Italian self-identity and regionalism

[Curtis24]

Some of the discussions in the "RAce of the Ancient Romans" thread etc. have inspired me to make this thread.

RomanQueen has claimed in the other thread that all Italians don't see themselves having different identites. In a different thread today, San Galgano says may different regions of Italians have different identities, for instance many Sicilians see themselves as "Sicilian" instead of Italian.

So to the Italians, which of you identify with your region? Which with your country? Which with the Romans? Or the NOrmans, or the Greeks, or Lombards, or the various different peoples who settled Italy? And, what is your general perception of the way other Italians in general, not just yourselves, identify?

[Electronic God-Man]

I'm not Italian, however I know that every Sicilian I have asked identifies with Sicily more than with Italy on a whole. I was in Sicily with a friend last summer.

[San Galgano]

Some of the discussions in the "RAce of the Ancient Romans" thread etc. have inspired me to make this thread.

RomanQueen has claimed in the other thread that all Italians don't see themselves having different identites. In a different thread today, San Galgano says may different regions of Italians have different identities, for instance many Sicilians see themselves as "Sicilian" instead of Italian.

So to the Italians, which of you identify with your region? Which with your country? Which with the Romans? Or the NOrmans, or the Greeks, or Lombards, or the various different peoples who settled Italy? And, what is your general perception of the way other Italians in general, not just yourselves, identify?

I think Italy is a mess from this point of view Curtis, and hard to describe if you don't live in Italy.
Well , anyway seems like lately only S.Italians(with the exception of sicilians who are the Jolly at time) feel a strong relation with the political and geographical name of the peninsula(and this is weird cause the unify of Italy has been made between Rome and North Italy). From Rome until the north there are places who feel more linked to a medieval point of view, basically a dukedoms' alike point of View, with Tuscany, my region, on top of this because of Renaissance, that make every tuscan think to a sort of blessed place which can't be confused with anything other. Add to this that Tuscany has almost never been ruled by foreigners, that has always been very rich and that the italian language come from Tuscany, thanks to Dante, and you have a partial view of the whole mess.
People from Latium feel of course tied with romans(with Tuscans-again:D- claiming that much of what Rome was is due to etruscans).
Umbrians, Marchigians and Abruzzese, the other center italians, feel at time a dukedom alike point of view of Italy.


Now there are N.Italians (not the whole N.Italians but many)who have a more abstract entity called Padania- in which they identify themselves as Celts-(who were in center Italy as well anyway)and this abstract entity that serve as adhesive for the famous Lega North party. (include an economic part in this too who make Lega North more desirable for many who could care less about celts)).
Now, many center Italians have been invited to stick to this abstract entity, but their dukedom point of view and the great contribution they gave to Italian history-and not only-make them doubt about this padanian party and they swing now toward Padanians, now toward a great center who gave World, Rome and Renaissance.


I told you. It is a mess here.:D

[Foxy]

I have never said that Italians feel united... or, if i said, I was drunken...
I have said that every Italians identify with Romans, but then every region or group of regions has its own identity.
Personally i identify my region (Abruzzo) as very similar to Latium, Molise, Marche and Umbria and in part with Tuscany, so with a Roman-Osco (Italic) substratus. Then many peoples came here (Gothes, Longobards, Normans, French and Spaniards... God save us from Greeks and Arabs), but we identify with Romans.

Sicilians and Sardinians call all the Italians living in the mainland "continentals",
people from the deep South perceve people from the northermost regions as foreigners. Northerns identify themselves with Roman-Celts, southerns with Greeks and Arabs in the case of Sicilians. But if somebody offends Italy, from North to South, we are ready to defend it.

[San Galgano]

I have never said that Italians feel united... or, if i said, I was drunken...
I have said that every Italians identify with Romans, but then every region or group of regions has its own identity.
Personally i identify my region (Abruzzo) as very similar to Latium, Molise, Marche and Umbria and in part with Tuscany, so with a Roman-Osco (Italic) substratus. Then many peoples came here (Gothes, Longobards, Normans, French and Spaniards... God save us from Greeks and Arabs), but we identify with Romans.

Sicilians and Sardinians call all the Italians living in the mainland "continentals",
people from the deep South perceve people from the northermost regions as foreigners. Northerns identify themselves with Roman-Celts, southerns with Greeks and Arabs in the case of Sicilians. But if somebody offends Italy, from North to South, we are ready to defend it.

bah...i have my doubts lombards, piedmonteses and venetes feel a relation with Romans(and i would include tuscans too, myself excluded, who are too proud of the history of Tuscany to accept a roman legacy), and sicilians with arabs....

Try tell a lombard they are romans and to a sicilian you are arab and they rocket you over the moon.:angryw:Pruegelknabe::aufsmaul_2:

Sicilians don't feel tied to arabs, they feel a link with a great part of the Sicilian history in which arabs contributed to make it great at time.

[Curtis24]

So you're saying Sicilians identify most strongly with Greeks? Or the people who lived there even before the Greeks?

[Foxy]

bah...i have my doubts lombards, piedmonteses and venetes feel a relation with Romans(and i would include tuscans too, myself excluded, who are too proud of the history of Tuscany to accept a roman legacy), and sicilians with arabs....

Try tell a lombard they are romans and to a sicilian you are arab and they rocket you over the moon.:angryw:Pruegelknabe::aufsmaul_2:

Sicilians don't feel tied to arabs, they feel a link with a great part of the Sicilian history in which arabs contributed to make it great at time.

Sicilians feel Sicilians.
They think to be hot people, with Greek, Arabic and Italian roots, very warm an very friendly and very best. I don't agree.