Etna

Mount Etna (also known locally as Mongibello or simply a muntagna (the mountain) in Sicilian) is an active volcano on the east coast of Sicily, close to Messina and Catania. It is the largest volcano in Europe, currently standing about 3,320 m (10,900 ft) high, though it should be noted that this varies with eruptions; the mountain is 170 ft (51 m) lower now than it was in 1865. It is the highest mountain in Italy south of the Alps. Etna covers an area of 460 square miles (1190 km²) with a basal circumference of 140 km. This makes it by far the largest of the three active volcanos in Italy, being nearly three times the height of the next largest, Mount Vesuvius. It is one of the most active volcanoes in the world and is in an almost constant state of eruption. Although it can occasionally be very destructive, it is not generally regarded as being particularly dangerous, and thousands of people live on its slopes and in the surrounding areas. The fertile volcanic soils support extensive agriculture, with vineyards and orchards spread across the lower slopes of the mountain.
Name and legends
orchard Etna was known in Roman times as Aetna, a name thought to have derived either from the Greek word aitho ("to burn") or the earlier Phoenician word attano. The Arabs called the mountain Gibel Utlamat ("the mountain of fire"); this name was later corrupted into Mons Gibel (translating from its Roman and Arab parts as 'Mount Mountain') and subsequently Etna's current local name Mongibello. The mountain's regular and often dramatic eruptions made it a major subject of interest for Classical mythologists and their later successors, who sought to explain its behaviour in terms of the various gods and giants of Roman and Greek legend. Aeolus, the king of the winds, was said to have imprisoned the winds in caves below Etna. The giant Typhon was confined under Etna, according to the poet Aeschylus, and was the cause of the mountain's eruptions. Another giant, Enceladus, rebelled against the gods, was killed and was buried under Etna. Hephaestus or Vulcan, the god of fire and the forge, was said to have had his forge under Etna and drove the fire-demon Adranus out from the mountain, while the Cyclopes maintained a smithy there where they fashioned lightning bolts for Zeus to use as a weapon. The Greek underworld, Tartarus, was supposed to be situated beneath Etna. Empedocles, a major pre-Socratic philosopher and Greek statesman of the 5th century BC, was said to have met his death in the volcano's crater. Etna supposedly erupted in sympathy with the martyrdom of Saint Agatha in 251 AD, prompting Christians thereafter to invoke her name against fire and lightning.
Morphology
Christian Etna is an isolated peak about 18 miles (29 km) from Catania which dominates the eastern side of Sicily. Its shape is that of a truncated cone with a ragged top, which is actually a complex of large volcanic cones hosting four summit craters. Around 260 smaller craters, formed by flank eruptions, occupy the slopes. On the southeastern side of Etna lies an immense gully, the Valle del Bove, which is between 2000-4000 ft (600-1200 m) deep and over 3 miles (5 km) wide. Many of Etna's subsidiary craters reside within this cleft, which is thought to have been created around 3,500 years ago by the collapse of an ancient caldera. The height of the mountain varies with its eruptions; until 1911, there was only one large cone and crater at the summit, but subsequent eruptions have created new craters and cones. The slopes of Etna form three distinct zones. The lower zone, extending up to about 4000 ft (1200 m) are densely populated and planted with vineyards, citrus fruits, and groves of olives, figs and almonds. The middle zone (up to about 6900 ft / 2100 m) is heavily wooded, mostly with pine and chestnut trees. At the top of the mountain is a volcanic wasteland, dominated by old lava flows, screes and volcanic ash. Few plants grow there and it is covered by snow for much of the year. Etna is an extremely complex volcano, presenting considerable difficulties in classication. It has features of both a shield volcano and a stratovolcano, and displays behaviour typical of both plinian and strombolian volcanoes. It stands at the convergent boundary where the African Plate is being subducted beneath the Eurasian Plate, deforming the latter and forcing plumes of magma upwards into weak points in the crust such as under Etna. It is perhaps most accurate to describe Etna as being a mixture of overlapping shield and strato volcanoes partially destroyed by repeated collapses and partly buried under subsequent volcanic edifices.
Geological history
magma Volcanic activity at Etna began about half a million years ago, with eruptions occurring beneath the sea off the then coastline of Sicily. 300,000 years ago, volcanism began occurring to the southwest of the present-day summit, before activity moved towards the present centre 170,000 years ago. Eruptions at this time built up the first major volcanic edifice, forming a stratovolcano in alternating explosive and effusive eruptions. The growth of the mountain was occasionally interrupted by major eruptions leading to the collapse of the summit to form calderas. From about 35,000 to 15,000 years ago, Etna experienced some highly explosive eruptions, generating large pyroclastic flows which left extensive ignimbrite deposits. Ash from these eruptions has been found as far away as Rome, 800 km to the north.
Historical eruptions
About 3,500 years ago, the eastern flank of the mountain experienced a catastrophic collapse, generating an enormous landslide in an event similar to that seen at Mount St. Helens in 1980. The eruption which is thought to have caused this collapse was recorded by Diodore of Sicily, the first known record of an eruption at Etna. The landslide left a large depression in the side of the volcano, known as 'Valle del Bove' (Valley of the Oxen). The steep walls of the Valle have suffered subsequent collapse on numerous occasions. The strata exposed in the valley walls provide an important and easily accessible record of Etna's eruptive history. The most recent collapse event at the summit of Etna is thought to have occurred about 2,000 years ago, forming what is known as the Piano Caldera. This caldera has been almost entirely filled by subsequent lava eruptions, but is still visible as a distinct break in the slope of the mountain near the base of the present-day summit cone. The Roman poet Virgil gave what was probably a first-hand description of an eruption in the Aeneid: :The port capacious, and secure from wind, :Is to the foot of thund'ring Etna joined. :By turns a pitchy cloud she rolls on high: :By turns hot embers from her entrails fly, :And flakes of mounting flames, that lick the sky. :Oft from her bowels massy rocks are thrown, :And shivered by the force come piece-meal down. :Oft liquid lakes of burning sulphur flow, :Fed from the fiery springs that boil below. In 396 BC, an eruption of Etna is said to have thwarted the Carthaginians in their attempt to advance on Syracuse during the First Sicilian War.
