Italy's Language

Italian is considered one of the most romantic and melodic languages in the history of the world. The Italian language made its first debut during the 10^th century in written documents such as lawsuits and poetry. It was inserted within Latin documents. As of today, Italian is the official language throughout Italy. In fact, 93% of Italy’s population have an Italian tongue. Did you know there are different dialects of Italian such as Friulian? Other minor languages in Italy include: Ladin, Slovene, German, French, Albanian, Croatian and Greek. As you can see, Italy is a very diverse speaking country. Arrivederci! (Goodbye)

http://www.omniglot.com/writing/italian.htm
http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/global-etiquette/italy-country-profile.html

Current Events in Italy

Unicredit Banca in Italy

The banks of Italy are having credit ratings cut by Moody's. Moody's is some kind of Canadian credit agency. They are known for their popular website: http://www.moodys.com/Pages/default_ca.aspx. Unicredit, which is Italy's largest bank, had the highest cut of credit ratings. A total of 26 Italian banks were cut of credit. According to BBC News, Italy's economy is contracting while the government also tries to reform the nation's public sector. UniCredit and Intesa Sanpaolo are responsible for one third of the Italian banking market therefore, people are greatly affected by this issue. All banks of Italy are now on watch for the Moody's which means further downgrades are still possible. The Moody's are saying Italy now has one the lowest credit ratings in Europe. They are hoping to regain their credit ratings very soon.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-18067581

Italy's History

     I'll be blogging on history this week (just a warning) so, try to stay awake while reading this. There are a lot of different history eras of Italy however, I'll be mainly focusing on the Roman era.

     Italy is obviously the birth place of the Roman Empire. Julius Caeser placed a big part in Italy's history. According to legend, Rome was founded in 753 BC by Romulus and Remus, and was then governed by seven Kings of Rome. In the following centuries, Rome started expanding its territory, defeating its neighbours one after the other. Greeks settled in the southern tip of the Italian Peninsula in the eighth and seventh centuries B.C. Etruscans, Romans, and others took over the central and northern mainland. The neighbouring islands also came under Roman control by the third century B.C. By the first century A.D., the Roman Empire effectively dominated the Mediterranean world. After the collapse of the Roman Empire in the West in the fifth century A.D., the peninsula and islands were subjected to a series of invasions, and political unity was lost. Italy became an oft-changing succession of small states, principalities, and kingdoms, which fought among themselves and were subject to ambitions of foreign powers. Popes of Rome ruled central Italy; rivalries between the popes and the Holy Roman Emperors, who claimed Italy as their domain, often made the peninsula a battleground.

http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0107658.html
http://www.lonelyplanet.com/italy/history

Italy's Culture

   From as early as the 16th century, Italy was at the centre of Western culture. Italian’s are known as the creators of the Etruscan civilization, Ancient Rome, the Roman Catholic Church, Humanism and the Renaissance.

The Last Supper- Leonardo da Vinci

   Whether from the north or south, Italians share one common thing - a love and lust for life! They're lively, sociable and have a passion for everything they do. Most Italians are Roman Catholics. The influence of the church can be seen in everyday life and in their stunning art pieces. Most religious monuments and paintings and local traditions are based on Christian celebrations.

Italians are proud of their artistic heritage and so they should be. Italy has produced some of the greatest artists in the world; Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Raphael, to name just a few. Italy’s finest artists are displayed in Museums, churches and courtyards all over the country.

   Italy is home to the Opera and Opera music. Everyone's heard of Rossini, Verdi and Puccini - the classics. It's accessible to everyone, from the rich to simple peasant farmers. Most Italians will have a firm knowledge of opera and will attend a performance whenever possible.

   The typical Italian home is simple yet practical and always colourful. You'll see balconies with fresh red roses hanging on bright blue railings, tables full of apples, grapes, fresh cheese and bottles of local wine; colourful flowers everywhere, tiny courtyards and gardens with statues. The homes reflect what the people of Italy love; beauty, color, style, family and friendship. Italy is exactly what you would expect it to be!

