Sardinia is made up of the capital Cagliari and the provinces of Sassari, Nuoro and Oristano. According to historical facts, the first human presence goes back to the Neolithic Age (3rd millennum B.C.). The characteristic Nuraghi (constructions for defensive purposes) are the primary testimony of civilization on the island. In the 8th century B.C., leaving from the city of Carthage, the Phoenicians colonized Sicily and Sardinia, where they founded the city of Cagliari.

The island had been under Roman domination until the first half of the 3rd century B.C., and after that, it became a province of the Roman Empire. Introduction of the Latin was difficult and slow because of the various dialects present in the region. But today numerous Latin words are still present in the Sardinian spoken language, differently from most of the other Italian dialects that have lost their Latin roots.

With the fall of the Roman Empire, Sardinia was invaded by the Vandals who remained dominant in the region from 455 until 534 B.C. After that, the Byzantineempire took over and governed the island.
In the 11th century Sardinia was divided into four provinces: Cagliari, Arborea, Torres and Gallura. Before this subdivision, the provinces were Pisa and then Genova, which had power over these territories (11th and 12th century). When Pisa, after the defeat of the battle of Meloria in 1288, lost its power, it had to give up its influence over the territories that were subjected by it.

From the beginning of the 14th century, pope Bonifacio VIII granted Sardinia to Giacomo II of Aragona. Due to this, all the liberties that had been acquired during the communal epoch were suppressed, causing large contrasts in the Sardinian territories.

From 1718, Sardinia, together with the region of Piedmont started to form the Reign of Sardinia. In 1848 after many movements for a constitution for the new state , the famous Statuto Albertino was granted. This text was fundamental for the formation of the modern Italian constitution which became effective in 1948.

From 1948 Sardinia has been an autonomous region with their own civil codes.