The Italy Language Students Know—and the Italy They Haven’t Met Yet

La Dolce Vita, pizza, pasta, opera, Roma-Venezia-Firenze, il Colosseo, Leonardo da Vinci, Ferrari, Versace, Dolce&Gabbana. So Italian, right? Well, none of these is out of place—all of them are somewhat ingrained in Italian culture and lifestyle —but the list is incomplete and does not accurately describe Italy and Italians as they really are. The Italy and Italians that many learners of Italian have in mind are only one chapter of a much larger story. Let’s try to partly uncover this larger picture.

Step 1: Debunking Stereotypes

Not all Italians live at a slow pace year-round. While it is true that many Italians try to enjoy two or three weeks of vacation during the summer, in which they slow down and enjoy life and little pleasures, life in Italy — as everywhere else — is made of work, juggling multiple errands, running around, being stuck in traffic, etc.

Italians do not have pizza & lasagne every day. Many of them eat pasta once if not twice a day, but la dieta mediterranea is also rich in legumes, vegetables, meat, and fish.

The trio Roma-Venezia-Firenze is surely a must-see, but there’s so much more, both in terms of art and history (in addition to the Colosseum, for instance, Italy is home to more than 200 Roman amphitheatres, like Arena di Verona and Anfiteatro romano di Lecce) and in terms of nature—the Italian peninsula is tiny but it’s incredibly diverse. Leonardo da Vinci? Sure, but think about other Italians who shaped the world: Galileo Galilei, Enrico Fermi, Rita Levi-Montalcini, Maria Montessori.

Not every Italian drives a luxury car—the best-selling cars are currently FIAT Panda, Dacia Sandero, and Jeep Avenger. And not every Italian owns luxury brand items. While it is true that style, fashion, and fare bella figura are a thing in Italy — and, to many non-Italians’ eyes, Italians are generally dressed up — most Italians do not own any Prada or Versace items of clothing (alas!). Many people buy from popular chain stores, second-hand (for example, using Vinted, an app where individuals buy, sell, and swap second-hand clothing) or at open-air markets.

Step 2: Getting to Know Italy and Italians Better

After having un-stereotyped Italy and Italians a bit, you might want to learn something different about them! Well, the best thing to do would be to visit, immerse yourself in the culture, talk to locals, and hang out at popular venues. Since this is not always an option, browse the internet! There are plenty of contemporary Italian movies, TV shows, podcasts, books, and magazines: any cultural products from contemporary Italy can give you a glimpse of Italy, indeed, and Italians. It is also interesting to learn from the experience of non-Italians living in Italy (social media are full of them!), as they might notice things that are obvious to Italian and nonetheless unexpected and telling for foreigners.

Step 3: Interesting, Unusual Facts about Italy and Italians

While there are a lot of issues —some of them as old as Italy itself, like the North-South gap—there are also a lot of things Italians can be proud of, and that are not so popular outside the country. Italy is a major pharmaceutical and biomedical exporter—producing more than one third of the world’s contrast agents; it is a leader in aerospace technologies, as well as the third country in the world to send a satellite into orbit; and has the world’s largest number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. All of this is shown in a popular video titled Italy the Extraordinary Commonplace. It was posted a while ago —but is still valid— by the Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs, and you might want to start from there.

Italy has a great education system, as well put by Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano. When giving his acceptance speech after being announced as the pilot on NASA’s Artemis III mission launching in 2027, Parmitano firstly thanked Italy and its free, public school system, which he called “my first launch platform”.

So, there’s more to Italy than meets the eye—and while the charm of la dolce vita, aperitivo in piazza, riding your Vespa through narrow medieval streets (or around the Colosseum!) is undeniable —plus, let’s face it: Italians do gesticulate *a lot*— much more is to be discovered. Buon viaggio alla scoperta dell’Italia e degli italiani!