Italian language

Italian language
Romance language spoken in Italy (including Sicily and Sardinia) and in parts of Switzerland and France (including Corsica).

Its 66 million speakers worldwide include many immigrants and their descendants in the Americas. Written Italian dates from the 10th century. The standard literary form is based on the dialect of Florence, but many Italians do not speak it, instead using regional dialects. These include Upper Italian (Gallo-Italian); Venetian in northeastern Italy; Tuscan; the dialects of Marche, Umbria, and Rome; of Abruzzi, Puglia, Naples, Campania, and Lucania; and of Calabria, Otranto, and Sicily. See also Italic languages.

* * *

Italian  Italiano,  

      Romance language spoken by some 66,000,000 persons in Italy (including Sicily and Sardinia), France (including Corsica), Switzerland, and other countries. It is spoken by large numbers of emigrants and their descendants in the Americas, especially in the United States, Argentina, and Canada. Written materials in Italian date from the 10th century (a set of court records with the testimony of the witnesses in the Italian vernacular), and the first literary work of length is the Ritmo Laurenziano (“Laurentian Rhythm”) of the late 12th century.

      Although Italian has a standard literary form, based on the dialect of Florence, the common speech is dialectal or a local variant of standard Italian. The less formal the occasion and the less educated the speaker, the greater the deviation from standard speech; many Italians cannot speak the standard language at all. The following dialect groups are distinguished: Northern Italian, or Gallo-Italian; Venetan, spoken in northeastern Italy; Tuscan (including Corsican); and three related groups from southern and eastern Italy—(1) the dialects of the Marche, Umbria, and Rome, (2) those of Abruzzi, Puglia (Apulia), Naples, Campania, and Lucania, and (3) those of Calabria, Otranto, and Sicily.

      The sound system of Italian is quite similar to that of Latin or Spanish. Its grammar is also similar to that of the other modern Romance languages, showing agreement of adjectives and nouns, the use of definite and indefinite articles, loss of noun declension for case, two genders (masculine and feminine), and an elaborate system of perfect and progressive tenses for the verb. The most notable difference between Italian and French or Spanish is that it does not use -s or -es to form the plural of nouns but instead uses -e for most feminine words and -i for masculine words (and some feminine words).

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужна курсовая?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Italian language — Italiano redirects here. For other uses, see Italiano (disambiguation). Italian Italiano, Lingua italiana or Idioma Italiano Pronunciation [itaˈljano] Spoken in …   Wikipedia

  • Italian Language Examinations — features the examinations for the Italian language for foreigners. They provide applicants with the ability to officially recognize competency in speaking Italian at various levels.Examinations include:CELICILS (Qualification)CIC …   Wikipedia

  • Italian language in Venezuela — The Italian language in Venezuela has been present since colonial times in the area around Caracas and Maracaibo. The language is found in many modisms and words of the Venezuelan Spanish language.HistoryThe same name of Venezuela comes from the… …   Wikipedia

  • Italian language in the United States — The Italian language has been a widely spoken language in the United States of America for more than one hundred years, due to large scale immigration beginning in the late 19th century. Today it is the eighth most spoken language in the… …   Wikipedia

  • Italian language in Croatia — The Italian language is a minority language in Croatia, it is spoken by 0,46% of the total Croatian population. It is an officially recognized minority language in Istria County (where it is spoken by 7.69% of the population).Fact|date=May… …   Wikipedia

  • Italian Language School La Scuola Appia Vecchia — The Italian Language School, La Scuola Appia Vecchia is a not for profit Italian language school with a homestay experience. The school is located in Velletri, a town of 50,000 located in the Alban Hills between Rome and the seaside towns of… …   Wikipedia

  • Italian language in Slovenia — The Italian language is an officially recognized minority language in Slovenia, along with Hungarian. Geographic Distribution and PopulationItalian is co official with Slovene in three municipalities in the Slovenian portion of Istria: Piran ( it …   Wikipedia

  • AP Italian Language and Culture — Advanced Placement Italian Language and Culture (also known as AP Italian Language and Culture or AP Italian) is a course offered by the American College Board as part of the Advanced Placement Program. It is intended to give students a thorough… …   Wikipedia

  • List of English-language pop songs based on Italian-language songs — The following is a list of English language pop songs based on Italian language songs.* I (Who Have Nothing) Uno dei tanti (Translations: One of the Many ) * You Don t Have to Say You Love Me Io che non vivo (senza te) (Translation: I Can t Live… …   Wikipedia

  • List of Italian language television channels — The List of Italian language television channels include the following channels:ItalyPublic ChannelsDocumentaries, Culture and LifestylePremium ExtraSee also La7 Cartapiù Other countriesee also*Digital television in Italy *List of radio stations… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”