The VespaThe Vespa was created by Piaggio after World War II and originated in Italy. It quickly became popular after appearing in the La Moto magazine and began to appear in many movies. It evokes memories of free times, youth gathering together, and beautiful weather. Today, the Vespa is a popular Italian icon.
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Fashion HousesItaly is known for its many haute fashion couture houses. A few major brands include Versace, Valentino, Fendi, Gucci, Cavalli, Prada, and more. Fashion has always been an important part of the country's cultural life and society, and Italians are well known for their attention of dressing-up well.
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Family LifeItalian children are raised to be loyal and obey their parents and respect for the elderly is demanded. A large part of an Italian family’s social life involves eating and celebrating together. They meet in bars, pizzerias and restaurants, and frequently share meals with each other in the home. Italian architecture, with its many piazzas, encourages families to go out onto the streets. The village square is a common meeting place. Italian women take on traditional roles at home but are not longer considered “tied down” to the home and kitchen.
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Pasta, pizza, and gelato are a few of the major foods that originated in Italy and are now found all around the world. The first documentations of pasta dates back to 1154 in Sicily. There are about 350 different types of pasta around the world. The word "pizza" was first documented in 997 AD in Gaeta, Italy, and in different parts of Central and Southern Italy. Modern pizza was developed in Naples and was mainly eaten in the country of Italy, but after World War II allied troops began to eat pizza and other Italian foods. The history of gelato dates back to the 16th century and is said to be invented by Bernardo Buontalenti from Florence, Italy. Today, Italy has around 36,970 gelato shops.
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Italian LanguageThe italian language was derived from the common language of the lower classes in Rome. It is directly related to the latin spoken by the Romans, and is considered a romance language. Italian was originally formed in a variety of dialects, but was most usually used as a literary dialect. The Florentine dialect was the most popular, of these literary dialects, as it was used by the famous writers, Dante, Petrarca, and Boccaccio. Today, a majority of the country speaks Italian, however, a few other languages are found within the country as well. Some italian words are ciao, (hello/goodbye), bella, (beautiful), and grazie, (thank you).
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