Lucania is the ancient name of the region, which has appeared since Roman times. Its territory, however, was larger than today’s Basilicata, and extended to part of Campania and Calabria. Furthermore, it did not include the territory of Matera, which did not exist as an organized city in Roman times, having been born in the early Middle Ages. The name Lucania derives from the Latin lucus, forest.
The name Basilicata derives from basilikos, a term used to identify the Byzantine official who administered part of ancient Lucania in the 11th century.
Basilicata was born in 1231 with Frederick II of Swabia. At the time Matera was part of Puglia, and only broke away from it in 1663, becoming the capital of Basilicata.
The current borders of Basilicata were defined by Napoleon in 1806, when he established the “province of Basilicata” and moved its capital to Potenza.
In 1927 Matera became the provincial capital, and in 1932 Mussolini replaced the name Basilicata with the older one, Lucania.
With the Italian Constitution the medieval name Basilicata returned.
Basilicata represents the only Italian case of a region whose inhabitants are called according to its most ancient denomination.
