Capital of Greek Calabria and one of the most beautiful villages in Italy, Bova preserves a very ancient history. In Greek it is called Boos and in Vua dialect. It could be a Latinized form of the Greek word boua (flock) from bous (ox). According to some, the name derives from the medieval Greek boua, a grain pit. The origins of Bova are linked to a legendary Greek queen, Oichista, who imprinted the imprint of her foot on the highest point of the fortress above the village.
The ancient origins of the town of Bova (Vua) are testified by the numerous archaeological finds found near the Norman Castle dating back to the Neolithic period, although the first historically documented evidence of the existence of Bova dates back to the first years of the second millennium, when between 1040 and 1064 the Normans imposed themselves on the Arabs and Byzantines in the domination of Sicily and Calabria.
