Italy People

Despite the stereotype of large families, Italian women today have an average of only 1.3 babies each, contributing to a lag in population growth that has persisted for several decades. In fact, with a death rate that narrowly outstrips its birth rate and increasing immigration, Italy’s population is barely growing at all, holding approximately steady at its current 58 million. Immigration from China, Africa, Eastern Europe, and Middle Eastern countries functions to counteract the dwindling number of Italians in the workforce. Although some consider immigration to be necessary for the economy, many Italians associate undocumented migrant labor with sex work or drug trafficking, despite efforts by the government to eliminate illegal immigration. The situation is only made worse by Italy’s aging population distribution. Altogether, these problematic statistics present a perfect storm of population crisis, which represents a legitimate threat to the traditional Italian way of life.

Language

A descendant of Latin, Italian is part of the family of Romance languages, which includes French, Spanish, Portuguese, and Romanian. Due to the number and variety of dialects that exist in various regions of the country (a vestige of Italy’s past division into city-states), many Italians, especially those in the South, will ironically claim that the first foreign language they learn is Italian. The claim is not unfounded: the throaty Neapolitan of southern Italy may indeed sound foreign to a northerner, and even be difficult to understand. Ligurians use a mix of Italian, Catalan, and French. Many Tuscan dialects substitute an “h” for every “c;” an American might be called an “Amerihano.” Sardo, spoken in Sardinia, bears little resemblance to standard Italian, constituting a separate language in itself. In the northern region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, you may encounter as many as four languages spoken in one small city—Slovene, Italian, German, and Friulian coexist in Canale. Conversely, citizens in some northern regions do not speak any Italian at all: the population of Valle d’Aosta speaks mainly French, and Trentino-Alto Adige has a German-speaking minority. Standard Italian, developed in the 13th and 14th centuries as a literary dialect, today serves as the language used by schools, media, and literature. North of Rome, dialects are dying out in favor of this standard language, but accents persist. Locals do their best to employ standard Italian with foreigners, although some may be hesitant to do so. Many Italians, especially older people or those living in rural areas, do not speak English, but most young people, big-city dwellers, and those in the tourist industry do.

Talk To The Hand. Italians don’t just talk with their mouths, they also use hand gestures. When dialects (or basic language skills) fall short, these are universal and instantly understood. To express frustration, as in, “ Mamma mia, are you seriously going to fine me even though the signs says I can park here on Sundays?” put your hands together in a prayer-like position and shake them down and up, imploringly. Indignant? Hold all your fingers together, point them upward, and shake your wrist lightly back and forth. Don’t care? Point your palm downwards and drag your fingers outwards from where your chin and neck meet. Ask around for more gems. Don’t get confused; the best of friendships could go south if an inexperienced gesturer were to offer up the wrong finger .

Listen With Your Eyes. First published in 1958 and re-released in 2005 by Chronicle Books, Bruno Munari’s Speak Italian: The Fine Art of the Gesture waves its hands in every conceivable Italian way and provides a ‘supplement to the Italian dictionary’ by demystifying Italian hand gestures. A fun collection of photos accompanied by explanations in Italian and English, this book will give you ‘words’ when you find yourself speechless in the stickiest of situations.

Religion

As the home of the pope, Italy has been the center of the Roman Catholic faith for almost 2000 years. The Lateran Pacts, a treaty in 1929 between Pope Pius XI and Benito Mussolini, made the Vatican City a sovereign state within the city of Rome. It is the traditional and administrative capital of the Catholic Church. The treaty also made Catholicism the official religion of Italy, which it remained until 1984. Unsurprisingly, roughly 90% of Italians identify themselves as Catholic, although only 40% consider themselves active members of the church. Additionally, the country is home to a substantial number of Protestants and nearly a million Muslims.

The death of Pope John Paul II in April 2005 stirred Catholics around the globe. Tens of thousands flooded the square in front of St. Peter’s Basilica (p. 140) as the College of Cardinals gathered in the Sistine Chapel to elect a new Pope. Sworn to secrecy (a full transcript of the voting will not be made public for 100 years), the Cardinals locked inside the chapel cast four votes per day until a two-thirds majority was reached. After each round of voting, smoke from the chimneys of the Sistine Chapel signaled the results—gray smoke for failure to reach a consensus, and white smoke for a successful election. The process could have taken up to three and a half months (as it did in AD 180), but Cardinal Ratzinger of Munich (now Pope Benedict XVI ) was elected on the second day of voting. At 78, Cardinal Ratzinger became the oldest elected pope since Clement XII in 1730. Though his past career indicated he might be overly dogmatic, Benedict has in fact displayed a softer touch. His first encyclical, Deus Caritas Est (God is Love), stressed the love of God and neighbor as the core of Christian life. Yet, he has also placed great emphasis on opposing what he calls “the dictatorship of relativism” in the West and advocating the Church’s conservative position on social issues like abortion, birth control, and same-sex marriage, putting the Church at odds with many progressive activists.

The Church continues to play a substantial role in the lives of ordinary Italians. Most Italians continue to celebrate the feast day of their town’s patron saint in annual celebrations, but church attendance is declining. Currently about one-third of the nation attends weekly services. Nevertheless, Italians are very conscientious about respecting churches, cathedrals, and other religious domains. In general, tourists are not allowed in religious spaces unless dressed modestly: covered shoulders for women and long pants for men. Furthermore, some churches do not allow visitors to take pictures because camera flashes damage fragile paintings and mosaics. When visiting churches, remember that the buildings are places of worship first, and tourist attractions second.