History

Turning now to historical data, we know that Carpino, over the centuries, was the domain of the Norman, Angevin and Aragonese. The Normans were responsible for the construction of the Castle, which with his imposing size overhanging the Old Town. They, in fact, between 1150 and 1160 extended their domination over the northern side of Gargano, so they built the first tower as a sign of possession of the territory; followed the construction of the castle and the wall system to protect the village . After the Swabians,  Carpino was ruled  for over a century and a half by the Della Marra, and then  the Di Sangro of Torremaggiore possessed it for about a decade;  in the seventeenth century the lords of Carpino were the  de Vargas, and  the last feudal lords of the town  were the Brancaccio. Today Carpino is a small town with an economic life based on cultural tourism and agriculture; in particular,  here one of the most renowned olive oil in the area was produced.

Etymology

As Regards  the etymology, it is generally accepted that "Carpino" comes from "Carpinus”, a tree that grows lush in the Gargano area. Given the fact that Carpino is of  medieval  origin (it was founded by Frederick II of Swabia (1194-1250), who allowed some deserters to live in that place), and that the medieval topography is closely linked to physical conformation of the territory, it is extremely likely that Carpino  comes from "Carpinus”. Among other things, linguistic studies confirm the hypothesis. According to the "Studi Etruschi”, the Latin word ‘Carpinus’ has its roots in" Karp "(stone) [" 'Carpinus' can be traced to the same basic 'Karp' (p. 177-185)] and in the pre-Indo-European term " Karbo” (oak) and "Karpo" (hornbeam), two terms that are "interpreted as a 'tree of rock ' "  (See "Studi Etruschi," Rinascimento del Libro”, 1936, Vol. 10: 177-187).

The etymology of "Carpinus" as the "tree of rock" is suitable with the territory where is located the small town, characterized  by a landscape with the rivers that flow through "[...] the Cagnano and Carpino 'rocky' Valley, running to the North and flow into the lake Varano [...]" (See T. Pensini, "Monografia Generale del Territorio Gargano”, 1858:  140). According to this etymology, Carpino would mean therefore a "city born among the hornbeams in a rocky area." Also we mention here some other hypothesis;  a second proposal is based on the fact that Carpino derives from the Roman family name "Carpius", followed by the suffix "anus", linked to the fact that near Carpino there is a stream that has the same name,  "Carpino", which in turn, according to G. Devoto, refers to a noble Roman name "Carpius", "Carpi-anus",  and "Carpianus requires a noble Latin 'Carpius'" (see G. Devoto, " Scritti Minori ", Le Monnier, 1972:  228).

However, even this reference to “Carpius” is not much different from the concept of "rock", as "Carpius" has its roots in “Kerp”. In fact C. Santoro explains that " ‘Carpius’, ‘carpia’  has at  its base “Kerp” (...) with the semantic value of ‘stone’” (See C. Santoro, "Nuovi Studi Messapici”, 1983:  108). Another hypothesis, perhaps interesting and plausible, says that Carpino was quoted  in 1158 under the name of "Castellum Caprelis", which refers to the presence of many deer in the area. Indeed, in that document, published by P. Migne (“Patrologiae Cursus Completus”, Tomus CLXXXVIII, 1863:  1609) we read:"  [...] In Episcopatu Vestano ecclesiam Santae Tecla, ecclesiam S. Eugeniae et ecclesiam S. Lucae cum pertinentiis earum, ecclesiam S. Petri et S. Mariae prope 'Castellum Caprelis' cum pertinentiis suis […]" (“In the Bishopric of  Vieste [are located] the church of St. Tecla, the church of St. Eugenia and the church of  St. Luca with their appurtenances, the church of St. Peter and St. Mary next to the "Castellum Caprelis" with its appurtenances”).