1669 eruption
First Sicilian War Over the last 2000 years, activity at Etna has been generally effusive, with occasional explosive eruptions from the summit. Its most destructive eruption during this time occurred in March 1669, when an estimated 830,000,000 m³ of lava was ejected. The eruption was preceded by two months of increasingly powerful earthquakes centred on the southern slopes of the mountain, which eventually encouraged most villagers there to abandon their homes. On 11 March, a 9 km-long fissure opened up on the southern flank of the mountain, stretching from an elevation of 2800 m down to 1200 m. Activity steadily migrated downslope, and the largest vent eventually opened near the town of Nicolosi. The cinder cone built up at the erupting vent became known as Monti Rossi (red hills), and is still a prominent landmark today. Nicolosi was quickly destroyed by lava flows, and two nearby villages were also destroyed during the eruption's first day. The eruption was extremely voluminous, and a further four villages were destroyed in the following three days as the lava flowed south. In late March two larger towns were destroyed, and the lava reached the outskirts of Catania in early April. At first, lava piled up against the city walls, which were strong enough to withstand the pressure of the flow. However, while the city was temporarily protected, lava flowed into its harbour and filled it in. On 30 April, lava flowed over the top of the city walls, which then gave way. Catanians built walls across major roads to halt the flow of the lava, which were fairly effective but did not prevent the destruction of the western side of the city. During the eruption, Catania residents also attempted to divert the flows much further upstream. According to a possibly apocryphal tale, their efforts were met with armed resistance from the citizens of a town which would have been threatened by the diverted flow [http://boris.vulcanoetna.com/ETNA_1669.html]. Whether this event really occurred or not, a law was subsequently passed to forbid the artificial diversion of lava flows. This law was only repealed in 1983.
Recent eruptions
1983 Another very large lava flow from an eruption in 1928 led to the first destruction of a town since the 1669 eruption. In this case, the town of Mascali was destroyed in just two days, with the lava destroying every building. The event was used by Mussolini's Fascist regime for propaganda purposes, with the evacuation, aid and rebuilding operations being presented as models of fascist planning. Mascali was rebuilt on a new site, and its church contains the Italian fascist symbol of the torch, placed above the statue of Christ. Other major 20th century eruptions occurred in 1949, 1971, 1983, 1992, and 2000. The 1992 eruption saw the town of Zafferana threatened by a lava flow, but successful diversion efforts saved the town with the loss of only one building a few hundred metres outside it. In 2002-2003, the biggest series of eruptions for many years threw up a huge column of ash that could easily be seen from space and fell as far away as Libya, on the far side of the Mediterranean Sea. Seismic activity in this eruption caused the eastern flanks of the volcano to slip by up to two metres, and many houses on the flanks of the volcano experienced structural damage. The eruption also completely destroyed the Rifugio Sapienza, on the southern flank of the volcano. The Rifugio was the site of a cable car station which had previously been destroyed in the 1983 eruption.
External links

- [http://www.albanetcom.com/etnaimg/ Mount Etna Live Webcam]
- [http://www.regione.sicilia.it/presidenza/protezionecivile/areetematiche/vulcani/etna.htm Another Mount Etna live webcam]
- [http://boris.vulcanoetna.com/ A lot more Etna information] Etna Etna Etna Etna Etna Etna Etna ko:에트나 산 ja:エトナ火山

Sicilian language
Sicilian (Lu Sicilianu, Lingua Siciliana) is the Romance language spoken in Sicily and southern Italy. Sicilian dialects (or dialects comprising the Italiano meridionale-estremo language group) are spoken on the island of Sicily (and all of its satellite islands), as well as in the southern and central sections of Calabria ("southern Calabro") and Puglia ("Salentino") on the Italian mainland. Ethnologue (see section below) describes Sicilian as being "distinct enough from Standard Italian to be considered a separate language". It is currently spoken by the 5,000,000 inhabitants of Sicily, plus a further (approximately) 5,000,000 Sicilians around the world. The latter are to be found in the countries which attracted large numbers of Sicilian immigrants during the course of the past century or so, especially the USA, Canada, Australia and Argentina. In the past two or three decades, large numbers of Sicilians were also attracted to the industrial zones of northern Italy and indeed the rest of the EC, in particular, Germany. As the table indicates, Sicilian is not recognised as an official language anywhere in the world, not even within Italy. There is currently no central body, in Sicily or elsewhere, that regulates the language in any way. The autonomous regional parliament of Sicily has legislated to encourage the teaching of Sicilian at all schools, but inroads into the education system have been extremely slow.
Ethnologue report on Sicilian
::[http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=scn Source.]
Alternate names
The alternate names of Sicilian are: Calabro-Sicilian, Sicilianu, Siculu. The term "Calabro-Sicilian" refers to the fact that a form of Sicilian, or a dialect closely related to Sicilian, is spoken in the far south of Calabria. Sicilianu is the name of the language in Sicilian. The term "Siculu" describes one of the larger prehistoric groups living in Sicily before the arrival of Greeks in the 8th century BC (see below). It can also be used as an adjective to qualify, or further elaborate on, the origins of a person, for example: Siculo-american (siculu-miricanu) or Siculo-australian.
Dialects of Sicilian
As a language, Sicilian has its own dialects. Ethnologue lists the following main groupings:
- Western Sicilian (Palermo, Trapani, Central-Western Agrigentino)
- Central Metafonetica
- Southeast Metafonetica
- Eastern Nonmetafonetica (which includes the province of Catania, the second largest city in Sicily)
- Messinese (the province of Messina)
- Isole Eolie (the Aeolian islands)
- Pantesco (the island of Pantelleria)
- Southern Calabro (southern and central sections of Calabria)
- Southern Pugliese (called "Salentino" is reportedly a dialect of Sicilian on the peninsular section of Puglia).
Other observations
Sicilian is described as being "vigorous", although most Sicilians are described as being bilingual (obviously being fluent in Italian as the official language of Italy). It refers to the strong French influence in the language (elaborated on further below) and raises the prospect that it may be better classified as "Southern Romance" rather than "Italo-Western".
