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Via Aemilia

Via Aemilia

Via Aemilia (It. Via Emilia) is a Roman road in the north of Italy, still used, along the edge of the Po River valley and the foothills of the Apennines connecting in a straight line the towns of Piacenza with Rimini, and also passing through the towns of Fidenza, Parma, Reggio, Modena, Bologna, Imola. The road was built by the Roman consul Marcus Aemilius Lepidus. The road gave the name to the Region of Emilia, that was previously known as Gallia Cisalpina or Provincia Ariminum. "Aemilia" was at first a popular usage (as in Martial's poems), but it appeared in official language as early as the 2nd century. At Ariminum (today's Rimini), the starting point of the Aemilia, the first bridge of the road still exists, a massive and beautiful structure spanning the Marecchia River, built by Augustus and completed by Tiberius; it is complete with its twin dedicatory inscriptions. At Bononia (today's Bologna), Milestone 78 from Ariminum was found in the bed of the Rhenus (Reno); it records the restoration of the road by Augustus, from Ariminum to the river Trebia in 2 BC. Remains of the bridge of the Via Aemilia over the river at Bologna were found in the 1890s, consisting of parts of the parapets on each side, originally 38.75 feet apart, in brick-faced concrete; they belonged to a restoration, the original construction (probably in Augustus' rebuilding) having been in blocks of Veronese red marble. A massive protecting wall slightly above it must have been of Christian date, since a large number of Roman tombstones were used in its construction. The bed of the river was found to have risen at least 20 feet since this bridge collapsed ca 1000 CE (E. Brizio in Notizie degli Scavi 1896, 125, 450; 1897, 330). Ruins of some of the other ancient Roman bridges still exist. At Savignano sul Rubicone, Forlì province, Emilia-Romagna, the Roman bridge survived until it was blown up as recently as World War II; the current bridge is a reconstruction. The river, now named the Rubicone, may or may not be the Rubicon of Antiquity.

External link

- [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Gazetteer/Periods/Roman/Topics/Engineering/roads/Aemilia/Britannica_1911
- .html LacusCurtius website:] Via Aemilia, a 1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica entry. Aemilia, Via ja:エミリア街道

Italian language

Italian (Italian: ) is a Romance language spoken by about 70 million people primarily in Italy. Standard Italian is based on Tuscan dialects and is somewhat intermediate between the languages of Southern Italy and the Gallo-Romance languages of the North. Like many languages it is written using the Latin alphabet, Italian has double consonants. However, contrary to, for example, French and Spanish, double consonants are pronounced as long (geminated) in Italian. As in most Romance languages (with the notable exception of French), stress is distinctive. Out of the Romance languages, Italian is generally considered to be the one most closely resembling Latin in terms of grammar, vocabulary and pronunciation.

History

The history of the Italian language is quite complex but the modern standard of the language was largely shaped by relatively recent events. The earliest surviving texts which can definitely be called Italian (as opposed to its predecessor Vulgar Latin) are legal formulae from the region of Benevento dating from A.D. 960-963. Italian was first formalized in the 14th century through the works of Dante Alighieri, who mixed southern Italian dialects, especially Sicilian, with his native Tuscan in his epic poems known collectively as the Commedia, to which Boccaccio later affixed the title Divina. Dante's much-loved works were read throughout Italy and his written dialect became the canonical standard that others could all understand. Dante is still credited with standardizing the Italian language. Italian has always had a distinctive dialect for each city, since the cities were up until recently city-states. Italians generally believe that the best spoken Italian is lingua toscana in bocca romana - 'the Tuscan tongue, in a Roman mouth' (Tuscan dialects spoken with Roman inflection). The Romans are known for speaking clearly and distinctly, while the Tuscan dialect (supposedly derived from Etruscan and Oscan), is the closest existing dialect to Dante's now-standard Italian. In contrast to the dialects of northern Italy, the older southern Italian dialects were largely untouched by the Franco-Occitan influences introduced to Italy, mainly by bards from France, during the middle ages. (See La Spezia-Rimini Line.) The economic might and relative advanced development of Tuscany at the time (late middle ages), gave its dialect weight, though Venetian remained widespread in medieval Italian commercial life. Also, the increasing cultural relevance of Florence during the periods of 'Umanesimo' and Rinascimento (Renaissance) made its vulgare (dialect) a standard in the arts.

Classification

Italian is most closely related to the other two Italo-Dalmatian languages, Sicilian and the extinct Dalmatian. The three are part of the Italo-Western grouping of the Romance languages, which are a subgroup of the Italic branch of Indo-European.

Geographic distribution

Italian is the official language of Italy and San Marino, and is an official language in Ticino and Grigioni cantons of Switzerland. It is also the second official language in Vatican City and in some areas of Istria in Slovenia and Croatia with an Italian minority. It is widely used by immigrant groups in Luxembourg, Germany, Belgium, the United States, Canada, Venezuela, Brazil, Argentina, and Australia, and is also spoken in neighbouring Albania. It is spoken, to a much lesser extent, in parts of Africa formerly under Italian rule such as Somalia, Libya and Eritrea. It is also widely known and taught in Monaco and in the neighbouring island of Malta and served as an official language of the country until English was enshrined in the 1934 Constitution. Italian is widely taught in many schools around the world, but rarely as the first non-native language of pupils. In anglophone parts of Canada, Italian is, after French, the second most taught language. In the United States and the United Kingdom, Italian ranks fourth (after Spanish-French-German and French-German-Spanish respectively). Throughout the world, Italian is the fifth most taught non-native language, after English, French, Spanish and German.

Official status

Italian is an official language of Italy, the European Union, San Marino, Switzerland and Vatican City. It is also an official language in the Istria County (Croatia) and municipalities of Koper, Piran and Izola (Slovenia).

Dialects and regional languages of Italy

:See Italian dialects The dialects of Italian identified by the Ethnologue are Tuscan, Abruzzese, Pugliese (Apulian), Umbrian, Laziale, Central Marchigiano, Cicolano-Reatino-Aquilano, and Molisan. On the contrary Ethnologue and the Red book on endangered languages of UNESCO consider Piemontese, Lombard, Ligurian, Emiliano-Romagnolo, Venetian, Friulian, Neapolitan-Calabrese or Tricalabro (a range including Neapolitan and Sicilian) and Sardinian as regional minority languages, structurally separated from Italian. Most Italians, however, refer to these simply as "dialect", with the exception of Sardinian, which is usually recognized language status. Also the Corsican language has strong similarities to Italian and most linguists consider it as a Tuscany dialect, the closest to modern Italian. Many of the so-called dialects of Italian spoken around the country are different enough from standard Italian to be considered separate languages by most linguists and some speakers themselves. Thus a distinction can be made between "dialects of (standard) Italian" and "dialects (or languages) of Italy". A link to an Italian site with translation features between Italian dialects and Italian: [http://www.dialettando.com]

Cultural acceptance of dialects

The dialect of Tuscany became the basis for what would become the official language of Italy, by way of the famous Tuscan author Dante Alighieri. Alighieri and other Tuscan poets were inspired by the Sicilian koine wanted by the Sicilian School under holy roman emperor Frederick II. His project (in which Giacomo da Lentini invented the sonnet) was accomplished by enriching the Sicilian language with new words adapted from French, Latin, and Apulian. The Sicilians produced a collection of love-poems which can be considered the first standard Italian ever produced, though it was only used for literary purposes until Guittone d'Arezzo. When the Svevs dynasty ended the Tuscans and Dante re-discovered it (see De Divina Eloquentia and Vita Nova)and integrated the Sicilians into Florence's linguistic heritage. Dolce stil novo, the platonic school of courtly love can be considered the link between the old southern school and Tuscan poetry which aimed to express the new intellectual sensibility and fervor of the newly-born city-states, as Florence. Dante's work, Divina Commedia was the first of its kind to be written in a dialect (though sensibly enriched compared with its spoken counterpart), as opposed to the traditional Latin. The success of his work spread the Florentine dialect, and gave it prestige and acceptance. For this he is referred to as the father of the Italian Language. By the time Italy was unified 1861, and Rome was annexed (1870) the Italian standard had further been influenced by Florentine through the work of the Accademia della Crusca (Cardinal Pietro Bembo and followers). Bembo laid the foundation for what is today's modern standard. But Bembo was a purist and had accepted no other influence than that from Dante, Petrarca and Boccaccio. As time went on, the language was losing touch with linguistic change, and could not put up with technology and science. The much-needed update would have to wait a little longer until, in what is commonly regarded as the first modern novel of the Italian literature, I Promessi Sposi (The Betrothed) (Alessandro Manzoni further refined its widely read novel by "rinsing" it in the waters of the Arno (Florence's river), as he states in his 1840 Preface. However, Manzoni refused the Crusca's purist, written Florentine-only attitude and admitted a certain influence from other dialects, though he reduced it as compared to the first edition of (1821). After unification the huge number of civil servants and soldiers recruited from all over the country introduced many more words and idioms from their home dialects ("ciao" is Venetian, "panettone" is Milanese etc.), in fact confirming Manzoni's linguistic views. Tuscan has thus become one of the twenty official dialects of Italy. Though technically speaking the division between dialect and language is purely conventional, it has been used by scholars, for eg. by Francesco Bruni, to distinguish between the languages that made up the Italian koine, and those which had very little or no part in it, as Albanian, Greek, Südtirolean, Ladino, Friulian and Occitan, still spoken by small ethnic or linguistic minorites. Dialects are generally not used for general communication, e.g. on TV, but are limited to groups of people who can actually speak them and to informal contexts. Speaking dialect is often shunned upon in Italy as it is a sign of lacking education. Younger generations, especially those under 35 (though it may vary in different areas), speak almost exclusively standard Italian in all situations, usually with a slight local accent. Dialects have their share of enthusiasts, but this is a small niche of the population. The promotion of dialects by some political forces as the Lega Nord has possibly damaged rather than promoted their status. Dialects are often used in movies to provide comic relief or to produce stereotypes: northern dialects can be connected to greedy merchants; a Roman accent is associated with arrogant, simple-minded bullies; Neapolitan reminds of dishonest, cunning slackers, and, even in Italy, Sicilian is often associated with the mafia. However, many screenwriters also explore the more expressive and spontaneous features of a dialect, often to challenge the common cliches and present a richer, less explored reality.