   Fashion is a top priority in Italy. Your social status depends on your sense of fashion and will affect the way people view you.  Italian’s refer to this as “bella figura” which comes from the Italian word meaning “to impress”. Today, Italy is one of the world centers of modern high fashion clothing. Fashion houses such as Armani, Fendi, Gucci, and Versace have become very popular high class brands. The city of Milan takes its place amongst the most important centers of fashion in the world.

http://www.mapsofworld.com/italy/culture.html
http://www.everyculture.com/Ge-It/Italy.html
http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/global-etiquette/italy-country-profile.html
http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/4033.htm

Italy's Economy

The Euro coins in Italy

The Italian economy is one of the worlds most developed; the country has a high standard of living. Italy is the 8^th largest economy in the world.  By 2006, industry contributed about 30% of the annual gross domestic product and agriculture only 2%. The principal farm products are fruits, vegetables, grapes, potatoes, sugar beets, soybeans, grain, olives and olive oil, and livestock (especially cattle, pigs, sheep, and goats). In addition, much wine is produced from grapes grown throughout the country. Germany is Italy’s largest producer with 16.4% of the products. Tourism is one of Italy's most important industries and a major source of foreign exchange. Italy's economy has been gradually diversifying. Italy’s form of payment is called Euros. One Euro is equivalent to $1.32 US dollars. The average amount of money Italy earns in one year is $1.63 trillion and the average person earns $32,120 a year.  

http://www.economywatch.com/world_economy/italy/

http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/4033.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(nominal)

http://www.tripadvisor.ca/Travel-g187768-s601/Italy:Banks.And.Money.html

Climate of Italy

The Northern part of Italy has hot summers and cold winter, although the temperature rarely drops below freezing during the daytime. Whereas the South enjoys mild winters and long, dry, hot summers. Mountain areas such as the Alps and the Apennines have long, cold winters long and short, cool summers. Much like the rest of the world, Italy’s climate changes with the seasons. During the winter months, places such as the Alps, Turin, and Venice bear the impact of the winter cold. Temperatures in Southern Italy are normally milder with averages of 50 to 60 degrees from December to April. Cities located near the Tyrrhenian Sea (Western Italy) have mild seasons. Summer temperatures normally stay within the 79 to 87 degrees. Winters are also milder than the northern region, and average lows in the winter are between 40 to 42 degrees.  The Mediterranean Region (south) of Italy has wider rainfall totals in the winter months, and dry summer conditions. 

http://www.understandingitaly.com/profile-content/climate.html

http://www.allhotelsitaly.com/italy/climate.htm

Italian Flag

The Italian flag consists of three colours: green, red and white. The three colours are presented in three vertical stripes with green on the left, white in the middle and red to follow. The green stripe represents hope, the white shows off the peace of the country and the red tells of the strength, charity and valor the residents of Italy have.  It is said that the Italian tricolour flag is a designed inspired by the French flag.  In 1797, Napoleon’s troops brought the flag to Italy in 1805 however, it wasn’t until January 21, 1991 that the flag was officially adopted. Every year, on January 7^th, Italy takes the time to celebrate the coming of their nation’s flag.

http://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/flags/countrys/europe/italy.htm

http://www.mapsofworld.com/flags/italy-flag.html

http://www.initaly.com/gene/flag101.htm

Geography of Italy

Georgraphy of Italy

The country of Italy is located in southern Europe. It has a total area of 301,318 km² and (as of 2010) has a population of 60,483,521. Italy holds two of the largest islands, Sicily and Sardinia.  Italy is known to be shaped as a boot. France, Austria, Switzerland, and Slovenia border along the country of Italy. The country of San Marino and Vatican City (an independent country) are located within Italy. It extends into the center of the Mediterranean Sea. Majour cities of Italy include Rome (the capital city), Naples, and Venice. In comparison, Italy is a little larger than the state of Arizona.

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/europe/italy/

http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Italy.html

http://www.nationsonline.org/oneworld/countries_by_area.htm

Tourist Attractions in Italy



The Leaning Tower of Pisa, located in Pisa, Italy.



With more than 43.2 million tourists a year, Italy is the fourth highest tourist earner, and fifth most visited country in the world. People mainly come to Italy for its rich art, cuisine, history, fashion and culture, its beautiful coastline and beaches, its mountains, and priceless ancient monuments, especially those from the Greek civilization and Roman civilization. Tourism is one of Italy's fastest growing and most profitable industrial sectors, with estimated revenue of $42.7 billion.

Rome is one of the most visited cities in the world, with an average of 7-10 million tourists a year. The Colosseum (4 million tourists) and the Vatican Museums (4.2 million tourists) are the 39th and 37th most visited places in the world. Other main sights in the city include the Pantheon, the Trevi Fountain, Piazza Navona and the Spanish Steps.

http://www.italylogue.com/tourism

http://www.euromonitor.com/italy/country-factfile

http://www.rome.info/facts/



The setting behind the famous balcony scene
of Romeo and Juliet



           Another well-known city in Italy is the very popular Verona. This city is known for the seeting of Romeo and Juliet. Unlike most of the larger cities in the country, you are likely to find only a small percentage of tourists in historic Verona Italy. As you can imagine, seeing a performance of the story of Romeo and Juliet in its true setting is a staple of most travelers' visit to the city, and the summer months bring about Verona's famous Shakespeare festival, which includes performances by the Royal Shakespeare Company.