In this post, you’re going to learn about Italian history. More precisely, about the history of the Italian language.
We’ll also talk about one important figure from Italian history, Galileo Galilei, that has impacted the Italian language.
Let’s get started!
The Italian Language in History
During the Roman Empire, which ruled all over Europe, Latin was imposed and spread.
However, after the fall of the Empire in the V century, vernacular and local forms of the language gained more and more of an important role in society.
Italian derives from Vulgar Latin, which was the language spoken among common people and less educated citizens of ancient Rome.
For several centuries, however, and especially during the Middle Ages, Latin would remain the dominant official language.
During this time, due to a long history of separation into many small states and colonization by France, Spain, and Austria-Hungary, the Italian language did not really exist yet.
It started its development in the form of many different regional dialects that maintained separate identities.
Around the 14th century, one local dialect, among all others, started to stand out thanks to famous writers such as Dante, Petrarca, and Boccaccio. It was the Florentine dialect, from Tuscany, which would become the basis for modern Italian.
When Italy was unified in 1861, the decision was taken to make Tuscan the official language of the country.
Read more about the Italian language.
Galileo Galilei Experiments Contributed to Italian Language
Galileo Galilei (1564-1642), was one of the most distinguished of early scientists. He was a professor of mathematics at Pisa in Italy, but he was also a great experimental physicist.
He made major contributions to math, physics, and astronomy during the Scientific Revolution of the 16th and 17th centuries.
Galileo Galilei, one of the most prominent scientists and philosophers of the Renaissance, made significant contributions to the evolution of the Italian language through his writings and scientific discoveries.
Galileo was a prolific writer, and his works were written in vernacular Italian, rather than in Latin, which was the language of scholars at the time. By writing in Italian, Galileo made his ideas and discoveries accessible to a wider audience, including those who were not trained in Latin.
Furthermore, Galileo’s scientific discoveries and observations often required him to develop new terminology and concepts, which he expressed in the Italian language. For example, he coined the term “telescopio” (telescope) and “macchie solari” (sunspots), which are still used in Italian today.
In addition to his scientific contributions, Galileo also played a role in shaping the literary style of the Italian language. His letters and manuscripts are known for their clear and concise prose, which was a departure from the ornate and complex style of the Renaissance.
Overall, Galileo’s use of Italian in his scientific writings, his creation of new terminology, and his influence on the literary style of the language all contributed to the evolution of the Italian language.
To practice listening, here’s a short presentation about Galileo Galilei in Italian by the prestigious publisher Treccani.
The language used is a bit technical but the animation makes it enjoyable.
Learn more about Galileo Galilei’s Italian experiment.
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