Sounds

Vowels

Italian has seven vowel phonemes: , , , , , , . The 'couples' ( - ) and ( - ) get mixed up in spoken Italian, even though each variety of Italian employs both phonemes consistently: compare, for example: (because) and (you listen), employed by some northern speakers, with and , as pronounced by most central and southern speakers. As a result, the usage is strongly indicative of a person's origin. The standard (Tuscan) usage of these vowels is listed in vocabularies, and employed outside Tuscany mainly by the more educated people, especially actors and (television) journalists. These are truly different phonemes, however: compare (fishing) and (peach), both spelled "pesca" (). Similarly (barrel) and (beatings), both spelled as "botte", discriminate and (). In general, vowel combinations usually pronounce each vowel separately. Diphthongs exist, (e.g. "uo", "iu", "ie", "ai"), but are limited to the pattern: (unstressed "u" or "i", or zero) + (stressed vowel) + (unstressed "u" or "i", or zero) The unstressed "u" in a diphthong approximates the English semivowel "w", the unstressed "i" approximates the semivowel "y". E.g.: buono, ieri. As a semivowel, "j" is an alternate spelling of i, currently obsolete but common until early 20th century and preserved in specific words like "Jesi" (a town) or "Jacopo" (a first name). Triphthongs are limited to a diphthong plus an unstressed "i". (e.g. miei, tuoi.) Other sequences of three vowels exist (e.g. noia, febbraio), but they are not triphthongs; they consist of a vowel followed by a diphthong.

Consonants

Two symbols in a table cell denote the voiceless and voiced consonant, respectively. The phoneme undergoes assimilation when followed by a consonant, e.g., when followed by a velar ( or ) it's pronounced , etc. Italian plosives are not aspirated (unlike in English). Italian speakers hear the difference as a foreign accent. Italian has geminate, or double, consonants, which are distinguished by length. Length is distinctive for all consonants except for , , , , which are always geminate, and which is always single. Geminate plosives and affricates are realized as lengthened closures. Geminate fricatives, nasals, and are realized as lengthened continuants. Geminate is realized as the trill .

Assimilation

Italian has few diphthongs, and so most unfamiliar diphthongs heard in foreign words (in particular, those with a first vowel that is not "i" or "u", or a first vowel that is stressed), will be assimilated as the corresponding dieresis (i.e., the vowel sounds will be pronounced separately: "strive" and "hive" will rhyme with "naïve").

Grammar

see Italian grammar.

Writing system

Italian grammar Italian is written using the Latin alphabet. The letters J, K, W, X and Y are not part of the standard Italian alphabet, but are seen in imported words (such as jeans, whiskey, taxi). J may also appear in many words from different dialects. Each of these foreign letters had an Italian equivalent spelling: gi, ch, u, cs or s, and i, but these are now obsolete.
- Italian uses the acute accent over the letter E (as in perché, why/because) to indicate a mid-close vowel, and the grave accent (as in tè, tea) to indicate a mid-open vowel. The grave accent is also used on letters A, I, O, and U to mark the stress position when it is on the last letter of a word (for instance gioventù, youth). Typically, the penultimate syllable is stressed. If other syllables are stressed, no accent is marked, as is instead done in Spanish.
- The letter H is always silent when it begins a word, and is only used to distinguish ho, hai, ha, hanno (present indicative of avere, to have) from o (or), ai (to the), a (to), anno (year). H is otherwise used for some combinations with other letters (see below), but the /h/ sound does not exist in Italian.
- The letter Z is pronounced , or sometimes , depending on context, though there are few minimal pairs. The same goes with S, which can be pronounced or . However, these two phonemes are in complementary distribution everywhere except between two vowels in the same word, and even in such environment there are extremely few minimal pairs, therefore this distinction is being lost in most accents.
- The letters C and G are affricates: as in "chair" and as in "gem", respectively, before the front vowels I and E. They are pronounced as plosives , (as in "call" and "gall") otherwise¹. But, the normally silent H is added between CI, CE, GI or GE if the consonant is to be a plosive. For example: : :¹(Front/back vowel rules for C and G are similar in French, Romanian, and to some extent English (including Old English). Swedish and Norwegian have similar rules for K and G. See also palatalization.)
- There are two special digraphs in Italian: GN and GL. GN is always pronounced , and GL is pronounced ) but only before i, and never when at the beginning of the word, except in the plural form gli of the masculine definite article. (Compare with Spanish "ñ" and "ll", Portuguese "nh" and "lh".)
- In general all letters are clearly pronounced, and always in the same way. (The only notable allophonic variations in the pronunciation of phonemes in standard Italian are the assimilation of /n/ before consonants, and vowel length (vowels are long in stressed open syllables, and short elsewhere) — compare with the enormous number of allophones of the English phoneme /t/. Spelling is clearly phonetic and difficult to mistake given a clear pronunciation. Exceptions are generally only found in foreign borrowings. There is less dyslexia than in languages like English.

Usage among Younger Generations

Some variations in the usage of the writing system may be present in practical use. Most scholars consider these to be mistakes, but they are so common that knowledge of these may be useful to read an Italian text.
- Usage of x instead of per: this is very common among teenagers and in SMS abbreviations. Since per means "to", "for you" becomes x te, similar to the English 4 U. Words containing per can also have it substituted with x, and once an university student allegedly pronounced the surname of Italian revolutionary Nino Bixio as Biperio at an oral exam[http://pacs.unica.it/rassegna/rassegna0905.txt]. Perché (both "why" and "because") is often shortened as x`.
- Usage of foreign letters such as k, j and y, especially in nicknames and SMS language: ke instead of che, Giusy instead of Giuseppina. This is curiously mirrored in the usage of i in English names such as Staci instead of Stacey, or in the usage of c in Northern Europe (Jacob instead of Jakob). The letter k also appears to give words a certain strenght and threatening aspect, possibly because it is associated with Germany. Politician Francesco Cossiga used to be nicknamed Kossiga by rioting students as early as 1968, because of his role as minister of internal affairs.
- Accents are often substituted by apostrophes, such as in perche instead of perché. È is particularly rare, as it is absent from the Italian keyboard layout. Few are aware of the distinction between grave and acute accents.
Examples

- cheers (generic toast): salve
- English: inglese
- good-bye: arrivederci
- hello: ciao (informal); buongiorno (good morning/good afternoon), buonasera (good evening)
- Yes: sì /si/
- No: no
- Sorry: scusi //
- Again: ancora //
- Always: sempre //
- When: quando /kwando/
- Why? / Because: perché /per'ke/
- how much?: quanto (masculine); quanta (feminine)
- thank you!: grazie!
- you're welcome!: prego!
Sample texts
You can hear a recording of Dante's Divine Comedy read by Lino Pertile at http://etcweb.princeton.edu/dante/pdp/. From the Holy Bible, Luke 2, 1-7 (for an English version see http://www.gnpcb.org/esv/search/?q=luke+2) You can listen to a rendition of this text as recorded by an Italian native speaker from Milan. 2:1 In quei giorni, un decreto di Cesare Augusto ordinava che si facesse un censimento di tutta la terra. 2 Questo primo censimento fu fatto quando Quirino era governatore della Siria. 3 Tutti andavano a farsi registrare, ciascuno nella propria città. 4 Anche Giuseppe, che era della casa e della famiglia di Davide, dalla città di Nazaret e dalla Galilea si recò in Giudea nella città di Davide, chiamata Betlemme, 5 per farsi registrare insieme a Maria, sua sposa, che era incinta. 6 Proprio mentre si trovavano lì, venne il tempo per lei di partorire. 7 Mise al mondo il suo primogenito, lo avvolse in fasce e lo depose in una mangiatoia, poiché non c'era posto per loro nella locanda.
See also

