It has uncertain, but certainly remote origins, as traces of its past remain from the Romanesque period and the ancient little church of St. Catherine of Semelia dating back to the 11th century. The favorable geographical conditions of the municipality made settlements possible as early as prehistoric times. It was natural that peoples who came from the sea would find ways to live and expand economically in such a fertile area. In fact, the presence of waterways favored the development of agriculture, the S. Gilla pond was a resource for fishing, salt mining and an important communication route.
The oldest traces found on alluvial soil in the “Su Planu” region date back to the Recent Neolithic (4000 B.C.). While in the “Tanca e Linarbus” region, a Nuragic station was located with clear signs of human presence (1300 B.C.). There are not a few archaeological evidences of a flourishing Punic period along the Santa Gilla lagoon found in the “Moguru” region. In the Roman period, and later in feudal times, there were at least three settlements in the territory: Semelia (or Simbilia or Similia), Moguru and Sa Mura.
Perhaps for centuries Elmas was just a cluster of shacks or huts for salt extractors in the time of the Phoenicians and Carthaginians. Or a stable “mansio” where slaves or colonists worked in the service of Roman patricians, who from the findings seem to have had a good number of residential villas nearby where they spent their vacations. Or again, a place with a strong presence of serfs in the feudal period. Only the decline of the surrounding towns and the probable migration of their inhabitants transformed the “Mansio” into a permanently inhabited center that, under the Aragonese, increasingly acquired the characteristics of a Villa finally organized administratively (the oldest document dates back to 1341).
As the centuries passed, “Mansio” (or Su Manso or So Maso or Su Masu) in the Aragonese language probably became El Maso or, with the dropping of the final vowel, El Mas. Hence Villa del Mas (as recorded in some 17th-century documents) and, later, Villa d’Elmas.
The territory of Elmas in the 14th century was the scene of important events: a historic battle was fought here between Prince Alfonso of Aragon and the Pisans that marked the beginning of Aragonese rule in Sardinia. Later, during the rule of the Spanish, Villa of Mansum was attacked by pirates, plundered and destroyed. It was later repopulated in the 1600s.
The Municipality of Elmas, by royal decree in 1937, was suppressed and aggregated with the Municipality of Cagliari. It was not until 1989 that Elmas, at the behest of the Masesi, by referendum regained its municipal autonomy.
Over the past three decades, it has undergone significant social and economic changes. Citizens are particularly active in the various voluntary, cultural, sports and entertainment associations, creating countless moments of meeting and gathering in promoting the various initiatives, often also in collaboration with educational institutions and the municipal library.
In terms of image, the presence in the territory of the airport of the same name, the most important airport in Sardinia, should be highlighted. On the cultural-historical level, we would like to mention the small church of St. Catherine of Alexandria (11th cent.): it is what remains of the ancient Vittorini monastery around which the Villa of Semelia had been built. Another prestigious church is the parish church of St. Sebastian, which recently underwent renovations. Of note is the artistic bronze portal by Don Desogus. In the process of setting up, a tourist-cultural trail of the village of Giliacquas from the shores of the Lagoon to St. Catherine Park.
