With its world-renowned cuisine, geographic charm and historical cities, Italy is undeniably a meeting of history, culture and beauty. But there’s A LOT MORE BEYOND THAT!
Italy currently claims at outsize influence in many different ways: as an example, Italian is growing in popularity as a foreign language around the world – is it the fourth most studied language! -- and the need for Italian translation is on the rise, with the country being a powerful player in loads of business and industry areas.
But why is it that Italy is considered to be one of the most culturally and economically influential countries? What is it that makes the study of the Italian language attractive?
Keep reading and discover more about its worldwide influence with some of the most NOTEWORTHY FACTS about the Bel Paese!
1. The Italian language is spoken by around 85 million people around the world.
2. Italian is an official language in Italy, San Marino, Switzerland, and the Vatican City. Besides, Italian-speaking minorities are present in countries such as Albania, Argentina, Australia, Libya, Somalia, and Eritrea.
3. Italy is on top 5 of the most visited countries in international tourist arrivals according to ENIT— Agenzia nazionale del turismo, the Italian national tourism board.
4. Italian art and architecture represent half of the world’s cultural heritage. Besides, it counts 55 UNESCO World Heritage Sites within its borders, the most of any country on the World Heritage List!
5. Italy is the world’s eighth-largest economy and the third-largest economy in the EU!
6. Pizza and pasta are just the tip of a very large iceberg regarding Italian cuisine. Italian food is actually the story of recipes passed down from generation to generation… and a seemingly endless variety of delicious local items!
7. Italy is the largest global exporter of luxury goods: from furniture and jewelry to fashion or cars, the companies that produce luxury goods Made in Italy have a consolidated international reputation.
8. The Italian that the world knows and studies (Standard Italian) historically comes from the literary Tuscan dialect spoken in Florence since the 13th century used by the greatest authors, like Dante or Petrarca.
9. The cultural and linguistic variety in Italy is one of the richest in Europe: nowadays loads of dialects, very peculiar and different from one another, are still spoken to varying degrees. They have a large influence on the Standard Italian spoken in the various regions and cities.
10. And not least of all…What is it about the Italian accent? Why it is so sexy? The Italian language is known for its beauty, romance and musicality. No wonder why there are more than two million of foreigners studying it!