Early influences
The fact that Sicily is the largest island in the middle of the Mediterranean and that virtually all the peoples of the Mediterranean (and beyond) have passed through her, be that as friend or foe, over the millennia, ensures that the Sicilian language is both rich and varied in its influences. The language has inherited vocabulary and/or grammatical forms from all of the following: Greek, Latin, Arabic, French, Lombard, Provençal, German, Catalan, Spanish and of course Italian, not to mention prehistoric influences from the earliest settlers on the island. The very earliest influences, visible in Sicilian to this day, exhibit both prehistoric Mediterranean elements and prehistoric Indo-European elements, and occasionally a cross-over of both. Before the Roman conquest, Sicily was occupied by remnants of the autochthonic populations (Sicani, Elymi, Siculi, (the latter arriving between the first and second millennium BC), as well as by Phoenicians (from between the 10th and 8th century BC) and Greeks (from the 8th century BC). The Greek influence remains strongly visible, however, the influences from the other groups are less obvious. What can be stated with certainty is that there remain pre-Indo-European words in Sicilian of an ancient Mediterranean origin, but one cannot be more precise than that. Of the three main prehistoric groups, only the Siculi were Indo-European, and their speech is likely to have been closely related to that of the Romans. The following table provides the perfect illustration of the difficulty philologists face in tackling the various sub-strata of the Sicilian language. A similar qualifier can be applied to many of the words that appear in this article. Sometimes we may know that a particular word has a prehistoric derivation, but we do not know whether the Sicilians have inherited it directly from the autochthonic populations, or whether it has come to them via another route. Similarly, we might know that a particular word has a Greek origin, but we do not know from which Greek period the Sicilians first used it (pre-Roman occupation or during its Byzantine period), or once again, whether the particular word may even have come to Sicily via another route. For instance, by the time the Romans had occupied Sicily during the 3rd century BC, the Latin language had made its own borrowings from the Greek language.
Pre-classical period
The words with a prehistoric Mediterranean derivation often refer to plants native to the Mediterranean region or to other natural features. Bearing in mind the qualifiers mentioned above (alternative sources are provided where known), examples of such words include:
- alastra (a thorny, prickly plant native to the Mediterranean region; but also Greek kelastron and may in fact have penetrated Sicilian via one of the Gallic idioms)
- ammarrari (to dam or block a canal or running water; but also Spanish embarrar - to muddy)
- calancuni (ripples caused by a fast running river)
- calanna (landslide of rocks)
- racioppu (stalk or stem, e.g. of a fruit, Mediterranean rak)
- timpa (crag, cliff; but also Greek tymba, Latin tumba and Catalan timba). There are also Sicilian words with an ancient Indo-European origin that do not appear to have come to the language via any of the major language groups normally associated with Sicilian, i.e. they have been independently derived from a very early Indo-European source. The Siculi are a possible source of such words, but there is also the possibility of a cross-over between ancient Mediterranean words and introduced Indo-European forms. Some examples of Sicilian words with an ancient Indo-European origin:
- dudda (mulberry; similar to Welsh rhudd and Lithuanian rauda meaning the colour "pink"; Romanian "dudă")
- scrozzu (not well developed; similar to Lithuanian su-skurdes with a similar meaning and High German scurz, meaning short)
- sfunnacata (multitude, vast number; from Indo-European und/Fund meaning water)
Greek influences
The following Sicilian words are of a Greek origin (including some examples where it is unclear whether the word is derived directly from Greek, or via Latin):
- appizzari - to rot, go bad (as in fruit), ruin (from (eks)èpeson)
- babbiari - to fool around (from babazo, which also gives the sicilian words: babbazzu and babbu - stupid; but Latin babulus and Spanish babieca)
- bucali - pitcher (from baukalion)
- bùmmulu - water receptacle (from bombylos; but Latin bombyla)
- cartedda - basket (from kartallos; but Latin cratellum)
- carusu - boy (from kouros; but Latin carus - dear, Sanskrit caruh - amiable)
- casèntaru - earthworm (from gas enteron)
- cirasa - cherry (from kerasos; but Latin cerasum)
- cona - icon, image, metaphor (from eikyon; but Latin icona)
- cuddura - type of bread (from kollyra; but Latin collyra)
- grasta - flower pot (from gastra; but Latin gastra)
- naca - cradle (from nake)
- ntamari - to stun, amaze (from thambeo; but Calabrese tàmmaru - stupid, comes from Arabic tammar date vendor)
- pistiari - to eat (from apestiein)
- tuppuliàri - to knock (from typto). Vulgar Latin was spoken by the Roman occupation troops who garrisoned Sicily after Rome annexed the island (after the end of the First Punic War, c 261 BC). An historical feature shared by Sicily, the far south of Calabria, and the province of Lecce, is that during the Roman period, these areas were never completely latinised. Greek remained the main language for the majority of the population. This helps explain the linguistic differences in these areas and those immiediately to the north (which were, more or less, latinised). It is also why Sicilian is often referred to as a neo-Latin language - it did not descend directly from Latin (although some linguists disagree with that view, see below). For a brief period after the fall of Rome, Goth and Visigoth barbarians managed to gain a degree of political/military control on the island, although their presence did not impact the Sicilian language. The few Germanic influences to be found in Sicilian do not appear to originate from this period. One exception might be abbanniari or vanniari (to hawk goods, proclaim publicly) from Gothic bandujan - to give a signal. Also possible is schimmenti (diagonal) from Gothic slimbs (slanting). Other sources of Germanic influences include the Hohenstaufen reign of the 13th century, words of Nordic and Germanic origin contained within the speeches of Norman and Lombard settlers and the short period of Austrian rule in the 18th century.
