Back ثقافة إيطالية Arabic Cultura d'Itàlia Catalan Diwylliant yr Eidal Welsh Cultura de Italia Spanish فرهنگ در ایتالیا Persian Italian kulttuuri Finnish Culture de l'Italie French Olaszország kultúrája Hungarian Cultura italiana Italian イタリア文化 Japanese
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The culture of Italy encompasses the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, and customs of the Italian peninsula and of the Italians throughout history. Italy has been the centre of the Roman civilization, the Catholic Church, and of the Renaissance, as well as the starting point of movements with a great international impact such as the Baroque, Neoclassicism, and Futurism and significantly contributed to historical phenomenons such as the Age of Discovery and the Scientific Revolution.[1] Italy is considered a cultural superpower and the Italian peninsula one of the birthplaces of Western civilization.[2][3]
The main elements of Italian culture are its art, music, cinema, style, and food. Italy was the birthplace of opera,[4] and for generations the language of opera was Italian, irrespective of the nationality of the composer. Italy had a significant presence in the development of Classical music, birthing Baroque music, many forms of musical composition such as the Symphony, the Sonata and the Concerto, as well as many important composers such as Claudio Monteverdi, Antonio Vivaldi, Gioachino Rossini, Gaetano Donizetti, Vincenzo Bellini, Giuseppe Verdi, and Giacomo Puccini. Italy is known for its lively folk dances. The most recognised Italian folk dance is the Tarantella, a dance originating in the province of Taranto, Apulia, as well as its many variations across Italy such as the Calabrian Tarantella, the Pizzica, and the Tammurriata. Before being exported to France, the Ballet dance genre also originated in Italy. Popular tastes in drama in Italy have long favoured comedy; the improvisational style known as the commedia dell'arte began in Italy in the mid-16th century[5] and is still performed today. Italian cinema is revered throughout the world. The art film has its origins in Italy. Spaghetti Westerns emerged with the release of Sergio Leone's A Fistful of Dollars, a genre consisting of films mostly produced and directed by Italians.
The country boasts several well-known cities. Rome was the ancient capital of the Roman civilization, seat of the Pope of the Catholic Church, capital of reunified Italy and artistic, cultural, and cinematographic centre of world relevance. Florence was the heart of the Renaissance, a period of great achievements in the arts at the end of the Middle Ages.[6] Venice, former capital of a major financial and maritime power from the Middle Ages to the early modern period, with its intricate canal system attracts tourists from all over the world, especially during the Carnival of Venice and the Biennale.[7] Other important Italian cities include Milan, which is the industrial and financial capital of Italy and one of the world's fashion capitals. Naples, with the oldest active public opera house in the world (Teatro di San Carlo) Turin, which used to be the capital of Italy, and is now one of the world's great centres of automobile engineering. Italy is considered one of the birthplaces of Western civilization[2] and a cultural superpower.[8] Italian culture is the culture of the Italians, a Romance ethnic group, and is incredibly diverse spanning the entirety of the Italian peninsula and the islands of Sardinia and Sicily. Italy has been the starting point of phenomena of international impact such as the Roman Republic, Roman Empire, the Roman Catholic Church, the Latin alphabet, the Maritime republics, Romanesque art, Scholasticism, the Renaissance and the humanism, the Age of Discovery, Mannerism, the Opera, the Scientific Revolution,[1] the Baroque, Neoclassicism, the Risorgimento, the Futurism, and European integration.
Italy is home to the greatest number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites (60).[9][10] During its history, the nation has given birth to a significant number of notable people who have made major contributions to the world.
- ^ a b Cohen, I. Bernard (1965). "Reviewed work: The Scientific Renaissance, 1450-1630, Marie Boas". Isis. 56 (2): 240–42. doi:10.1086/349987. JSTOR 227945.
- ^ a b Marvin Perry, Myrna Chase, James Jacob, Margaret Jacob, Theodore H. Von Laue (1 January 2012). Western Civilization: Since 1400. Cengage Learning. p. XXIX. ISBN 978-1-111-83169-1.
- ^ Italy has been described as a "cultural superpower" by Arab news, the Washington Post, The Australian, the Italian consul general in San Francisco Archived 27 November 2015 at the Wayback Machine, the former Foreign Affairs Minister Giulio Terzi, and the U.S. President Barack Obama Archived 26 December 2014 at the Wayback Machine.
- ^ Kimbell, David R. B. Italian Opera. Cambridge University Press, 1994. p. 1. Web. 22 July 2012.
- ^ (in Italian) Commedia dell'arte. Treccani, il portale del sapere. Web. 24 July 2012.
- ^ Zirpolo, Lilian H. The A to Z of Renaissance Art. Scarecrow Press, 2009. pp. 154-156. Web. 16 July 2012.
- ^ "Venice | Italy, History, Population, & Facts | Britannica". www.britannica.com. 25 July 2023. Retrieved 26 July 2023.
- ^ Italy has been described as a "cultural superpower" by Arab news, the Washington Post, The Australian, the Italian consul general in San Francisco Archived 27 November 2015 at the Wayback Machine, the former Foreign Affairs Minister Giulio Terzi and the U.S. President Barack Obama Archived 26 December 2014 at the Wayback Machine.
- ^ [1] UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Web. 25 September 2011.
- ^ (in Italian) Beni Italiani Unesco. Archived 16 July 2012 at the Wayback Machine Associazione Città e Siti Unesco. Web. 17 July 2012.