu,” we want to mention the two nuraghi “Alvu,” respectively from Pozzomaggiore and Cossoine, which we show in the photos of Giovanni Sotgiu.
