adminLand and People
The name “Italy” comes from Greek “italos”, which means calf.
Italy is the fifth most visited country in the world, with 46 million foreign visitors annually.
There are 15 minority languages officially recognised in Italy, including native and neighbouring countries’ languages
Italy now has one of the lowest birth and fertility rates in the world.
A 2007 UNICEF report on child well-being in rich countries ranked Italy as the best country for family and peer relationships.
Two of Europe’s smallest countries, San Marino and the Vatican, are enclaves within Italy.
Italy did not become a completely unified country until 1870.
History, Heritage and Construction
Italy was the cradle of Etruscan then Roman civilisations, and the centre of the first and largest empire in Europe and North Africa.
The Colosseum in Rome is the largest ancient building dedicated to entertainment.
The catacombs of Rome are 13km long and contain some 40 000 tombs. They also house the oldest image of the Virgin Mary on Earth (early 2nd century).
The Republic of Venice lasted 1 100 years making it the longest lasting uninterrupted form of government that ever existed.
The oldest European university in continuous operation is the University of Bologna, founded in 1088.
The European Renaissance started in Northern Italy in the 14th century.
St Peter’s Basilica in Rome is the largest Christian edifice in the world. Its construction took 120 years (1506-1626).
Florence Cathedral has the largest brick dome ever constructed. It was engineered by Filippo Brunelleschi in the 1420’s.
Tintoretto’s Paradise in the Doge’s Palace in Venice is the largest painting ever done on canvas measuring 22,6 by 9,1 metres.
The Neapolitan philosopher Antonio Genovesi (1712-1769) was history’s first tenured professor of political economy.
La Mandria Regional Park in Venaria Reale, near Turin, is Europe’s largest walled urban park, covering 3 000 hectares (7 500 acres).
The colour magenta was named after the Battle of Magenta in Lombardy in 1859, when the French troops of Napoleon III defeated the Austrians and paved the way for Italian unification.
Gastronomy
There is evidence that some sort of pasta and pizza were already eaten in Ancient Rome. The world’s first true pizzeria, Antica Pizzeria Port’Alba, opened in Naples in 1830. There are over 140 types of pasta and each Italian consumes in average 25kg of pasta each year.
Culture, Inventions and Sciences
Many of the world’s most famous artistes were Italian, with such names as Botticelli, Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Donatello, Fra Angelico, Tintoretto, Caravaggio, Bernini, Titian and Raphael, among many others.
The Italians invented the viol, violin, cello and piano, and were the greatest representative of Baroque music (Vivaldi, Corelli, Monteverdi, Albinoni).
The mechanical clock, the barometer, the thermometer, optical glasses and the telephone are all Italian inventions.
Cats are considered a bio-cultural asset of Rome. A law condemns any person killing a cat to a 10 000 euro fine and up to three years in jail. There is an estimated 300 000 cats in Rome, and they are the only inhabitants allowed on the ruins.
In 1994, Italian gynaecologist and embryologist Severino Antinori (1945) assisted the oldest woman in history (63 years old) to give birth.
The oldest film festival in the world, beginning in 1932, is the Venice Film Festival.
Italians have won more Academy Awards (Oscars) for Best Foreign Language Film than any other country (13 as of 2013).
Economy and Technology
It is estimated that Italy has the biggest “black economy” in Western Europe.
Italy has more famous fashion designers than any other country, including Gucci, Prada, Versace, Dolce & Gabbana, Giorgio Armani, Salvatore Ferragamo and Valentino.
Many of the world’s most prestigious sports cars are Italian, such as Ferrari, Lamborghini, Maserati, Bugatti or De Tomaso.
The Scuderia Ferrari is the oldest and most successful team left in the Formula One championship.
Rome’s Cinecittà is the largest filmmaking facility in Europe.
Politics and Legal System
Italian Members of Parliament are the highest paid in Europe, receiving 11 000 € per month, more than twice the average in Western Europe. They receive many extra perks such as life pension, subsidised meals, chauffeured cars, and free mobile phones.
Italy is one of the most over-legislated countries on Earth. The country is estimated to have five to 12 times more laws than France or Germany.
In Italy divorced fathers must provide child support for their adult children still living with their mothers, even if they are over 30 years old. Considering that half of adult children in Italy still live with their parents, that may explain why the Italian divorce rate ranks among the lowest in Europe.
Italians around the world
Southern Italy has long been a land of emigration. There are now as many Italians living outside as in Italy (about 60 million each). Italian immigrants to Western Europe, North and South America and Australia have generally adapted with great success.
Here are a few examples:
Rudolph Valentino (US): Hollywood’s first sex symbol and the first “Latin Lover”.
Frank Sinatra (US): Singer and actor.
Al Pacino (US): Hollywood actor.
Robert De Niro (US): Hollywood actor.
Sylvester Stallone (US): Hollywood actor.
Sophia Loren: Hollywood actor.
John Travolta (US): Hollywood actor.
Leonardo DiCaprio (US): Hollywood actor.
Madonna (US): Singer and actress.
Quentin Tarantino (US): Screenwriter, film director and actor.
Francis Ford Coppola (US): Movie director.
Rudolph Giuliani (US): Former mayor of New York City.
Elio Di Rupo (Belgium): Prime Minister of Belgium.
Sam Palmisano (US): Chairman and CEO of IBM.
Carly Fiorina (US): Former chairman and CEO of Hewlett-Packard.
Richard Grasso (US): Former chairman and CEO of the New York Stock Exchange.
Lee Iacocca (US): Former chairman of the Chrysler Corporation.
Patricia Russo (US): CEO of Alcatel-Lucent.
Tommy Mottola (US): Former head of Sony Music Entertainment.
Mario Draghi (US): Former Vice Chairman of Goldman Sachs International and president of the European Central Bank.
Amadeo P. Giannini (US): Founder in 1904 of Bank of Italy which later became Bank of America, the largest bank in the United States.
Bob Guccione (US): Founder and former publisher of Penthouse Magazine.
Leonard Riggio (US): Owner of Barnes & Noble, the largest book retailer in the world.
The Jacuzzi family. (US): Inventors of the whirlpool bath of the same name.
Dennis Tito (US): The world’s first space tourist.
Manuel Belgrano (Argentina): One of the leaders of the Argentine Wars of Independence.
Juan Perón (Argentina): Three times President of Argentina (1946-55 and 1973-74).
Arturo Frondizi (Argentina): President of Argentina (1958-62).
Arturo Umberto Illia (Argentina): President of Argentina (1963-66).
Ayrton Senna (Brazil) : Formula one champion.
Rubens Barrichello (Brazil): Formula 1 pilot. — eupedia.com.
Online Reporter