- Italian phonology
- Sicilian School
- Veronese Riddle
External links

-
- [http://www.ielanguages.com/italian.html Italian Language Tutorial at ielanguages.com]
- [http://www.ilm.it/ Italian Language School]
- [http://www.websters-online-dictionary.org/definition/Italian-english/ Italian English Dictionary] from [http://www.websters-online-dictionary.org Webster's Online Dictionary] - the Rosetta Edition
- [http://www.garzantilinguistica.it A free Italian-English Dictionary, Italian Dictionary, and Thesaurus] from Garzanti Linguistica (in Italian, requires free registration)
- [http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=ita Ethnologue report on Italian]
- [http://www.applelanguages.com/en/learn/italian/italy.php/ Learn Italian in Italy]
- [http://how-to-learn-any-language.com/e/languages/italian/index.html A profile of the Italian language]
- [http://www.dicts.info/dictlist1.php?k1=53 All free Italian dictionaries]
- [http://italian-language-test.scuolaleonardo.com/ Test your Italian - Free Italian language test]
- [http://www.centropuccini.it/ Learn Italian in Italy by the sea]
- [http://www.locuta.com/ Centro Studi Italiani]
- [http://academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu/modlang/carasi/site/pageone.html Online Italian language course]
- [http://www.loecsen.com/travel/discover_pop.php?lang=en&to_lang=8&learn-Italian/ Learn and listen to useful expressions in Italian]
- Category:Languages of Italy Category:Languages of Switzerland Category:Languages of Vatican City Category:Languages of San Marino Category:Languages of Slovenia als:Italienische Sprache ko:이탈리아어 ja:イタリア語 simple:Italian

Roman road

] The Romans, for military, commercial and political reasons, became adept at constructing roads, which they called viae (plural of singular via). The word is related to English way and weigh, as in 'to weigh anchor'. The Indo-European root,
- wegh-, with a palatal g, becomes
- wegh- with a gutteral g in the centum languages, including Latin. It means "to go" with the sense of transporting in a vehicle. Via comes from the suffixed form,
- wegh-ya. Viae were thus always intended primarily as carriage roads, the means of carrying material from one location to another. The Roman roads were essential for the growth of their empire, by enabling them to move armies speedily and by sustaining land transport for Roman mercantilism. A proverb says that "all roads lead to Rome". Roman roads were designed that way to hinder provinces organising resistance against the Empire. At its peak, the Roman road system spanned 53,000 miles and contained about 372 links. These long highways were very important in maintaining both the stability and expansion of the empire. The legions made good time on them, and some are still used millennia later. In late Antiquity, the same roads, by offering avenues of invasion to the barbarians, contributed to Roman military reverses.

The Roman Road System

Types of Roads

Roman roads vary from simple corduroy roads to paved roads using deep roadbeds of tamped rubble as an underlying layer to ensure that they kept dry, as the water would flow out from between the stones and fragments of rubble, instead of becoming mud in clay soils. Prepared viae began in history as the streets of Rome. The laws of the Twelve Tables, dated to approximately 450 BC, specify that a road shall be 8 feet wide where straight and 16 where curved. The tables command Romans to build roads and give wayfarers the right to pass over private land where the road is in disrepair. Building roads that would not need frequent repair therefore became an ideological objective. Roman law defined the right to use a road as a servitus, or claim. The jus eundi ("right of going") established a claim to use an iter, or footpath, across private land; the ius agendi ("right of driving"), an actus, or carriage track. A via combined both types of servitutes, provided it was of the proper width, which was determined by an arbiter. The default width was the latitudo legitima of 8 feet. In these rather dry laws we can see the prevalence of the public domain over the private, which characterized the republic. With the conquest of Italy prepared viae were extended from Rome and its vicinity to outlying municipalities, sometimes overlying earlier roads. Building viae was a military responsibility and thus came under the jurisdiction of a consul. The process had a military name, viam munire, as though the via were a fortification. Municipalities, however, were responsible for their own roads, which the Romans called viae vicinales. A via connected two cities. Some links in the network were as long as 55 miles. The builders always aimed at a regulation width, but actual widths have been measured at between 3' 9" and 24'. The builders aimed at directional straightness. Many long sections are ruler-straight, but it should not be thought that all of them were. The Roman emphasis on constructing straight roads often resulted in steep grades relatively impractical for most economic traffic: over the years the Romans themselves realized it and built longer, but more manageable, alternatives to existing roads. Viae were generally centrally placed in the countryside. Features off the via were connected to the via by viae rusticae, or secondary roads. Either main or secondary roads might be paved, or they might be left unpaved, with a gravel surface, as they were in North Africa. These prepared but unpaved roads were viae glareae or sternendae ("to be strewn"). Beyond the secondary roads were the viae terrenae, "dirt roads". A road map of the empire reveals that it was laced fairly completely with a network of prepared viae. Beyond the borders are no roads; however, one might presume that footpaths and dirt roads allowed some transport.

Travelling a Road

Milestones

Twelve Tables Before 250 BC, the via Appia, and after 124 BC, most viae, were divided into numbered miles by milestones. The words we translate as mile are milia passuum, "one thousand of paces", which amounted to about 1620 yards, 1480 meters. A milestone, or miliarium, was a circular column on a solid rectangular base, set two feet into the ground, standing several feet high, 20" in diameter, weighing about 2 tons. At the base was inscribed the number of the mile relative to the road it was on. In a panel at eye-height was the distance to the forum at Rome and various other information about the officials who made or repaired the road and when. These miliaria are valuable historical documents now. Their inscriptions are collected in the Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum. The Romans had a preference for standardization whenever they could, and so Augustus, after becoming permanent commissioner of roads in 20 BC, set up the miliarium aurum (golden milestone) near the temple of Saturn. All roads were considered to begin from this gilded bronze monument. On it were listed all the major cities in the empire and distances to them. Constantine called it the umbilicus Romae (navel of Rome). Milestones permitted distances and locations to be known and recorded exactly. It wasn't long before historians began to refer to the milestone at which an event occurred.

Way Stations

A legion on the march didn't need a way station, as it brought its own baggage train (impedimenta) and constructed its own camp (castra) every evening at the side of the road. Other officials or people on official business, however, had no legion at their service, and so the government maintained way stations, or mansiones ("staying places"), for their use. Passports were required for identification. Carts could travel about 8 miles per day, pedestrians a little more, and so each mansio was about 15 to 18 miles from the next one. There the official traveller found a complete villa dedicated to his refreshment. Oftentimes a permanent military camp or a town grew up around the mansio. Non-official travellers needed refreshment too, and at the same locations along the road. A private system of cauponae were placed near the mansiones. They performed the same functions but were somewhat disreputable, as they were frequented by thieves and prostitutes. Graffiti decorate the walls of the few whose ruins have been found. Genteel travellers needed something better than cauponae. In the early days of the viae, when little unofficial existed, houses placed near the road were required by law to offer hospitality on demand. Frequented houses no doubt became the first tabernae, which were hostels, rather than the "taverns" we know today. As Rome grew, so did its tabernae, becoming more luxurious and acquiring good or bad reputations as the case may be. One of the best hotels was the Tabernae Caediciae at Sinuessa on the Via Appia. It had a large storage room containing barrels of wine, cheese and ham. Many cities of today grew up around a taberna complex, such as Rheinzabern in the Rhineland, and Saverne in Alsace. A third system of way stations serviced vehicles and animals: the mutationes ("changing stations"). They were located every 12-18 miles. In these complexes, the driver could purchase the services of wheelrights, cartwrights, and equarii medici, or veterinarians. Using these stations in chariot relays, the emperor Tiberius hastened 500 miles in 24 hours to join his brother, Drusus Germanicus, who was dying of gangrene as a result of a fall from a horse.

