Giovanni Spano Commemorative Plaque

Giovanni Spano (1803–1878) from Ploaghe was an archaeologist, linguist, ethnologist, university professor and Italian presbyter. The canon was appointed university professor of sacred writing and oriental languages ​​at the University of Cagliari and director of the Archaeological Museum in 1834. In 1839 he became director of the university library, in 1854 dean of the Dettori high school and from 1857 to 1868 rector of the university. In 1871 he became senator of the Kingdom of Italy.

Giovanni Spano is one of the greatest Sardinian scholars of archaeology, history and history of art, glottology and ethnology of Sardinia, among the founders of the Anthropological School of Cagliari. The canon Spano explicitly posed the question of the Sardinian language, proposing the Logudorese variant as the literary language of Sardinia.

He died in Cagliari and he is buried in the Monumental Cemetery of Bonaria, and he made imprint the motto on his grave: Patriam dilexit, laboravit (He loved his land, and he committed his work for her).

A city street is also dedicated to him and in Canelles street, in the Castello district, on the facade of the building in which he lived, a commemorative plaque was fixed in his honour.