Languages

Italy’s official language is Italian. But there is a vast linguistic diversity in this country that includes the use of dialects through the twenty regions in the country, such as Lombardic (in Lombardy), Roman (in Rome) and Calabrian (in Calabria) as well the use of other languages in areas that border with other states. These include German and Ladin in Alto Adige, French in Valle d’Aosta and Slovene in the north east of Italy. Other languages such as Albanian, Greek are spoken in the south.
Although many dialects are spoken in everyday conversation, standard Italian is the national language of schools, juridical proceedings, media and is understood throughout the country.


Language History

Italian is a Romance language related to French, Spain, Portuguese and Romanian. Romance languages belong to the Indo-European group of languages, which include English. Indeed, as English and Italian share common roots in Latin, you will recognize many Italian words.
Modern literary Italian began to develop in the 13th and 14th centuries, predominantly through the works of Dante, Petrarca and Boccaccio, who wrote chiefly in the Florentine dialect. The language drew on its Latin heritage and many dialects to develop into the standard Italian today.