Vehicles

Roman law and tradition forbade the use of vehicles in urban areas, except in certain cases. Married women and government officials on business could ride. The Lex Iulia Municipalis restricted commercial carts to night-time access to the city within the walls and within a mile outside the walls. Outside the cities, Romans were avid riders and rode on or drove quite a number of vehicle types, some of which are mentioned here. For purposes of description, Roman vehicles can be divided into the car, the coach and the cart. Cars were used to transport one or two individuals, coaches were used to transport parties, and carts to transport cargo. Of the cars, the most popular was the currus ("car"), a standard chariot form descending to the Romans from a greater antiquity. The top was open, the front closed. One survives in the Vatican. It carried a driver and a passenger. A currus of two horses was a biga; of three horses, a triga; and of four horses a quadriga. The tires were of iron. When not in use, its wheels were removed for easier storage. A more luxurious version, the carpentum, transported women and officials. It had an arched overhead covering of cloth and was drawn by mules. A lighter version, the cisium, equivalent to our gig, was open above and in front and had a seat. Drawn by one or two mules or horses, it was used for cab work, the cab drivers being called cisiani. The builder was a cisarius. Of the coaches, the main stay was the raeda or reda, which had 4 wheels. The high sides formed a sort of box in which seats were placed, with a notch on each side for entry. It carried several people with baggage up to the legal limit of 1000 pounds. It was drawn by teams of oxen, horses or mules. A cloth top could be put on for weather, in which case it resembled a covered wagon. The reda was probably the main vehicle for travel on the viae. Redae meritoriae were hired coaches. The fiscalis reda was a government coach. The driver and the builder were both named a raedarius. Of the carts, the main one was the plaustrum or plostrum. This was simply a platform of boards attached to wheels and a cross-tree. The wheels, or tympana, were solid and were several inches thick. The sides could be built up with boards or rails. A large wicker basket was sometimes placed on it. A two-wheel version existed. The 4-wheel type was the plaustrum maius. The military used a standard wagon. Their transportation service was the cursus clabularis, after the standard wagon, called a carrus clabularius, clabularis, or clavularis, or clabulare. It transported the impedimenta, or baggage of a column.

Post Offices

Two postal services were available under the empire, a public and a private. The Cursus publicus, founded by Augustus, carried the mail of officials by relay throughout the Roman road system. The vehicle for carrying mail was a cisium with a box, but for special delivery, a horse and rider was faster. A relay of horses could carry a letter 500 miles in 24 hours. The postman wore a characteristic leather hat, the petanus. The postal service was a somewhat dangerous occupation, as postmen were a target for bandits and enemies of Rome. Private mail of the well-to-do was carried by tabellarii, an organization of slaves available for a price.

The Itinerary

Augustus The Romans and ancient travelers in general did not use maps. They may have existed as specialty items in some of the libraries, but they were hard to copy and were not in general use. On the Roman road system, however, the traveller needed some idea of where he was going , how to get there, and how long it would take. The itinerarium filled this need. In origin it was simply a list of cities along a road. It was only a short step from lists to a master list. To sort out the lists, the Romans drew diagrams of parallel lines showing the branches of the roads. Parts of these were copied and sold on the streets. The very best featured symbols for cities, way stations, water courses, and so on. They cannot be considered maps, as they did not represent landforms. The Roman government from time to time undertook to produce a master itinerary of all Roman roads. Julius Caesar and Mark Antony commissioned the first known such effort in 44 BC. Zenodoxus, Theodotus and Polyclitus, three Greek geographers, were hired to survey the system and compile a master itinerary. This task required over 25 years. The result was a stone engraved master itinerarium set up near the Pantheon, from which travelers and itinerary sellers could make copies. Another master itinerary, the Itinerarium Provinciarum Antonini Augusti (the Antonine Itinerary) is known to have been undertaken in 217 AD. It was first printed in 1521 and after many reprintings survives today. Another major surviving itinerary is the Tabula Peutingeriana. The Ravenna Cosmography dates from the 7th century, but repeats earlier material. Archaeology has turned up some itinerary material in unexpected places. The Cups of Cadiz, four silver cups found by workmen excavating a foundation at Bracciano in 1852, are engraved with the names and distances of stations between Cadiz and Rome. The term itinerary changed meaning over the centuries. In the Itinerarium Burdigalense (Bordeaux Pilgrim, 333 AD), the itinerary is a description of what route to take to the Holy Land. The Itinerarium Alexandri is a list of the conquests of Alexander the Great. Today it means either a travel journal or a list of recommended stops.

Construction of a Road

The Team

The distinction between staff and line officers applied to the Roman army as well. Among the staff officers were a unit called the architecti, "chief builders", responsible for all military construction, which road-building was. These were required to be educated men. Geometry, of course, was a central requirement of their education. The architecti had a full-time staff of agrimensores ("land surveyors") and libratores ("levellers"). The teams of construction workers were taken ad hoc from the ranks of the legionaries. In addition to his arms, his rations and his utensils, every soldier carried a saw, hatchet, sickle, pick and spade. Augustus decided as a matter of policy to keep the soldiers busy (and therefore out of trouble) by turning them to construction. This labour improved their strength and stamina, rendering them almost unbeatable, but elicited constant complaint about the back-breaking work, which sometimes turned to mutiny. As might have been expected, the legions sought involuntary assistance for their hard labor. Slaves, prisoners of war and convicted criminals often performed the most difficult tasks of quarrying and transporting stone. They were also used for road repair. Whether they performed these tasks in chains is not known. Whipping, however, was common, for which the verb was verberare. Beatings were by no means confined to slaves. Indeed, one of the symbols of Roman authority was the fasces, a bundle of whips.

The Method

The Romans are believed to have inherited the art of road construction from the Etruscans. No doubt the art grew as it went along and also incorporated good ideas from other cultures. After the architecti looked over the site of the proposed road and determined roughly where it should go, the agrimensores went to work surveying the road bed. They used two main devices, the rod and one called the groma, which helped them obtain right angles. The gromatici, the Roman equivalent of rod men, placed rods and put down a line called the rigor. As they did not possess anything like a transit, an architect tried to achieve straightness by looking along the rods and commanding the gromatici to move them as required. Using the gromae they then laid out a grid on the plan of the road. The libratores began their work. Using ploughs and legionaries with spades, they excavated the road bed down to bed rock or at least to the firmest ground they could find. The excavation was called the fossa, "ditch." It was typically 15' below the surface, but the depth varied according to terrain. The road was constructed by filling the ditch. The method varied according to geographic locality, materials available and terrain, but the plan, or ideal at which the architect aimed was always the same. The roadbed was layered. Into the fossa was dumped large amounts of rubble, gravel and stone, whatever fill was available. Sometimes a layer of sand was put down, if it could be found. When it came to within a few feet of the surface it was covered with gravel and tamped down, a process called pavire, or pavimentare. The flat surface was then the pavimentum. It could be used as the road, or additional layers could be constructed. A statumen or "foundation" of flat stones set in cement might support the additional layers. The final steps utilized concrete, which the Romans had exclusively rediscovered. They seem to have mixed the mortar and the stones in the fossa. First a several-inch layer of course concrete, the rudus, then a several-inch layer of fine concrete, the nucleus, went onto the pavement or statumen. Into or onto the nucleus went a course of polygonal or square paving stones, such as you see in the picture, called the summa crusta. The crusta was crowned for drainage. It is unclear that any standard terminology was used; the words for the different elements perhaps varied from region to region. Today the concrete has worn from the spaces around the stones, giving the impression of a very bumpy road, but the original surface was no doubt much closer to being flat. These remarkable roads are resistant to rain, freezing and flooding. They needed little repair.

Surpassing Obstacles

Roman architecti preferred to engineer solutions to obstacles rather than circumvent them. River crossings were achieved by bridges, or pontes. Single slabs went over rills. A bridge could be of wood, stone, or both. Wooden bridges were constructed on pilings sunk into the river, or on stone piers. Larger or more permanent bridges required arches. Roman bridges were so well constructed that many are in use today. Causeways were built over marshy ground. The road was first marked out with pilings. Between them were sunk large quantities of stone so as to raise the causeway 6 feet above the marsh. In the provinces, the Romans often did not bother with a stone causeway, but used log roads (pontes longi). Outcroppings of stone, ravines, or hilly or mountainous terrain called for cuttings and tunnels. Roman roads generally went straight up and down hills, rather than in a serpentine pattern. Grades of 10%-12% are known in ordinary terrain, 15%-20% in mountainous country.

Financing

Financing road building and repair was a government responsibility. The officials tasked with fund raising were the curatores viarum, in which you can see the English word, curator. They had a number of methods available to them. Private citizens with an interest in the road could contribute to its repair. High officials might distribute largesse to be used for roads. Censors, who were in charge of public morals and public works, were expected to fund repairs sua pecunia. Beyond those means, taxes were required. The beauty and grandeur of the roads might tempt us to believe that any Roman citizen could use them for free, but this was not the case. Tolls abounded, especially at bridges. Often they were collected at the city gate. Freight was made heavier still by import and export taxes. These were only the charges for using the roads. Costs of services on the journey went up from there.

