Multi-Cultural
Week
ITALY
Italy
Continent: Europe
Current Population:~(61,000,000)
Official language: Italian
How to say hello: ciao
Other languages: Ladin,slovene,
German, French, Albanian, Greek
Religion
Main religion: Catholic 87.8% Other religion
6.4% nonbelievers 5.8% Islam 2.6%
National Anthem: Canto degli Italiani
Popular Dishes
PIZZA
Popular Dishes
PASTA
Popular Dishes
Tiramisu
Unique Customs
Festa Della Repubblica: is celebrated on the second of June each year. The day
commemorates the institutional referendum held by universal suffrage in 1946, in
which the Italian people were called to the polls to decide on the form of government,
following the Second World War and the fall of Fascism.
Tarantella: different folk dances characterized by a fast upbeat tempo, usually in 6/8
time (sometimes 18/8 or 4/4), accompanied by tambourines.
Italian Traditions
Italian Weddings: A traditional Italian courtship requires the permission of the bride's
family before an official engagement can be made. As in much of the world,
a diamond ring is worn to symbolize engagement and marriage. The wedding itself is
usually held at a morning mass, followed by a day-long feast and reception. The bride
and groom walk to the church together, and in some traditions they saw through a log
together with a double-handled saw.
Italian Traditions
Opera: Opera is a major Italian music tradition, achieving its greatest popularity in the
1800s. In fact, opera was created in Italy, evolving from raucous performances of
singing and dancing with exciting stage effects meant to entertain Roman crowds in
between acts of the actual play. They were known as intermezzi. The word opera
simply means, "A work," and the form involves a distinct style of singing more melodic
and dramatic than speech, but not as focused on melody and harmony than other
musical styles.
Traditional Clothing
Type of Government
Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a unitary parliamentary republic in Southern
Europe. A parliamentary republic is a type of republic which operates under
a parliamentary system of government where the executive branch (the government)
derives its legitimacy from and is accountable to the legislature (the parliament).
Government Leaders
Pres.
Giorgio NAPOLITANO
Prime Min.
Mario MONTI
Under Sec. for the Presidency of the Council of
Ministers
Antonio CATRICALA
Min. of Agriculture
Mario CATANIA
Min. of Community Policy
Enzo Moavero MILANESI
Min. of Cultural Assets
Lorenzo ORNAGHI
Min. of Defense
Giampaolo DI PAOLA
Min. of Economic Development
Corrado PASSERA
Min. of Economy & Finance
Vittorio GRILLI
Min. of Education
Franceso PROFUMO
Min. of Environment
Corrado CLINI
Min. of Foreign Affairs
Giulio TERZI di Sant' Agata
Min. of Health
Renato BALDUZZI
Min. of Infrastructure & Transport
Corrado PASSERA
Min. of Interior
Anna Maria CANCELLIERI
Min. of Intl. Cooperation
Andrea RICCARDI
Min. of Justice
Paola SEVERINO
Min. of Labor, Welfare, & Equal Opportunity
Elsa FORNERO
Min. of Relations With Parliament
Piero GIARDA
Min. of Territorial Cohesion
Fabrizio BARCA
Min. of Tourism & Sport
Piero GNUDI
Governor, Bank of Italy
Ignazio VISCO
Ambassador to the US
Claudio BISOGNIERO
Permanent Representative to the UN, New York
Cesare Maria RAGAGLINI
Prime Minister
President
History of Italy
Italian history can be said to have started in the 9th century BC, when earliest
accounts record the presence of Italic tribes in present-day central Italy. Linguistically,
they were divided intoOscans, Umbrians and Latins. Later the Latin culture became
dominant, as Rome emerged as a powerful city-state around 350 BC. Other preRoman civilizations include Magna Graecia (or Greater Greece), when Greeks began
settling in Southern Italy in the 8th century BC and lasted until the 3rd century BC and
also the Etruscan civilization, which flourished between 900 and 150 BC in the central
section of the peninsula.[1]
History of Italy
The Roman Empire later dominated Western Europe and the Mediterranean for many
centuries, making immeasurable contributions to humanity. Some of these led to the
development of Western philosophy, science and art, that remained central during
the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. After the fall of Rome in AD 476, Italy
remained fragmented in numerous city-statesfor much of the following millennium,
finally falling under different foreign dominations. Parts of Italy were annexed to
the Spanish, the Austrian and Napoleon I's empire, while the Holy Seemaintained
control over Rome, before the Italian Peninsula was eventually liberated
and unified in the late 19th century.
History of Italy
The new Kingdom of Italy, established in 1861, quickly modernized and built a
large colonial empire, colonizing parts of Africa, and countries along the
Mediterranean. However, many regions of the young nation (notably, the South)
remained rural and poor, originating the Italian diaspora. Italy wins the World War
I against its historical enemies, the Austrian Empire. Soon afterwards, however, the
liberal state collapsed to social unrest: the Fascists, led by Benito Mussolini, took
over and set up an authoritarian dictatorship. Italy joined the Axis powers in World
War II, falling into a bloody Civil War after a monarchist coup ousted Mussolini in
1943, surrendering to the Allies in 1943, so eventually winning the war
against Fascists and Nazi Germany in 1945.
History of Italy
In 1946, as a result of a Constitutional Referendum, the monarchy was
abolished.[2] The new republic was proclaimed on 2 June 1946. In the 1950s and
1960s, Italy saw a period of rapid modernization and sustained economic growth, the
so-called Italian economic miracle. The country, coming back to international politics
among Western democratic powers, joined theEuropean Economic
Community (which has later constituted the European Union), the United
Nations, NATO, the G7 and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and
Development. Italy is currently ranked as a major regional power.[3][4][5][6][7]
10 Interesting Facts
1.The name Italy comes from the word italia, meaning “calf land,” perhaps because the
bull was a symbol of the Southern Italian tribes.
1.Italy is approximately 116,400 square miles (including Sicily and Sardinia), which is
slightly larger than Arizona.
1.Italy is one of the most crowded nations in Europe. Its population is estimated to reach
58,126,212 by July 2009. The population of United States is estimated to reach
307,212,123 by that same date.
1.The capital of Italy is Rome (also known as the Eternal City) and is almost 3,000 years
old. It has been the capital since 1871 and is home to the Dome of St. Peter's, the Sistine
Chapel, the Coliseum, and the famous Trevi Fountain.
1.The official name of Italy is the Italian Republic (Repubblica Italiana).
10 Interesting Facts
6.Italy is said to have more masterpieces per square mile than any other country in the
world.
7.Almost four-fifths of Italy is either mountainous or hilly.
7.In 2007, a dog named Rocco discovered a truffle in Tuscany that weighed 3.3 pounds.
It sold at auction for $333,000 (USD), a world record for a truffle.
7.The Italian wolf is Italy’s unofficial national animal and plays a large role in the legend of
the founding of Rome.
7.The author of “Pinocchio” (“pine nut”), Carlo Collodi (1826-1890), was Italian.