Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern and Western Europe. It is located on a peninsula that extends into the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land border, as well as several islands, notably Sicily and Sardinia. Italy shares its borders with France, Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia and two enclaves: Vatican City and San Marino. Its territory also includes Campione (an exclave surrounded by Switzerland) and the Pelagie Islands (an archipelago in the African Plate). It is the tenth-largest country by land area in the European continent, covering an area of 301,340 km2 (116,350 sq mi), and the third-most populous member state of the European Union, with a population of nearly 60 million. Its capital and largest city is Rome.
In antiquity, the Italian peninsula was home to numerous peoples; the Latin city of Rome in central Italy, founded as a Kingdom, became a Republic that conquered the Mediterranean world and ruled it for centuries as an Empire. With the spread of Christianity, Rome became the seat of the Catholic Church and of the Papacy. During the Early Middle Ages, Italy experienced the fall of the Western Roman Empire and inward migration from Germanic tribes. By the 11th century, Italian city-states and maritime republics expanded, bringing renewed prosperity through commerce and laying the groundwork for modern capitalism. The Italian Renaissance flourished in Florence during the 15th and 16th centuries and spread to the rest of Europe. Italian explorers also discovered new routes to the Far East and the New World, leading the European Age of Discovery. However, centuries of rivalry and infighting between the Italian city-states among other factors left the peninsula divided into numerous states until the late modern period. During the 17th and 18th centuries, Italian economic and commercial importance waned significantly. (Full article...)
Little is known about Lisa's life. Lisa was born in Florence. She married in her teens to a cloth and silk merchant who later became a local official; she was a mother to five children and led what is thought to have been a comfortable and ordinary life. Lisa outlived her husband, who was considerably her senior. (Full article...)
...that Umarell[uma'rɛːlː], is an Italianslang term for sidewalk superintendent, popular in Bologna and increasingly used in other part of the country?
Fettuccine Alfredo (Italian:[fettut'tʃiːnealˈfreːdo]) is an Italian-style pasta dish that originated in Rome in the 1920s, which is now a well known staple of Italian-American cuisine. In its original form, it is made with fettuccine, butter, and Parmesan cheese. As the cheese is mixed with freshly cooked, warm fettuccine and ample butter, it melts and emulsifies to form a smooth, rich cheese sauce coating the noodles. Cream is commonly added to Italian-American versions, which are often served as a main course with chicken, shrimp, salmon or other ingredients on top or on the side.
The dish is named for Alfredo Di Lelio, a Roman restauranteur who is credited with its invention and popularisation in the early to mid-20th century. His elaborate tableside service was an integral part of the dish. Fettuccine Alfredo is based on a traditional Italian preparations such as fettuccine al burro ('fettuccine with butter'), pasta burro e parmigiano ('pasta with butter and Parmesan'), or simply pasta in bianco ('plain white pasta'). These Italian recipes do not include cream and are not topped with other ingredients, nor is the dish generally called "Alfredo" in Italy. (Full article...)
Image 13The espresso comes from the Italian esprimere, which means "to express," and refers to the process by which hot water is forced under pressure through ground coffee. (from Culture of Italy)
Image 16The Colosseum, originally known as the Flavian Amphitheatre, is an elliptical amphitheatre in the centre of the city of Rome, the largest ever built in the Roman Empire. (from Culture of Italy)
Image 26John Florio is recognised as the most important Renaissance humanist in England (from Culture of Italy)
Image 27The Roman Empire provided an inspiration for the medieval European. Although the Holy Roman Empire rarely acquired a serious geopolitical reality, it possessed great symbolic significance. (from Culture of Italy)
Image 48The cover of the Corriere dei Piccoli on 11 July 1911 carries a cartoon strip in the Italian style without speech bubbles. (from Culture of Italy)