Some Roman roads

There are many examples of roads that still follow the route of Roman roads.

Albania / Greece / Turkey

- Via Egnatia (146 BC) connecting Dyrrhachium to Byzantium via Thessaloniki

France

- Via Aquitania, from Narbonne, where it connected to the Via Domitia, to the Atlantic Ocean across Toulouse and Bordeaux,
- Via Domitia (118 BC), from Nimes to the Pyrenees, where it joins to the Via Augusta at the Col de Panissars.

Italy

major roads

- Via Aemilia, from Ariminum to Piacenza
- Via Appia, the Appian way (312 BC), from Rome to Apulia (Puglia)
- Via Aurelia (241 BC), from Rome to France
- Via Cassia, from Rome to Tuscany
- Via Flaminia (220 BC), from Rome to Ariminum
- Via Salaria, from Rome to the Adriatic Sea (in the Marches)

others

- Via Aemilia Scaura (109 BC)
- Via Aquillia, branches off the Appia at Capua to the sea at Vibo
- Via Amerina, from Rome to Ameria and Perusia
- Via Claudia Julia Augusta (13 BC)
- Via Clodia, from Rome to Tuscany forming a system with the Cassia
- Via Julia Augusta (8 BC), exits Aquileia.
- Via Labicana, southeast from Rome, forming a system with the Praenestina
- Via Ostiense, from Rome to Ostia
- Via Postumia (148), from Verona across the Appenines to Genoa
- Via Popilia (132 BC), two distinct roads, one from Capua to Rhegium and the other from Ariminum through the later Venice region, possibly to Pola in Istria
- Via Praenestina, from Rome to Praeneste
- Via Severiana, Terracina to Ostia
- Via Traiana Nova, from Lake Bolsena to the Via Cassia. Known by archaeology only. ::the name of most of these roads is derived from the censor who ordered their construction

External links

General Articles

- [http://www.unrv.com/culture/roman-roads.php Roman Roads]
- [http://www.unc.edu/courses/rometech/public/content/transport/Adam_Pawluk/Contruction_and_Makeup_of_.htm The Design & Makeup of Ancient Roman Roads]
- [http://www.historylink102.com/Rome/roman-roads.htm Road Map]

Road Descriptions

- [http://www.viaeromanae.org Roman Roads in the Mediterranean]
- [http://viasromanas.planetaclix.pt Vias Romanas em Portugal (in Portuguese)]
- [http://perso.wanadoo.fr/itineraires-romains-en-france/default.htm Itineraires Romains en France (in French)]
- [http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/jod/augustine/routes.html Augustine's Africa]

Roman Law Regarding Public and Private Domain

- [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/secondary/SMIGRA
- /Servitutes.html Servitutes]

Road Construction

- [http://www.brrp.bham.ac.uk/construction/construction.html Roman Road Construction]
- [http://www.battleoffulford.org.uk/ev_roman_rd_constrct.htm Construction of Roman Roads]
- [http://eeg.geoscienceworld.org/cgi/content/abstract/3/1/123 Design and Construction of Roman Roads] Category:Lists of roads Category:Roman roads

References

- Von Hagen, Victor W., The Roads That Led To Rome, The World Publishing Company, Cleveland and New York, 1967 ja:ローマ街道

Apennines

:This is about the terrestrial mountain range. There is also a lunar mountain range named the Montes Apenninus. The Apennine Mountains (Greek: Απεννινος; Latin: Appenninus--in both cases used in the singular; Italian: Appennini) is a mountain range stretching 1000 km from the north to the south of Italy along its east coast, traversing the entire peninsula, and forming, as it were, the backbone of the country. The name is probably derived from the Celtic pen, a mountain top: it originally belonged to the northern portion of the chain, from the Maritime Alps to Ancona; and Polybius is probably the first writer who applied it to the whole chain, making, indeed, no distinction between the Apennines and the Maritime Alps, and extending the former name as far as Marseilles. They lend their name to the Apennine peninsula which forms the major part of Italy. The mountains are mostly green and wooded, although one side of the highest peak, Corno Grande (2,912 m), is partially covered by the southernmost glacier in Europe. The eastern slopes down to the Adriatic Sea are steep, while the western slopes form a plain on which most of Italy's historic cities are located. Classical authors do not differentiate the various parts of the chain, but use the name as a general name for the whole. The total length is some 800 miles and the maximum width 70 to 80 miles. Adriatic Sea

Divisions

Modern geographers divide the range into three parts: northern, central and southern.

Northern Apennines

The northern Apennines are generally distinguished (though there is no real solution of continuity) from the Maritime Alps at the Bocchetta dell' Altare, some 5 miles west of Savona on the high road to Turin. [The ancient Via Aemilia, built in 109 BC, led over this pass, but originally turned east to Dertona (mod. Tortona).] They again are divided into three parts--the Ligurian, Tuscan and Umbrian Apennines.

Ligurian Apennines

The Ligurian Apennines extend as far as the pass of La Cisa in the upper valley of the Magra (anc. Macra) above Spezia; at first they follow the curve of the Gulf of Genoa, and then run east-south-east parallel to the coast. On the north and north-east lie the broad plains of Piedmont and Lombardy, traversed by the Po, the chief tributaries of which from the Ligurian Apennines are the Scrivia (Olumbria), Trebbia (Trebia) and Taro (Tarus). The Tanaro(Tanarus), though largely fed by tributaries from the Ligurian Apennines, itself rises in the Maritime Alps, while the rivers on the south and south-west of the range are short and unimportant. The south side of the range rises steeply from the sea, leaving practically no coast strip: its slopes are sheltered and therefore fertile and highly cultivated, and the coast towns form the favourite winter resorts of the Italian Riviera. The highest point (the Monte Bue) reaches 5915 feet. The range is crossed by several railways--the line from Savona to Turin (with a branch at Ceva for Acqui), that from Genoa to Ovada and Acqui, the main lines from Genoa to Novi, the junction for Turin and Milan (both of which (There are two separate lines from Sampierdarena to Ronco) pass under the Monte dei Giovi, the ancient Mons Loventius, by which the ancient Via Postumia ran from Genua to Dertona), and that from Spezia to Parma under the pass of La Cisa. (This pass was also traversed by a nameless Roman road.) All these traverse the ridge by long tunnels--that on the new line from Genoa to Honco is upwards of 5 miles in length.

Tuscan Apennines

The Tuscan Apennines extend from the pass of La Cisa to the sources of the Tiber. The main chain continues to run in an east-south-east direction, but traverses the peninsula, the west coast meanwhile turning almost due south. From the northern slopes many rivers and streams run north and north-north-east into the Po, the Secchia (Secia) and Panaro (Scultenna) being among the most important, while farther east most of the rivers are tributaries of the Reno(anc. Rhenus). Other small streams, e.g. the Ronco (Bedesis) and Montone (Utis), which flow into the sea together east of Ravenna, were also tributaries of the Po; and the Savio (Sapis) and the Rubicon seem to be the only streams from this side of the Tuscan Apennines that ran directly into the sea in Roman days. From the south-west side of the main range the Arno and Serchio run into the Mediterranean. This section of the Apennines is crossed by two railways, from Pistoia to Bologna and from Florence to Faenza, and by several good high roads, of which the direct road from Florence to Bologna over the Futa pass is of Roman origin; and certain places in it are favourite summer resorts. The highest point of the chain is Monte Cimone (7103 feet). The so-called Alpi Apuane (the Apuani were an ancient people of Liguria), a detached chain south-west of the valley of the Serchio, rise to a maximum height of 6100 feet. They contain the famous marble quarries of Carrara. The greater part of Tuscany, however, is taken up by lower hills, which form no part of the Apennines, being divided from the main chain by the valleys of the Arno, Chiana (Clanis) and Paglia (Pallia), Towards the west they are rich in minerals and chemicals, which the Apennines proper do not produce.

Umbrian Apennines

The Umbrian Apennines extend from the sources of the Tiber to (or perhaps rather beyond) the pass of Scheggia near Cagli, where the ancient Via Flaminia crosses the range. The highest point is the Monte Nerone (5010 feet). The chief river is the Tiber itself: the others, among which the Foglia (Pisaurus), Metauro and Esino (This river (anc. Aesis) was the boundary of Italy proper in the 3rd and 2nd centuries BC) may be mentioned, run north-east into the Adriatic, which is some 30 miles from the highest points of the chain. This portion of the range is crossed near its southern termination by a railway from Foligno to Ancona (which at Fabriano has a branch to Macerata and Civitanova Marche, on the Adriatic coast railway), which may perhaps be conveniently regarded as its boundary. (The Monte Conero, to the south of Ancona, was originally an island of the Pliocene sea.) By some geographers, indeed, it is treated as a part of the central Apennines.