Arab period
In 535, Emperor Justinian I made Sicily a Byzantine province, and for the second time in Sicilian history, the Greek language became a familiar sound across the island. As the power of the Byzantine Empire waned, Sicily was progressively conquered by Saracens from North Africa, from the mid 9th century to the mid 10th century. The Arab Emirs who ruled Sicily were progressive monarchs and Sicily enjoyed a sustained period of economic prosperity and intellectual enlightenment. The Arab influence is noticeable in around 300 Sicilian words, most of which relate to agriculture and related activities. This is understandable since the Saracens introduced to Sicily the most (then) modern irrigation and farming techniques and a new range of crops - nearly all of which remain endemic to the island to this day. Some words of Arabic origin:
- babbaluciu - snail (from babus; but Greek boubalàkion)
- burnia - jar (from burniya; but Latin hirnea)
- cafisu - measure for liquids (from qafiz)
- cassata - sicilian cake (from qashatah; but Latin caseata - something made from cheese)
- gebbia - artificial pond to store water for irrigation (from gabiya)
- giuggiulena - sesame seed (from giulgiulan)
- saia - canal (from saqiya)
- zaffarana - type of plant whose flowers are used for medicinal purposes (from safara)
- zagara - blossum (from zahar)
- zibbibbu - type of grape (from zabib)
- zuccu - tree trunk (from suq; but Aragonese soccu and Spanish zoque). Before we move on to the next phase of the language's development, being its most significant, it should be borne in mind that throughout the Arab epoch of sicilian history, a large Greek population remained on the island and continued to use the Greek language, or most certainly, a variant of Greek heavily influenced by Arabic. What is less clear is the extent to which a latin speaking population survived on the island. While a form of Vulgar Latin clearly survived in isolated communities during the Arab epoch, there is much debate as to the influence it had (if any) on the development of the Sicilian language, following the relatinisation of Sicily (discussed in the next section). The best one can do is to conclude that if there was an influence, it is likely to have been minor. This view is supported by the fact that there are few Sicilian words reflecting an archaic Latin form (as may be found, for example, in Sard). However, some forms do exist, so the tantalising prospect of a Sicilian form of a Vulgar Latin surviving the Arab period and influencing the modern development of Sicilian remains open. These are some words of latin origin that may have survived the Arab epoch:
- anchiu - wide, broad (from amplum)
- antura - a while ago (from ante oram - an hour ago)
- asciari - to find (from afflare)
- bìfara - to fruit twice yearly (from bifera)
- cuppigghiuni - beehive (from cupa)
- filìnia - spider's web (from filum, line, strand)
- grasciu - grease (from crassus)
- nutricari - to feed (from nutricare)
- oggiallanu - last year (from hodie est annus)
Linguistic development from the middle ages
In 1000 AD the whole of modern day southern Italy, including Sicily, was a complex mix of small states and principalities, languages, religions and ethnicities. The whole of Sicily was dominated by Muslim Saracens, except for the north-eastern corner, which was predominantly Greek speaking and Christian. The far south of the Italian peninsula was part of the Byzantine empire and predominantly Greek speaking, although many communities were reasonably independent of Constantinople. The principality of Salerno was Lombard. The Lombards (or Langobards) had also started to make some incursions into Byzantine territory and had managed to establish some isolated independent city-states. It was into this mix that Normans thrust themselves in ever increasing numbers during the first half of the 11th century.
Norman French influence
When the two most famous of southern Italy's Norman adventurers, Roger of Hauteville and his brother, Robert Guiscard, began their conquest of Sicily in 1061, they already controlled the far south of Italy (Apulia and Calabria). It took Roger 30 years to complete the conquest of Sicily (Robert died in 1085). In the process, the relatinisation and christianisation of Sicily had begun a second time. A long list of Norman words were to become absorbed by the new language during this period, for example:
- accattari - to buy (from Norman acater, Modern French = Acheter)
- ammintuari – to mention, nominate (from Norman mentevoir)
- bucceri (vucceri) - butcher (from bouchier)
- custureri - tailor (from coustrier)
- firranti - grey (from ferrant)
- foddi - mad (from fol)
- giugnettu - July (from juignet)
- ladiu - ugly (from laid)
- largasìa - generosity (from largesse)
- puseri - thumb (from poucier)
- racina - grape (from raisin)
- raggia – anger (from rage)
- testa - head (from teste)
- trippari - to hop, skip (from Norman triper; but also Provençal and Catalan trepar) The following factors that emerged during or immediately after the conquest were to prove critical in the formation of the Sicilian language:
- The Normans brought with them not only their own French speaking kin (more than likely in quite small numbers), but mercenaries from southern Italy. In particular, these included Lombards (with their Gallo-Italic idiom) and other Italians from around Campania. The latter would bring with them the Vulgar Latin from that region, an idiom not too different from that to be found in central Italy (at the time).
- The thirty year-long war of conquest and the encouragement given to reestablishing Christianity resulted in the depopulation of Saracens in the central parts of Sicily, many of whom escaped to North Africa.
- Further migrations to settle the depopulated areas were encouraged from the mainland by Roger. In particular, Latin settlers from areas controlled by the western church. The western parts of Sicily were colonised by migrants from Campania. The central eastern parts of Sicily were colonised by settlers from the western Po valley in northern Italy (Padania) who also brought with them a Gallo-Italic idiom. After the death of Roger I, and under the regency of Adelaide during the minority of her son, Roger II (herself from northern Italy), this process of "Lombard" colonisation was intensified. We can see above the main factors that go into framing the Sicilian language as we know it today. The Vulgar Latin base (predominantly from Campania) was similar to the Vulgar Latin in central Italy (and therefore, by implication, reasonably similar to the Vulgar Latin in Tuscany that would eventually form the base for the national language). This base from Campania was influenced by the many Gallic influences present in Sicily at the time, namely Norman, French and Langobardic. Underneath that were remnants of the Arabic and Greek idioms that the new language eventually replaced, but hundreds of words remained in the vocabulary of the new Romance language.
