The origins: the first human settlements in the IV millennium B.C.

Cagliari is one of the oldest cities in Sardinia. Traces of human settlement, dating back to the end of the IV and the beginning of the III millennium B.C. (the Shardàna people), have been discovered in the domus de janas (fairies' houses), on Saint Bartolomeo and Sant’Elia hills.

Slightly more recent are the "domus" (houses) found in the Sella del Diavolo (Devil's Saddle) and underneath Marina Piccola, as also in Is Mirrionis and Terramaini. The inhabited centers of the original Karalitzu were placed in Is Mirrionis (the most important), Monte Claro, Castello, Monte della Pace, San Giuliano, Fangario and Macchiareddu.