Central Apennines

The central Apennines are the most extensive portion of the chain, and stretch as far as the valley of the Sangro (Sangrus). To the north are the Monti Sibillini, the highest point of which is the Monte Vettore (8128 feet). Farther south three parallel chains may be traced, the westernmost of which (the Monti Sabini) culminates to the south in the Monte Viglio (7075 feet), the central chain in the Monte Terminillo (7260 feet), and farther south in the Monte Velino (8160 feet), and the eastern in the Gran Sasso d'Italia (9560 feet), the highest summit of the Apennines, and the Maiella group (Monte Amaro, 9170 feet). Between the western and central ranges are the plain of Rieti, the valley of the Salto (Himella), and the Lago Fucino; while between the central and eastern ranges are the valleys of Aquila and Sulmona. The chief rivers on the west are the Nera (Nar), with its tributaries the Velino (Velinus) and Salto, and the Anio, both of which fall into the Tiber. On the east there is at first a succession of small rivers which flow into the Adriatic, from which the highest points of the chain are some 25 miles distant, such as the Potenza (Flosis), Chienti (Cluentus), Tenna (Tinna), Tronto (Truentus), Tordino (Helvinus), Vomano (Vomanus), &c. The Pescara (Aternus), which receives the Aterno from the north-west and the Gizio from the south-east, is more important; and so is the Sangro. The central Apennines are crossed by the railway from Rome to Castelammare Adriatico via Avezzano and Sulmona: the railway from Orte to Terni (and thence to Foligno) follows the Nera valley; while from Terni a line ascends to the plain of Rieti, and thence crosses the central chain to Aquila, whence it follows the valley of the Aterno to Sulmona. In ancient times the Via Salaria, Via Caecilia and Via Valeria-Claudia all ran from Rome to the Adriatic coast. The volcanic mountains of the province of Rome are separated from the Apennines by the Tiber valley, and the Monti Lepini, or Volscian mountains, by the valleys of the Sacco and Liri.

Southern Apennines

In the southern Apennines, to the south of the Sangro valley, the three parallel chains are broken up into smaller groups; among them may be named the Matese, the highest point of which is the Monte Miletto (6725 feet). The chief rivers on the south-west are the Liri or Garigliano (anc. Liris){

Piacenza

Piacenza (Piasëinsa in the Piacentine dialect) is a city in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy, of approximately 104,000 inhabitants. It is the capital of the province of Piacenza.

History

Ancient history

Before its settlement by the Romans, the area was populated by Celtic and Ligurian tribes. Piacenza was founded in 218 BC (according to the tradition, on May 31), the first of the Roman military colonies, and was formerly called Placentia in both Latin and English. In Placentia and the nearby colony, Cremona, 6,000 Latin colonists were sent, in particular members of the Equestrian class of Rome. In the same year as the city's founding, Hannibal won the Battle of Trebbia in Piacenza's area, but the city resisted the Punic forces. In the following years the city's territory was drained and a port was constructed onto the Po River. Placentia flourished as a production centre for grain, barley, millet, and wool. Although sacked and devastated several times, the city always recovered and as late as the 6th century Procopius called it Erbs Aemilia Princeps, namely the "Princess of the cities across the Via Aemilia". The era of Late Antiquity in Piacenza (c. 300-700/800 AD) was marked by the expansion of Christianity, with the presence of several martyrs. The current patron saint, Antoninus, was a former legionnaire who Christianized the area and was killed during the reign of Diocletianus.

Middle Ages

Piacenza was sacked in the course of the Gothic Wars (535–552). After a short period as a Byzantine Empire city, it was conquered by the Lombards, who made it a duchy seat. After the Frank conquest (9th century) the city began to recover, being sited across the Via Francigena who lead from the Holy Roman Empire to Rome. Its population and importance grew further after the year 1000. In that period the government began to shift from the feudal lords in the hands of a new enterprising class, as well as those of the feudal class of the countryside. In 1095 it was the site of the Council of Piacenza, in which the First Crusade was proclaimed. From 1126 Piacenza was a free commune and an important member of the Lombard League. In this role it took part to the war against the emperor Frederick Barbarossa an d the subsequent battle of Legnano (1176). It also fought with success the neighbouring communes of Cremona, Pavia and Parma, expanding its possession. Piacenza snatched from the Malapsina counts and the bishop of Bobbio the control of the trading routes towards Genoa, where the first Piacentini bankers had already settled. In the 13th century, despite some unsuccessful wars against emperor Frederick II, piacenza managed to gain some strongholds on the Lombardy shore of the Po River. In 1183, in the church dedicated to Saint Antoninus, the primilaries of the Peace of Konstanz were signed. Agriculture and trades were higly flourishing in these centuries, and made Piacenza one of the richest city of Europe. This reflected in the construction of many important edifices and to a general revision of the urban asset. As well as in the great majority of Medieval Italian communes, since the second half of the 13th century in Piacenza inner party struggles were frequent: the Scotti, Pallavicino and Alberto Scoto (1290-1313) held in sequence the power in the city. The latter's government ended with the conquest by the Visconti of Milan, which held Piacenza until 1447. Duke Gian Galeazzo rewrote the city's statues and moved there the University of Pavia. Piacenza was a Sforza possession until 1499.

Modern era

A coin from the 16th century shows the motto: Placentia floret ("Piacenza flourishes"). The city was in fact developing further, mainly thanks to the produce from its countryside. Also in the course of that century a new wall line was erected. Piacenza was under France until 1521, and later, with Leo X, became briefly part of the Papal States. In 1545, finally, it was included in the new-born Duchy of Parma and Piacenza, led by the Farnese family. Piacenza was the capital city of the duchy until Ottavio Farnese (1547-1586) moved it to Parma. The city lived its most grievous years under duke Odoardo (1622-1646): 6,000 and 13,000 Piacentini out of 30,000 died of famine and plague, respectively. The city and its countryside were also ravaged by bandits and French soldiers. From 1732 to 1859 Parma and Piacenza were ruled by House of Bourbon. In the 18th century, being the duke family living in Parma, in Piacenza several edifices were built which belonged to noble families such as Scotti, Landi and Fogliani. In 1802 Napoleon's army annexed Piacenza to the French Empire. The young Piacentini recruits were sent to fight in Russia, Spain and Germany, while the city was spoiled of a great number of artworks which are currently exhibited in many French museums. The Habsburg government of Maria Luisa 1816-1847 is remembered as one of the best ever seen in Piacenza; the duchess drained many lands, built several bridges acvross the Trebbia river and the Nure stream, and created educational and artistic activities. :See also: Duchy of Parma and Piacenza
Union with Italy
Austrian and Croatian milices occupied Piacenza until, in 1848, a plebiscite marked the entrance of the city in the Kingdom of Sardinia. 37,089 voters out of 37,585 voted for the annexation. Piacenza was therefore declared Primogenita dell'Unità di Italia ("First-born of Unification of Italy") by the monarch. The Piacentini enrolled in mass in the Giuseppe Garibaldi's army which went in southern Italy to fight for independence. In the June of 1865 the first railway bridge was inaugurated. In 1891 the first Chamber of Workers was created in Piacenza. During World War 2 the city was heavily bombed by the Allied. The important railway bridge across the Po River, the railway station, as well as the historical centre, were destroyed. On the hills and he Appenine mountains, partisan bands were active. In 1996 president Oscar Luigi Scalfaro honoured Piacenza with the Gold Medal for Valour in Battle.
Culture and places of interest
Piacenza is one of the most renowned art cities of Italy. It is called the "Palaces City" for the great numbers of historical palaces, often characterized by splendid gardens. Oscar Luigi Scalfaro
Palaces