Other Gallic influences
The Lombard influence is of particular interest. Even to the present day, a Siculo-Gallic dialect exists in the areas where the Lombard colonies were the strongest, namely Novara, Nicosia, Sperlinga, Aidone and Piazza Amerina. The Siculo-Gallic dialect did not survive in other major Lombard colonies, such as Randazzo, Bronte and Paternò (although they did influence the local sicilian vernacular). The Padanian influence was also felt on the Sicilian language itself, as follows:
- soggiru - father-in-law (from suoxer)
- cugnatu - brother-in-law (from cognau)
- figghiozzu - godson (from figlioz)
- orbu - blind (from orb)
- arricintari - to rinse (from rexentar)
- unni - where (from ond)
- the names of the weeks:
- luni - Monday (from lunes)
- marti - Tuesday (from martes)
- mercuri - Wednesday (from mèrcor)
- jovi - Thursday (from juovia)
- venniri - Friday (from vènner) The origins of another Gallic influence, that of Old Provençal, had three possible sources. #As mentioned above, the number of actual Normans in Sicily (from Normandy) are unlikely to have ever numbered much higher than 5,000 at any time. Their numbers were boosted by mercenaries from southern Italy, but it is also possible that mercenaries came from as far away as southern France. The Normans made San Fratello a garrison town in the early years of the occupation of the north-eastern corner of Sicily. To this day (in ever decreasing numbers) a Siculo-Gallic dialect is spoken in San Fratello that is clearly influenced by Old Provençal, leading one to the conclusion that a significant number in the garrison came from that part of France. This may well explain the dialect spoken only in San Fratello, but it does not wholly explain the diffusion of many Provençal words into the Sicilian language. On that point we are confronted with a further two possibilities. # Some Provençal words may have entered the language during the regency of Queen Margaret between 1166 and 1171 when her son, William II of Sicily succeeded to the throne at the age of 12. The Queen's closest advisers, entourage and administrators were from the south of France, and many Provençal words entered the language during this period. # The Sicilian School of poetry (discussed below) was stongly influenced by the Provençal of the troubadour tradition. This element is deeply imbedded in Sicilian culture, for example, the tradition of Sicilian puppetry (opira dî puppi) and the tradition of the cantastorii (literally sing stories). There is no doubt that Provençal troubadours were active during the reign of Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor, and that some Provençal words would have passed into the Sicilian language via this route. Some examples of Sicilian words derived from Provençal:
- addumari - to light (from allumar)
- aggrifari - to kidnap, abduct (from grifar)
- banna – side, place (from banda)
- burgisi - landowners, citizens (from borges)
- lascu - sparse, thin, infrequent (from lasc)
- lavanca - precipice (from lavanca)
- paraggiu - equal (from paratge)
Sicilian School of Poetry
It was during the reign of Frederick II (or Frederick I of Sicily) between 1198 and 1250, with his patronage of the Sicilian School of poetry, that Sicilian became the first of the Italic idioms to be used as a literary language. The influence of the school, and the use of Sicilian itself as a poetic language, was acknowledged by the two great Tuscan writers of the early Renaissance period Dante and Petrarch. The influence of the Sicilian language cannot be understated in the eventual formulation of a lingua franca that was to become modern Italian. The victory of the Angevin army over the Sicilians at Benevento in 1266 not only marked the end of the 136 year Norman-Swabian reign in Sicily, it effectively ensured that the centre of literary influence would eventually move from Sicily to Tuscany. While Sicilian, as both an official and literary language would continue to exist for another two centuries, the language would soon follow the fortunes of the kingdom itself in terms of prestige and influence. As a side note, there are some Germanic influences in the Sicilian language, and many of these date back to the time of the Swabian kings (amongst which Frederick enjoyed the longest reign). Words that probably originate from this era include:
- arbitriari - to work in the fields (from arbeit)
- vardari - to watch over (from wartên)
- guastari - to waste, use up (from wastjan)
- guddefi - forest, woods (from wald, note resemblance to anglo-saxon wudu)
- guzzuniari - to wag, as in a tail (from hutsen)
- lancedda - terracotta jug for holding water (from old High German lagella)
- salaguni - willow (from old High German salaha)
- sparagnari - to save money (from old High German sparen)
Catalan influence
Following the Sicilian Vespers of 1282, the kingdom was to come under the influence of he Aragonese, and as a result, the Catalan language would add a new layer of vocabulary in the succeeding century. For the whole of the 14th century, both Catalan and Sicilian were the official languages of the royal court. Sicilian was also used to record the proceedings of parliament (one of the oldest parliaments in Europe) and for other official purposes. While it is often difficult to determine whether a word has come to us directly from Catalan (as opposed to Provençal or Spanish), the following are likely to be such examples:
- accabbari - to finish, end (from acabar)
- addunarisi - to notice, realise (from adonar-se)
- affruntarisi - to be embarrassed (from afrontar-se)
- ammucciari - to hide (from amagar)
- arruciari – to moisten, soak (from arruixar)
- criscimogna - growth, development (from creiximoni)
- muccaturi - handkerchief (from mocador)
- nzirtari - to guess (from encertar)
- priarisi - to be pleased (from prear-se)
Spanish period to the modern age
By the time the Aragonese crown was joined with the Spanish realm in the late 15th century, the tuscanisation of written Sicilian in the parliamentary and court records had commenced. By the 1543 this process was virtually complete, the new lingua franca of the Italian peninsula had supplanted written Sicilian – for good. Spanish rule had hastened this process in two important ways:
- unike the Aragonese, almost immediately the Spanish placed viceroys on the Sicilian throne. In a sense, the diminishing prestige of the Sicilian kingdom reflected the decline of Sicilian from an official, written language to eventually a spoken language amongst predominantly illiterates; and
- the expulsion of all Jews from all Spanish dominions in 1492 dealt a double blow to Sicily. Not only did the population decline overnight by almost 10%, many of whom were involved in important industries, but these Jews had been Sicilians for 1,500 years and Sicilian was their mother tongue which they used in their schools. Thus the seeds of a possible broad based education system utilising books written in Sicilian was lost to Sicily forever. Spanish rule lasted over three centuries (not counting the Aragonese and Bourbon periods on either side) and had a significant influence on the Sicilian vocabulary. The following words are of Spanish derivation:
- arricugghìrisi - to return home; (from arrecogerse; but Catalan recollir-se)
- balanza – scales (from balanza)
- filiccia - arrow (from flecha)
- làstima – lament, annoyance (from lástima)
- pignata – pan (from pinada)
- pinzèddu – brush (from pincel)
- ricivu – receipt (from recibo)
- spagnari - to be frightened ( cross over of Sic. appagnari with Sp. espantarse)
- spatari - to impede or disarm someone of his sword (from espadar)
- sulità – solitude (from soledad)
Language situation today
Sicilian is estimated to have millions of speakers. However, it remains very much a home language spoken among peers and close associates. The regional Italian dialect has encroached on Sicilian, most evidently in the speech of the young generations. Poets in Sicily sometimes write in Sicilian. However, most speakers are literate in Italian, not Sicilian. The education system does not support the language. Local universities do not carry courses in Sicilian.
