ITALY

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ITALY

• Ancient Rome
• Founded in the 700s BC
• Formed empire that stretched from Britain to the
  Persian Gulf
• Famous for great art, literature, and political
  ideas
• Helped spread Christianity

• Unified Italy
• Italy was not unified as a country until 1861.
• In the 1920s Mussolini took power as a dictator.
  He led Italy into World War II.
• After the war Italy became a democracy.

• Renaissance
• Lasted from about 1350 through the 1500s
• Period of great creativity that began in Italy
  and spread through the rest of Europe
• Saw the creation of some of the worlds greatest
  works of art and literature

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Main Idea 2Religion and local traditions have
helped shape Italys culture.

• Most people in Italy belong to the Roman Catholic
  Church.
• In the past, the Catholic Church was the single
  most important influence in Italian culture.
• The pope, the spiritual head of the Roman
  Catholic Church, lives in Vatican City, an
  independent state located within the city of
  Rome.
• The importance of the Catholic Church in Italy
  can be seen in many ways
• Italian cities are filled with Catholic churches.
  Rome alone contains hundreds of churches from
  various periods of history.
• Religious holidays and festivals are major events
  in Italy.

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Leonardo da Vinci

• Leonardo da Vinci (April 15, 1452 May 2, 1519)
  was an Italian polymath, being a scientist,
  mathematician, engineer, inventor, anatomist,
  painter, sculptor, architect, botanist, musician
  and writer.
• Leonardo has often been described as the
  archetype of the renaissance man, a man whose
  unquenchable curiosity was equaled only by his
  powers of invention. He is widely considered to
  be one of the greatest painters of all time and
  perhaps the most diversely talented person ever
  to have lived.

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Italian Culture
Food

• Olives, tomatoes, rice, and pasta are common.
• Recipes vary widely from region to region.
• For example, in the south people often serve
  pasta with tomato sauces, while in the the north
  they serve creamier sauces.

Art

• Italy has been known as a center of the arts for
  centuries.
• Italian artists set trends that are followed all
  over the world.
• Italy has been home to some of the worlds
  greatest painters, sculptors, authors, composers,
  fashion designers, and filmmakers.

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Main Idea 3Italy today has two distinct
economic regionsnorthern Italy and southern
Italy.

• Northern Italy
• Strong economy
• Italys most fertile farmland is in the Po
  Valley.
• Major industrial centers Milan, Turin, and Genoa
• Tourists visit many northern cities, such as
  Florence, Pisa, and Venice.

• Southern Italy
• Poorer than the north
• Depends heavily on agriculture
• Tourists visit the regions beaches and ruins.
• Italys government is trying to promote industry
  in the south, especially in the city of Naples.

Italys capital, Rome, is in central Italy and
has ties to both the north and the south.