- Palazzo Farnese, began in 1568 by Ottavio Farnese and his wife, Margaret of Austria. The initial project was devised by Francesco Paciotto, from Urbino, and works were entrusted to Giovanni Bernardo Della Valle, Giovanni Lavezzari and Bernardo Panizzari (Caramosino). The design was modified in 1568 by Jacopo Barozzi, better known as Vignola.
Other places of interest
The most famous relic of the region's pre-Roman civilization is the Bronze Liver of Piacenza (Il Fegato Etrusco di Piacenza in Italian), an Etruscan bronze model of a sheep's liver dating from the end of the second century to the beginning of the first century B.C. It was discovered in 1877 in Ciavernasco di Settima, near Gossolengo, near Piacenza, and is housed in Piacenza's Archaeological Museum, part of the Musei Civici di Palazzo Farnese. Containing writing on its surface delineating the various parts of the liver and their significance, it was likely used as an educational tool for students studying haruspicy, or divination.
Dialect
Many inhabitants of Piacenza and the surrounding region still use the Piacentine (or Piacentino) dialect, which is quite different from standard (Florentine) Italian. The dissimilar pronunciation of even similar words makes the dialect largely mutually unintelligible with standard Italian, with many regular vowels being replaced with umlauts or eliminated altogether. Although there have been a number of notable poets and writers using the dialect, it has experienced a steady decline during the 20th century due to the growing standardization of the Italian language in the national educational system.
Food
Among the culinary specialties of the Piacenza region (although also enjoyed in nearby Cremona) is mostarda di frutta, consisting of preserved fruits in a sugary syrup strongly flavored with mustard. Turtlìt (tortelli dolci in standard Italian), or fruit dumplings, are filled with mostarda di frutta, mashed chestnuts, and other ingredients, and are served at Easter. Turtlìt are also popular in the Ferrara area. Turtéi, a similarly named Piacentine specialty, is a kind of pasta filled with ricotta cheese. Even more famous are chisolini (torta fritta in Standard Italian); they are made with flour, milk and animal fats mixed together and then fried in hot strutto (clarified pork fat); and pisarei e fasö (an exquisite mixture of pasta and beans). Piacentine staple foods include corn (generally cooked as polenta) and rice (usually cooked as risotto). Pasta is also eaten, though it is not as popular as in southern Italy. There are also locally produced cheeses, though nearby Parma is more famous for its dairy products.
Famous inhabitants
The Guadagnini family of luthiers (makers of violins and other string instruments), beginning in the 18th century, were among the most renowned residents of Piacenza. Of these, Giovanni Battista Guadagnini (G. B. Guadagnini) (1711-1786) is the most famous, considered to have been one of the greatest violin makers in history. The Italian American chef Hector Boiardi (1897-1985), better known as "Chef Boyardee," was born in Piacenza and immigrated to the United States in 1915, eventually acquiring fame for his eponymous franchise of food products.
External links

- [http://www.comune.piacenza.it Comune di Piacenza (in Italian)]
- [http://bettolapc.interfree.it/dialetto/dialetto.html Piacentine dialect page from Bettola site] Category:Roman sites of Emilia-Romagna Category:Towns in Emilia-Romagna ja:ピアチェンツァ

Rimini

Rimini is a city in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy, population 135,034 ([http://statistica.comune.rimini.it/demo_mensile/index.php?fuseaction=D7B.show&anno=2005&mese=5 May 2005]) and capital city of the Rimini Province. It is located on the Adriatic Sea and, together with Riccione, is probably the most famous seaside resort on the Adriatic Riviera, among Italians.

History

Rimini’s history begins at the beach. Up to 800,000 years ago, primitive man lived in the coastal area as far back as the hillside of Covignano. From prehistoric times, the road to civilisation passed through the main evolutionary stages, taking Rimini to the forefront of the Roman era. In 268 B.C. at the mouth of the Ariminus river, in an area that had previously been inhabited by the Etruscans, the Umbrians, the Greeks and the Gauls, the Romans founded the colony of Ariminum, probably from the name of a nearby river, Ariminus (today, Marecchia). It was seen as a bastion against invading Gaul and also as a springboard for conquering the Padana plain. Rimini was a road junction connecting central Italy (Via Flaminia) and northern Italy (Via Aemilia and Via Popilia) and it also opened up trade by sea and river. The city was involved in the civil wars but remained faithful to the popular party and to its leaders, firstly Marius and then Caesar. After crossing the Rubicon, the latter made his legendary appeal to the legions in the Forum of Rimini. Rimini, which drew the attention of many emperors, Augustus and Hadrian in particular, was experiencing a great period in its history, embodied by the construction of prestigious monuments such as the Arch of Augustus, Tiberius' Bridge and the Amphitheatre. Hadrian Crisis in the Roman world was marked by destruction caused by invasions and wars, but also by the testimony of the palaces of the Imperial officers and the first churches, the symbol of the spread of Christianity that held an important Council in Rimini in 359. The city became a municipality in the fourteenth century and with the arrival of the religious orders, numerous convents and churches were built, providing work for many illustrious artists. In fact, Giotto inspired the fourteenth-century School of Rimini, which was the expression of original cultural ferment. The Malatesta family, whose most famous member was Sigismondo Pandolfo, (illustration, right) a condottiere and patron (e.g. Alberti's Tempio Malatestiano) who was lord of Rimini between 1432 and 1468, emerged from the struggles between municipal factions. At the beginning of the sixteenth century, once the Malatesta family had been banished, Rimini, now a small town of the Papal States, had a local government under the Apostolic Legate of Ravenna. Towards the end of the same century, the municipal square (Piazza Cavour), which had been closed off on a site where the Poletti Theatre was subsequently built, was redesigned. The statue of Pope Paul V has stood in the centre of the square next to the fountain since 1614. In the sixteenth century, the 'grand square' (now the 'Piazza Tre Martiri' in honor of three civilians shot by the retreating Nazis at the end of World War II), which was where markets and tournaments were held, underwent various changes. For example, a small temple dedicated to Saint Anthony of Padua and the Clock Tower block were built, giving the square its present shape and size. Until the eighteenth century, raiding armies, earthquakes, famines, floods and pirate attacks ravaged the city. In this gloomy situation and due to a weakened local economy, fishing took on great importance, a fact testified by the construction of functional structures such as the fish market and the lighthouse. Saint Anthony of Padua]] In 1797, Rimini along with the rest of Romagna was influenced by the passage of the Jacobin troops and became part of the Cisalpine Republic. The Napoleonic government suppressed the monastic orders, confiscating their property and thus dispersing a substantial heritage, and demolished many churches including the ancient cathedral of Santa Colomba. On 30th March 1815, Joachim Murat launched his proclamation to the Italian people from Rimini, inciting them to unity and independence. An idea of what the city was like in the 19th century is provided by the palaces built along Corso d’Augusto and in particular by the theatre, which was designed by Luigi Poletti and succeeded in translating into Neoclassical form the ambitions of the ruling classes. However, the biggest revolutionary element for the city was the foundation in 1843 of the first bathing establishment and the Kursaal, constructed to host sumptuous social events, became the symbol of tourist Rimini. In just a few years, the marina underwent considerable building work making Rimini 'the city of small villas'. At the beginning of the twentieth century, The Grand Hotel, the city’s first important accommodation facility, was built near the coast and soon became the emblem of a new kind of tourism. During World War II, the city was torn apart by heavy bombardments and by the passage of the front along the Gothic Line but after liberation on September 21, 1944, impressive reconstruction work began, culminating in the explosive development of the tourist economy that created a new urban reality.

Famous residents

- Pietro Aron
- Federico Fellini
- Francesca da Rimini

External links

- [http://www.adria.net/rimini/webcam_rn.html Rimini Beach Webcam]
- [http://www.comune.rimini.it/ Commune of Rimini]
- [http://www.iperhotel.com/hotel-rimini.cfm Hotel in Rimini]
- [http://www.provincia.rimini.it/ Province of Rimini]
- [http://www.riminiturismo.it/ Official Tourism Site]
- [http://www.riminiairport.com/ International Airport of Rimini]
- [http://www.students.washington.edu/esb21/ItalyVacationPictures/ItalyPictures.shtml/ Photos of Rimini]
- [http://virtualearth.msn.com/default.aspx?cp=44.236279|12.938615&style=h&lvl=9&v=1 MSN Virtual Earth Map]

Fidenza

Fidenza is a town in the province of Parma, Italy. It has around 23,000 inhabitants. The town was renamed Fidenza in 1927; before, it was called Borgo San Donnino. Although it is a small town, Fidenza offers centuries of history, art and culture. Category:Towns in Emilia-Romagna

Parma

Parma is a medieval city in the Italian region of Emilia-Romagna, with splendid architecture and a fine countryside around it. Parma is divided in two parts by the little stream with the same name. The Italian poet Attilio Bertolucci wrote: "As a capital city, it had to have a river. As a little capital, it received a stream, which is often dry".