See also

- Sicily, a panorama of history, geography, and art
- Sicilian School, on 13th century courtly-love poetry
- A summary of Sicilian grammar (in Sicilian)
- Pitrè's theory of sounds - a study of the main sound changes between Latin and Sicilian (in Sicilian)
External links

- [http://www.linguasiciliana.org/ www.linguasiciliana.org]
- [http://arbasicula.org/ Arba Sicula] A non-profit organisation dedicated to preserving the Sicilian language (bilingual: English and Sicilian)
- [http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=scn Ethnologue report on Sicilian]
- [http://www.websters-online-dictionary.org/definition/Sicilian-english/ Sicilian - English Dictionary]
- [http://www.websters-online-dictionary.org/ Webster's Dictionary] the Rosetta Edition
References

- Bonner, J K (2001) Introduction to Sicilian Grammar, Legas, New York.
- Camilleri, Salvatore (1998) Vocabolario Italiano Siciliano, Edizioni Greco, Catania.
- Centro di Studi Filologici e Linguistici Siciliani (1977-2002) Vocabolario Siciliano, 5 volumi a cura di Giorgio Piccitto, Catania-Palermo.
- Cipolla, Prof. Gaetano, "U sicilianu è na lingua o un dialettu? / Is Sicilian a Language" in Arba Sicula Volume XXV, 2004 (bilingual: Sicilian and English).
- Giarrizzo, Salvatore, Dizionario Etimologico Siciliano, Herbita Editrice, Palermo.
- Hull, Dr Geoffrey (1989) Polyglot Italy:Languages, Dialects, Peoples, CIS Educational, Melbourne.
- Pitrè, Giuseppe (1875) Grammatica Siciliana, Edizioni Clio.
- Ruffino, Giovanni (2001) Sicilia, Editori Laterza, Bari. Category:Romance languages Category:Languages of Italy Category:Culture of Sicily

Sicily
:Sicilian disambiguates here; see also Sicilian language or Sicilian Defence. Sicily (Sicilia in Italian) is an autonomous region of Italy and the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, with an area of 25,700 sq. km and 5 million inhabitants.
Towns and Cities
Sicily's principal cities include the regional capital Palermo, together with the other provincial capitals Catania, Messina, Syracuse (Siracusa in Italian), Trapani, Enna, Caltanissetta, Agrigento, Ragusa. Other famous Sicilian towns include Cefalù, Taormina, Bronte, Marsala, Corleone, Castellammare del Golfo Francavilla di Sicilia, and Abacaenum (now Tripi).
Flag
For more information, see Flag of Sicily. The regional flag of Sicily, recognized since January 2000, is also the historical one of the island, since 1282. It is divided diagonally yellow over red, with the trinacria symbol in the center. The trinacria symbol is used also by the Isle of Man.
Geography
Isle of Man This region is faced to Calabria over the Strait of Messina, and that's the only conterminous region. The volcano Etna, is situated close to Catania. Etna is 3,320 m (10,900 ft) high, making it the tallest volcano in Europe. It is also one of the world's most active volcanos. The Aeolian islands to the north are administratively a part of Sicily, as are the Aegadian Islands and Pantelleria Island to the west, Ustica Island to the north-west, and the Pelagian Islands to the south-west. Sicily has been noted for two millennia as a grain-producing territory: olives and wine are among its other agricultural products. The mines of the Caltanissetta district became a leading sulphur-producing area in the 19th century, but have declined since the 1950s.
Transport
Vehicles Most of Sicily's motorways (autostrade) run through the north of the region - the most important ones being A19 Palermo - Catania, A20 Palermo - Messina, A29 Palermo - Mazara del Vallo and the paid-for A18 Messina - Catania. Much of the motorway network is raised on columns due to the mountainous terrain. The road network in the south of the country consists of well maintained, yet not motorway-class roads. Train Sicily is connected to the Italian peninsula by the national railway company, Trenitalia, though trains are loaded onto ferries for the crossing from the mainland. Officially, the Stretto di Messina, S.p.A. schedules to the second half of 2006 the beginning of construction on the world's longest suspension bridge, The Strait of Messina Bridge Project. If and when completed, it will mark the first time in history that Sicily has been connected by a land link to Italy. Air Sicily is served by national and international flights (mainly European) from to Palermo International Airport and Catania-Fontanarossa Airport. There are also minor national airports in Trapani and small islands of Pantelleria and Lampedusa.
Arts
Lampedusa Sicily is well known as a country of art: many poets and writers were born on this region, starting from the Sicilian School in the early 13th century, which inspired much subsequent Italian poetry and created the first Italian standard. The most famous, however, are Luigi Pirandello, Giovanni Verga, Salvatore Quasimodo, Gesualdo Bufalino and the dialectal poet Ignazio Buttitta. Other Sicilian artists include the composers Sigismondo d'India (from Palermo), Vincenzo Bellini (from Catania), as well as the sculptor Tommaso Geraci. Noto and Ragusa contain some of Italy's best examples of Baroque architecture, carved in the local red sandstone. Caltagirone is renowned for its decorative ceramics. Palermo is also a major center of Italian opera. Its Teatro Massimo is the largest opera house in Italy and the third largest in the world, seating 1400. Sicily is also home to two prominent folk art traditions, both of which draw heavily on the island's Norman influence. Donkey carts are painted with intricate decorations of scenes from the Norman romantic poems, such as The Song of Roland. The same tales are told in traditional puppet theatres which feature hand-made wooden marionettes. The 1988 movie Nuovo Cinema Paradiso was about life in a Sicilian town following the Second World War.
