Name of uncertain origin; pursuant to Canon Spano it derives from the Phoenician Otzer, "strong and secure", for the popular tradition instead it derives from the number eight because eight were the villages disappeared that would give life to Ozieri and of these, only two, Bisarcio and Butule seems to be really historically existed.

The territory of Ozieri belonged until the year 1272 to the curatorìa of Nughedu in the giudicato of Torres. Already at the end of the year 1300 it assumed a predominant role in the territory, and from the 17th century the history of Monte Acuto came to be identified almost totally with the history of Ozieri. In the 18th century it became the most important center of the Capo di Logudoro, after Sassari. On January 17, 1837, the "transformation" from "village" to town took place with great ceremony. This act, would have beneficial influences on the entire Monte Acuto territory.

THINGS TO SEE

St. Michael's Cave, just a few meters from the civil hospital, sinks about eighty meters into the limestone.

Many artifacts of fine workmanship were found here, considered the most representative of this civilization scattered throughout Sardinia and for this reason defined precisely as the Culture of Ozieri (3500-2700 BC). There are many tombs of giants, sacred wells, and city walls; more than 120 nuraghi, in particular the Nuraghe Burghidu, a remarkable example with its complex three-towered structure. Another interesting monument to visit is the Roman bridge of Pont'Ezzu and the basilica of Sant'Antioco, former cathedral of Bisarcio, one of the largest Romanesque churches in Sardinia. It stands isolated on a hill of volcanic origin, in a field site, reached by driving along State Road No. 597, not far from Chilivani.

From an urban and architectural point of view, it is one of the most interesting towns in Sardinia with an urban fabric consisting of a dense network of steep, stepped streets with beautiful pavements and innumerable slarghi, small squares and wide terraced plazas. There are many four- to five-story mansions of neoclassical architecture that arose in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, and some are elegant buildings in deco style. Some houses of the Gothic-Catalan period, known as "Spanish houses," are well preserved. Very important is Cantareddu Square, the site of festivals, and various events in the City. From it one can easily reach the ancient Ortu 'e su Conte, now Garibaldi Square, the Old Convent of St. Francis, the Cathedral, and the imposing Grixoni Fountain, built in the late 1800s on the basis of an ancient source from the Spanish period.

There are many museums in the historic center: the Museum of Sacred Art, the Archaeological Museum set up at the Old Poor Clare Convent complex, the Sardinian Language Documentation Center, the La Taverna dell'Aquila Museum, the Open-air Museum of Contemporary Sculpture, the Museum of Milling Art, and the Bread Making Museum. 

Notable personalities include the painter known as Il Maestro di Ozieri in the 1500s, who enriched various churches in northern Sardinia with fine works in the Mannerist style, and in the late 1700s, Francesco Ignazio Mannu was the author of the hymn known in Sardinia as "Procurade 'e moderare barones sa tirannia" that became in the uprisings against the Piedmontese the so-called Sardinian Marseillaise. Also with the birth of the Italian state, Ozieri has the honor of sending Giuseppe Garibaldi to Parliament as its deputy.

Staying in B&Bs and hotels in Ozieri or the surrounding area, in September one can participate in the most important festival in honor of the Blessed Virgin of Remedy, while in June there is the Spring Festival of St. Antiochus of Bisarcio, which combines the religious ceremony with a series of tourist attractions such as the procession with the historical procession of medieval costumes of nobles and commoners and the staging of the medieval camp with the performance of musicians and flag-wavers. The year 1956 saw the birth of the Ozieri Prize for Sardinian Literature and, for more than 30 years, the prize called the Nightingale of Sardinia dedicated to the traditional cantigos a chiterra. The horse races at Chilivani, the most important equestrian facility in Sardinia, are followed closely.

Of interest is the development of agribusiness and food production activities: meats, own wines produced in the hills, cheeses, typical sweets such as Sospiri and Copulettas, and especially bread, known as the Spianata of Ozieri, for which notable projects are being carried out such as the construction of ancient ovens and membership in the National Association of Bread Cities.