History

The city was most probably founded and named by the Etruscans, for a parma (circular shield) was a Latin borrowing, as were many Roman terms for particular arms, and Parmeal, Parmni and Parmnial are names that appear in Etruscan inscriptions. Diodorus Siculus (XXII, 2,2; XXVIII, 2,1) reported that the Romans had changed their rectangular shields for round ones, imitating the Etruscans. Whether the Etruscan encampment was so named because it was round, like a shield, or whether its situation was a shield against the Gauls to the north, is more a matter of choice. The Roman colony was founded in 183 BC, together with Modena. 2000 families were settled. Parma had a certain importance as a road hub over the Via Aemilia and the Via Claudia. It had a forum, in what is today the central Garibaldi Square. In 44 CE the city was destroyed, and August rebuilt it. During the Roman Empire it gained the title of Julia for its loyalty to the Royal House. Roman Empire The city was subsequently sacked by Attila, and later given by the Barbarian king Odoacer to his fellows. During the Gothic War, however, Totila destroyed it. It was then part of the Byzantine Exarchate of Ravenna (changing name to Chrysopolis, "Golden City", probably due to the presence of the army's treasure) and, from 569, of the Lombard Kingdom of Italy. Parma became an important stage of the Via Francigena, the main Middle Ages road connecting Rome to Northern Europe: several castles, hospitals and inn were founded in the following centuries to host the increasing number of pilgrims. Under the Franks reign Parma became a committee's capital (774). Like most northern Italian cities, was nominally a part of the Holy Roman Empire created by Charlemagne, but locally ruled by its bishops, first being Guidobus. In the subsequent struggles between Papacy and Empire, Parma was usually member of the Imperial party. Two of his bishops became antipopes: Càdalo, founder of the Cathedral, as Honorius II); and Guibert, as Clement III). An almost independent commune was created around 1140. After the peace of Konstanz (1183), quarrels with the neighbouring communes of Reggio Emilia, Piacenza and Cremona became harsher: the aim was the control over the vital trading line over the Po river. The struggle between Guelphs and Ghibelline were a feature of Parma too. After a long stance alongside the Emperors, the Papist families of the city gained control in 1248: the city was besieged by the Emperor Frederick II, who was however crushed in the battle that ensued. Parma fell under the control of Milan in 1341. After a short-lived period of indpendence under the Terzi family (1404-1409), Sforza imposed their rule (1440-1449) through their associated families of Pallavicino, Rossi, Sanvitale and Da Correggio. These created a kind of new feudalism, building towers and castles throughout the city and the land. These fiefs evolved into truly independent states: the Landi governed the higher Taro's valley from 1257 to 1682. The Pallavicino' seignory extended over the eastern part of the today's province, with the capital in Busseto. Parma's territories was an exception for Northern Italy, as its feudal subdivision continued often until recent years. For example, Solignano was a Pallavicino's family possession until 1805, and San Secondo belonged to the Rossi well into the 19th century. 19th century Between the 14th and the 15th centuries Parma was at the centre of the Italian Wars. The Battle of Fornovo was fought in its territory. The French mantained the city in 1500-1521, with a short Papal parenthesis in 1512-1515. After the foreigners were expelled Parma belonged to the Papal States untile 1545. In that year the Farnese pope, Paul III, detached Parma and Piacenza from the Papal States and gave them as a duchy for his illegitimate son, Pier Luigi Farnese, whose descendents ruled in Parma until 1731, when Antonio Farnese (1679-1731), last male of the Farnese line, died. The state was consolidated by Ottavio II Farnese (1547-1586). He also renovated the city's structures to create a true capital for his little but rich reign. In 1594 a Constituion was emanated, the University enhanced and the Nobles' College founded. The war to reduce the barons' power continued for several years: in 1612 Barbara Sanseverino was executed in the central square of Parma, together with six other nobles charged of plotting against the duke. At the end of the 17th century, after the defeat of Pallavicini (1588) and Landi (1682) the Farnese duke could finally hold with firm hand all Parmense territories. The castle of the Sanseverino in Colorno was turned into a luxurious summer palace by Ferdinando Bibiena. In 1731] the combined Duchy of Parma and Piacenza was given to the House of Bourbon in a diplomatic shuffle of the European dynastic politics that were played out in Italy. Under the new rulers, however, it faced a certain decadence. In 1734 all the outstanding art collections of the duke's palaces of Parma, Clorno and Sala Baganza were moved to Naples. Parma was under French influence after the Peace of Aachen (1748). Parma became a modern state with the energic action of prime minister Guillaume du Tillot. He created the bases for a modern industry and fought strenuously against the church's privileges. The city lived a period of particular splendour: the Palatine Library, the Archaelogical Museum, the Picture Gallery and the Botanical Garden were founded, together with the Royal Printing Works directed by Giambattista Bodoni. During the Napoleonic Wars (1802-1814), Parma was part of the Taro Department. The Risorgimento's upheavals had no fortile ground in the tranquil duchy. In 1847, after Maria Luigia's death, it passed again to the Bourbon, the last of them was stabbed in the city and left it to his Widow, Luisa Maria of Berry. On September 15, 1859 the dynasty was declared deposed, and Parma entered in the newly formed provinces of Emilia under Carlo Farini. With the plebiscite of 1860 the former duchy became part of the unified Kingdom of Italy. The loss of the capital role provoked an ecenomical and social crisis in Parma. It strarted to recover its role of industrial prominence after the connection with Piacenza and Bologna of 1859, and with Fornovo and Suzzara in 1883. Trade unions were strong in the city, in which a famous General Strike was declared from May 1 to June 6, 1908. The struggle with Fascism lived its most dramatic moment in the August 1922, when the regime officer Italo Balbo attempted to enter in the popular quarter of Oltretorrente. The citizens organized into the Arditi del Popolo ("People's assaulters") and pushed back the squadristi. This episode is considered the first example of Resistance in Italy. During World War II, Parma was a strong centre of partisan presence. It suffered large destructions for bombardments until it was liberated on April 25, 1945.

Main sights

- The Romanesque Cathedral houses works by Correggio and Benedetto Antelami.
- The Baptistry (begun in 1996 by Antelami), one of the most important Medieval monuments in Europe.
- The church of Saint John the Evangelist was built between 1498 and 1510 behind the Cathedral's apse. It has Baroque facade and belfry, with a Latin cross plant and three naves. The dome was frescoed by Correggio in 1520-1521. Chapels have frescoes by Parmigianino. Also the cloisters and the ancient Benedictine grocery are noteworthy. The library has books from the 15th and 16th centuries.
- The Monastery of Saint Paul has frescoes by Correggio and Araldi.
- The Museum House of Arturo Toscanini, where the famous musician was born.
- The Old Hospital (1201)
- The Palazzo della Pilotta (1583). It houses the Academy of Fine Arts with artists of the School of Parma (Painting), the Palatine Library, the National Gallery, the Archaeological Museum, the Bodoni Museum and the Farnese Theatre.
- The Farnese Theatre was constructed in 1618-1619 by G.B. Aleotti, totally in wood. It was commissioned by Ranuccio I Farnese for the visit of Cosimo I de' Medici.
- The Teatro Regio ("Royal Theatre"), built in 1821-1829 by Nicola Bettoli. It has a Neo-Classical facade and a porch with double window order.
- The Auditorium Niccolò Paganini, designed by Renzo Piano.
- The Ducal Park (1561), built by Vignola for Ottaviano Farnese. It was turned into a Franch-style garden in 1749.

Food

Parma is famous for its food: its cheese "Parmigiano Reggiano" (along with Reggio Emilia) and for its Parma ham. In year 2004 Parma has been appointed seat of the [http://www.efsa.eu.int/index_en.html European Food Safety Authority (EFSA)].

Sport

Parma F.C. is a football club renowned in Italy and Europe for its successes including three national cups, an European's Cups Winner's Cup and a UEFA Cup. The stade Ennio Tardini can host up to 28,000 spectators. Also volleyball, rugby and baseball have large popularity in the city and have scored relevant successes.

Miscellaneous

Parma hosts the [http://www.comune.parma.it/tourvirtuale/virtual-teatroregio2.html Teatro Regio], a famous opera theatre. Stendhal set much of his masterpiece (The Charterhouse of Parma) in the city, even though there was no "Charterhouse" in real life. The Serie A football club Parma F.C. play in the city's Ennio Tardini stadium. Parma is also home to two rugby union teams, Overmach Rugby Parma and SKG Gran Rugby.

Famous people from Parma

- Francesco Mazzola, called 'Il Parmigianino', 16th century painter
- Sisto Badalocchio, painter
- Giambattista Bodoni, typographer
- Charles Ponzi, swindler and namesake of the Ponzi scheme
- Ferdinando Paer, composer
- Giuseppe Verdi, opera composer
- Arturo Toscanini, conductor
- Alessandro Araldi, painter (1460-1528)
- Michelangelo Anselmi, painter born in Tuscany (1492-1554)
- Giovanni Maria Francesco Rondani, painter (1490-1550)
- Girolamo Mazzola Bedoli, painter(1500-1569)
- Antonio da Correggio (Antonio

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