History
The autochthonous peoples of Sicily, long absorbed into the population, were tribes known to Greek writers as the Elymians, the Sicani and the Siculi or Siceli. Of these, the last were clearly the latest to arrive on this land and were related to other tribes of southern Italy, such as the Italoi of Calabria, the Oenotrians, Chones, and Leuterni (or Leutarni), the Opicans, and the Ausones. Sicily was colonized by Phoenicians and Punic settlers from Carthage and by Greeks, starting in the 8th century BC. The most important colony was established at Syracuse in 734 BC. Other important Greek colonies were Gela, Acragas, Selinunte, Himera, and Zancle or Messene (modern-day Messina, not to be confused with the ancient city of Messene in Messenia, Greece). These city states were an important part of classical Greek civilization, which included Sicily as part of Magna Graecia - both Empedocles and Archimedes were from Sicily. Sicilian politics was intertwined with politics in Greece itself, leading Athens, for example, to mount the disastrous Sicilian Expedition during the Peloponnesian War. The Greeks came into conflict with the Punic trading communities with ties to Carthage, which was on the African mainland not far from the southwest corner of the region, and had its own colonies on Sicily. Palermo was a Carthaginian city, founded in the 8th century BC, named Zis or Sis ("Panormos" to the Greeks). Hundreds of Phoenician and Carthaginian grave sites have been found in necropoli over a large area of Palermo, now built over, south of the Norman palace, where the Norman kings had a vast park. In the far west, Lilybaeum (now Marsala) never was thoroughly Hellenized. In the First and Second Sicilian Wars, Carthage was in control of all but the eastern part of Sicily, which was dominated by Syracuse. In the 3rd century BC the Messanan Crisis motivated the intervention of the Roman Republic into Sicilian affairs, and led to the First Punic War between Rome and Carthage. By the end of war (242 BC) all Sicily was in Roman hands, becoming Rome's first province outside of the Italian peninsula. The initial success of the Carthaginians during the Second Punic War encouraged many of the Sicilian cities to revolt against Roman rule. Rome sent troops to put down the rebellions (it was during the siege of Syracuse that Archimedes was killed). Carthage briefly took control of parts of Sicily, but in the end was driven off. Many Carthaginian sympathizers were killed-- in 210 BC the Roman consul M. Valerian told the Roman Senate that "no Carthaginian remains in Sicily". For the next 6 centuries Sicily was a province of the Roman Empire. It was something of a rural backwater, important chiefly for its grainfields which were a mainstay of the food supply of the city of Rome. The empire did not make much effort to Romanize the region, which remained largely Greek. The most notable event of this period was the notorious misgovernment of Verres. In AD 440 Sicily fell to the Vandal king Geiseric. A few decades later it came into Ostrogothic hands, where it remained until it was conquered by the Byzantine general Belisarius in 535. But a new Ostrogoth king, Totila, drove down the Italian peninsula and then plundered and conquered Sicily in 550. He in turn was defeated and killed by the Byzantine general Narses in 552. Sicily was then ruled by the Byzantine Empire until the Arab conquest of AD 827-902. For a brief period (662 - 668) during Byzantine rule Syracuse was the imperial capital, until Constans II was assassinated. The cultural diversity and religious tolerance of the period of Muslim rule under the Kalbid dynasty, that made Palermo the capital city of Sicily, continued under the Normans who conquered Sicily in 1060-1090 (raising its status to that of a kingdom in 1130), and the south German Hohenstaufen dynasty which ruled from 1194, adopting as well Palermo as its principal seat from 1220. Conflict between the Hohenstaufen house and the Papacy led in 1266 to Sicily's conquest by Charles I, duke of Anjou: opposition to French officialdom and taxation led in 1282 to insurrection (the Sicilian Vespers) and successful invasion by king Peter III of Aragón. Ruled from 1479 by the kings of Spain, Sicily suffered a ferocious outbreak of plague (1656), followed by a damaging earthquake in the east of the region (1693). Periods of rule by the crown of Savoy (1713-20) and then the Austrian Habsburgs gave way to union (1734) with the Bourbon-ruled kingdom of Naples as the kingdom of the Two Sicilies. The scene in 1820 and 1848 of abortive revolutionary movements against Bourbon denial of constitutional government, Sicily was joined with the kingdom of Italy in 1860 following the expedition of Giuseppe Garibaldi. Before the unification Sicily was one of the most rich and developed regions of Italy, then its national treasure and its facilities were exploited to create the new industrial growth which transformed the poor urban areas of northern Italy into the large economic heart of the nation. In 1866 Palermo insurged against Italy. The city was soon bombed by the Italian navy, which disembarked on September 22, under the command of Raffaele Cadorna. Italian soldiers summarily executed the civilian insurgents, and took possession once again of the island. A long extensive guerrilla campaign against the unionists (1861-1871) took place throughout southern Italy, and in Sicily, inducing the Italian governments to a ferocious military repression. Ruled under martial law for many years Sicily (and southern Italy) was ravaged by the Italian army that summarily executed hundred thousands people, made tens of thousands prisoners, destroyed villages, and deported people. The Sicilian economy collapsed, leading to an unprecedented wave of emigration. In 1894 labour agitation through the radical Fasci dei lavoratori led once again to the imposition of martial law. The organised crime networks commonly known as the mafia extended their influence in the late 19th century (and many of its operatives also emigrated to other countries, particularly the United States); partly suppressed under the Fascist regime beginning in the 1920s, they recovered following the World War II Allied invasion of Sicily. An autonomous region from 1946, Sicily benefited to some extent from the partial Italian land reform of 1950-62 and special funding from the Cassa per il Mezzogiorno, the Italian government's indemnification Fund for the South (1950-84). Sicily returned to the headlines in 1992, however, when the assassination of two anti-mafia magistrates, Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino triggered a general upheaval in Italian political life.
Sicilian people
In the broadest sense of the term, Sicilians are those people who live in or whose ancestors lived in Sicily. Sicily has been long known as a "melting pot" of ancient cultures and peoples, and highly valued for its location. The inhabitants of this region are therefore descended from numerous peoples, mainly Greeks, peninsular Italians, Phoenicians, Saracen Arabs and the pre-colonial indigenous peoples known as Sicans/Sicani (generally residing in the west of Sicily and possibly an Iberian tribe), the Elymi, and the Sicels/Siculi (residing mostly in the eastern portion of the Sicilian territory and probably an Italic tribe). There is also the presence of Norman, Lombard, Provençal, Aragonese and Castilian blood in some Sicilians, due to either conquest of, or migration here. A common presumption about the peopling of Sicily has been as follows: ::Sicilians residing in the east, southeast, and northeast portions of the region are primarily of Greek (and probably Sicel) descent. Cities such as Syracuse (Sirakousa), Messina (Zankle), Agrigento (Akragas), and Taormina/Giardini-Naxos, were originally Greek settlements. In the southwest, west, and northwest of the region, the inhabitants are primarily of Phoenician/Arab and Sican descent. Cities such as Trapani and Palermo were Phoenician settlements. However, a recent genetic study (Department of Biology, University of Rome, Tor Vergata, Italy) rejects the above assertions: ::The genetic distance matrix used for identifying the main genetic barriers revealed no east-west differences within the region's population, at least at the provincial level. FST estimates proved that the population subdivision did not affect the pattern of gene frequency variation; this implies that Sicily is effectively one panmictic unit. The bulk of our results confirm the absence of genetic differentiation between eastern and western Sicilians, and thus we reject the hypothesis of the subdivision of an ancient population in two areas. The few Sicilians with Norman or Spanish blood are found mostly in the large northern cities such as Palermo and Cefalu. Sicilians of Lombard descent are to be found primarily in the centre and central-east of Sicily, in towns such as Piazza Amerina, Nicosia and Aidone, where a Gallic-Italic dialect is spoken to this day. There were also significant Lombard settlements in Randazzo and Paternó in the middle ages. San Fratello, in the Province of Messina, was the destination of a large contingent of mercenaries from Provence in the middle ages, and to this day, the San Fratellans speak a unique Provençal-Sicilian dialect. Sicilians are noted for having very dark and expressive eyes; "the eyes of Sicily".
