Archive by Author
Specchio di Primavera Posted by Serena on Mar 21, 2011
Bentornata, Primavera! (Welcome back, Spring!) What better way to celebrate the official beginning of Spring than through the words of a great poet? Salvatore Quasimodo was born in Modica (Sicily) on the 20th of August 1901. After completing his engineering studies in Palermo, Quasimodo travelled around Italy following “il lavoro che dà da vivere” (the…
17 Marzo 1861 – 2011 Posted by Serena on Mar 18, 2011
Yesterday, the 17th of March, we celebrated the 150th anniversary of the Unification of Italy with a national holiday. The history of the unification of Italy is long and complicated, but in a nutshell: The official birth of il Regno d’Italia (the Italian Kingdom) took place on the 17th of March 1861, and Vittorio Emanuele…
Definitions Quiz Posted by Serena on Mar 15, 2011
Part 1 Here is a list of categories. See if you can match them with their appropriate definition, as shown in the example below. 1. gli indumenti sono … cose che servono per vestirsi 2. i mezzi di riscaldamento sono … 3. gli utensili da cucina sono … 4. i mezzi di illuminazione sono ……
Parole Omofone Posted by Serena on Mar 12, 2011
In Italian, the letter ‘h’ is silent. This creates several parole omofone, i.e. words that sound the same even if their meaning, or the way in which they are written is different. Here are the most common: Group 1 ho 1st person singular of verb avere = to have: ho uno zio che abita a…
Maria Montessori Posted by Serena on Mar 9, 2011
Yesterday, the 8th of March, was Giornata Internazionale della Donna (International Women’s Day), and this year I’ve decided to write an article about a famous Italian woman, whose work has had a huge impact in the field of education throughout the world. Maria Montessori was born in 1870 in Chiaravalle near Ancona (Marche). She was…
Le Paludi d’Italia Posted by Serena on Mar 6, 2011
The Italian Marshlands "Pigra, limosa, fetente, orlata di dense gramigne, la vasta palude sogghigna in faccia al sole". "Lazy, slimy, fetid, bordered by dense weeds, the vast marsh sneers in the face of the sun". These words, written by Gabriele d’Annunzio in 1879, portray the hatred and disgust felt by people at that time for…
Marzo Posted by Serena on Mar 3, 2011
The name of the month marzo (March) comes from the Roman god of the war Mars. Principali Festività (Main Festivals): On the 8th of March we celebrate la Giornata Internazionale della Donna (International Woman’s Day), also known as La Festa della Donna (Woman’s Festival). In March 2009 I wrote an article about the origins and…