Province of Sassari

The province of Sassari (Italian: provincia di Sassari; Sardinian: provìntzia de Tàtari; Sassarese: prubìnzia di Sàssari; Algherese: província de Sàsser; Gallurese: pruvincia di Sassari) was a province in the autonomous island region of Sardinia, Italy. Its capital was the city of Sassari. On 1 April 2025, the province was disestablished in favor of the new Metropolitan City of Sassari, which corresponds to the 66 western municipalities of the province in its 2005-2015 borders; the easternmost 26 municipalities were reorganized as Province of Gallura North-East Sardinia, corresponding to the borders of the former Province of Olbia-Tempio.

The province had 471,957 inhabitants in 2025. It was an important part of Sardinia, known for its rich culture and history. The change to a metropolitan city helped organize the area better for its people and communities.

History

In ancient times, between 1600 and 1500 BC, the Nuragic civilization was very strong in this area. During the Roman domination, the Logudoro region helped feed the Western Roman Empire and had many soldiers stationed there.

In the Middle Ages, Logudoro was an important part of Sardinia and was called the Giudicato di Torres or Logoduro, with its first capital in Ardara, later moving to Sassari. Many beautiful old churches were built during this time.

The Province of Sassari was created in 1859, before Italy became one country. It was very big, covering most of the island's northern part. The University of Sassari was also founded around this time.

In April 2021, leaders in Sardinia decided to change how the area was organized. The western part around Sassari became the new Metropolitan City of Sassari, while the eastern part became the Province of Gallura-North Eastern Sardinia. After some discussion, the changes were finally put into place in April 2025.

Geography

The Province of Sassari was located in the western part of the island of Sardinia in Italy. It faced the Sardinian Sea to the north and west and the Tyrrhenian Sea to the east. To the south, it bordered the provinces of Nuoro and Oristano. The area covered 7,692 square kilometres (2,970 mi²), and in 2017, it was home to 493,357 people. There were 92 towns, with the largest being Sassari, Olbia, Alghero, Porto Torres, Tempio Pausania, Sorso, Ozieri, Ittiri, and Sennori. The town of Pattada was famous for its handmade knives.

The province had Sardinian's only natural lake, Lake Baratz, and one of the largest artificial lakes, Lake Coghinas, which used to mark the boundary with another area. It also included famous vacation spots like Castelsardo, Porto Torres, Alghero, the Riviera del Corallo, and Stintino. Stintino sits on a peninsula that reaches toward the Asinara Island, part of the Asinara National Park. Beautiful beaches in the province included Balai in Porto Torres and Pelosa Beach in Stintino. The inner areas had rolling hills and mountains, with Ozieri being an important cultural and historical town known for its tools and pottery.

Demographics

In 2025, the province of Sassari had a population of 471,957 people. About half were male and half were female, which is very close to the rest of Italy's numbers. Young people made up 12.8% of the population, and older people made up 26.1%.

Immigration

As of 2025, there were 30,925 people living in Sassari who were born in other countries. This is about 6.6% of the total population. The five largest groups of foreign-born people came from Romanians, Germans, Moroccans, Senegalese, and French.

Foreign population by country of birth (2025)

Country of birth	Population
Romania	5,858
Germany	2,169
Morocco	1,977
Senegal	1,839
France	1,769
Ukraine	1,123
Argentina	1,054
Switzerland	1,014
Poland	796
Pakistan	778
China	743
Brazil	736
Bangladesh	695
Albania	625
Nigeria	621

Municipalities

Main article: List of municipalities of the Province of Sassari

The province had 92 municipalities called comuni. The three largest were Sassari with 120,510 people, Olbia with 61,681, and Alghero with 41,989.

• Aggius
• Aglientu
• Alà dei Sardi
• Alghero
• Anela
• Ardara
• Arzachena
• Badesi
• Banari
• Benetutti
• Berchidda
• Bessude
• Bonnanaro
• Bono
• Bonorva
• Bortigiadas
• Borutta
• Bottidda
• Buddusò
• Budoni
• Bultei
• Bulzi
• Burgos
• Calangianus
• Cargeghe
• Castelsardo
• Cheremule
• Chiaramonti
• Codrongianos
• Cossoine
• Erula
• Esporlatu
• Florinas
• Giave
• Golfo Aranci
• Illorai
• Ittireddu
• Ittiri
• La Maddalena
• Laerru
• Loiri Porto San Paolo
• Luogosanto
• Luras
• Mara
• Martis
• Monteleone Rocca Doria
• Monti
• Mores
• Muros
• Nughedu San Nicolò
• Nule
• Nulvi
• Olbia
• Olmedo
• Oschiri
• Osilo
• Ossi
• Ozieri
• Padria
• Padru
• Palau
• Pattada
• Perfugas
• Ploaghe
• Porto Torres
• Pozzomaggiore
• Putifigari
• Romana
• San Teodoro
• Sant'Antonio di Gallura
• Santa Maria Coghinas
• Santa Teresa Gallura
• Sassari
• Sedini
• Semestene
• Sennori
• Siligo
• Sorso
• Stintino
• Telti
• Tempio Pausania
• Tergu
• Thiesi
• Tissi
• Torralba
• Trinità d'Agultu e Vignola
• Tula
• Uri
• Usini
• Valledoria
• Viddalba
• Villanova Monteleone

Government

List of presidents of the province of Sassari