Sicilian language
Main article: Sicilian language Many Sicilians are bilingual in both Italian and Sicilian, a separate Romance language, descended from Vulgar Latin, with Greek, Arabic, French, Provençal, German, Catalan and Spanish influences. It is important to note that Sicilian is not a derivative of Italian. Although thought by some to be a dialect, Sicilianu is a distinct language, with a rich history and a sizeable vocabulary (at least 250,000 words), due to the influence of the different conquerors of, and settlers to, this land. Sicilian dialects are also spoken in the southern and central sections of the Italian regions Calabria (Calabrese) and Puglia (Salentino); and had a significant influence on the Maltese Language, which was a part of the Kingdom of Sicily (in its various forms) until the late 18th century. With the predominance of Italian in Italian schools, the media, etc., Sicilian is no longer the first language of many Sicilians. Indeed, in urban centers in particular, one is more likely to hear standard Italian spoken rather than Sicilian, especially among the young. Sicilian generally uses the word ending for singular masculine nouns and adjectives, and for feminine. The plural is usually for both masculine and feminine. By contrast, in Italian masculine nouns and adjectives that end in in the singular pass to in the plural, while the feminine counterparts pass from to . The "-LL-" sound (in words of Latin origin, for example) manifests itself in Sicilian as a voiced retroflex plosive with the tip of the tongue curled up and back, a sound which is not part of Standard Italian. In Sicilian, this sound is written simply as "-dd-" although the sound itself is not but rather . For example, the Italian word bello is beddu in Sicilian. In numerous villages, the Arbëreshë dialect of the Albanian language has been spoken since a wave of refugees settled there in the 15th century. While it is spoken within the household, Italian is the official language and modern Greek is chanted in the local Byzantine liturgy. There are also several areas where dialects of the Lombard language of the Gallo-Italic family are spoken. Much of this population is also tri-lingual, being able to also speak one of the Sicilian dialects as well.
List of Sicilians

- Empedocles (c. 490 BC – 430 BC), scientist and philosopher
- Diodorus (1st century BC), historian
- Gorgias (c. 483 BC – 375 BC), sophist, philosopher, and rhetorician
- Archimedes (c. 287 BC – 212 BC), scientist
- Pope Leo II, Pope from 682 to 683
- Roger II of Sicily, King of Sicily 1130 – 1154
- William I of Sicily, King of Sicily 1154 – 1166
- William II of Sicily, King of Sicily 1166 – 1189
- Frederick II (1194 – 1250), Holy Roman Emperor and King of Sicily (Frederick I of Sicily)
- Vincenzo Bellini (1801 – 1835), opera composer
- Francesco Crispi (1819 – 1901), politician
- Giovanni Verga (1840 – 1922), novelist
- Vito Cascio Ferro (1862 – 1943), mafioso
- Luigi Pirandello (1867 – 1936), dramatist, winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature
- Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa (1896 – 1957), writer, poet
- Ignazio Buttitta (1901 – 2000), poet
- Salvatore Quasimodo (1901 – 1968), poet, winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature
- Andrea Camilleri (born 1925), novelist
- Giovanni Falcone (1939 – 1992), judge
- Paolo Borsellino (1940 – 1992), judge
- Salvatore Schillaci (born 1964), football player
- Maria Grazia Cucinotta (born 1969), actress
- Giovanni Meli, poet
- Nino Martoglio, poet
List of Sicilian-Americans

- Frank Capra (1897 – 1991), film director
- Vincent R. Impellitteri (1900 – 1987), politican
- Anthony T. Rossi (1900 – 1993), businessman
- Giuseppe Bonanno (1905 – 2002), mafioso
- Joe DiMaggio (1914 – 1999), professional baseball player
- Frank Sinatra (1915 – 1998), singer, actor
- Mario Puzo (1920 – 1999), writer
- Jack Valenti (born 1921), lobbyist
- Philip Zimbardo (born 1933), psychologist
- Salvatore Bono (1935 – 1998), entertainer, politician
- Antonin Scalia (born 1936), U.S Supreme Court Justice
- Sal Mineo (1939 – 1976), actor
- Al Pacino (born 1940), actor
- Frank Vincent Zappa (1940 – 1993), composer, guitarist, singer and satirist
- Martin Scorcese (born 1942), film director
- Cyndi Lauper (born 1953), pop singer
- Dan Frisa (born 1955), Congressman
- Mike Piazza (born 1963), professional baseball player
See also

- Sicilian language
- Sicilian School
- Cuisine of Sicily
- Category:People of Sicilian heritage
- Monarchs of Naples and Sicily
- Two Sicilies
- Normans
- Triskelion
- Sicilian music
Notes
# Category:Regions of Italy
- Category:Former countries in Europe Category:NUTS 2 Statistical Regions of Europe zh-min-nan:Sicilia ko:시칠리아 ja:シチリア島

Catania

Catania is the second largest city of Sicily and is the capital of the province which bears its name. With 306,464 inhabitants it has the second highest population density on the island. It is located at 37° 31'N 15° 04'E on the east coast of the island, half way between Messina and Siracusa and is at the foot of the active volcano Mount Etna. It was founded in the 8th century BC by Greek colonizers from Chalcis in Euboea led by Evarco, used to be called Ætna, after the volcano, c. 480–461 BC and has also been known as Katane (see also List of traditional Greek place names). It was extensively destroyed by earthquakes in 1169 and 1693 and by lava flows which ran over and around it into the sea. The first Sicilian university was founded there in 1434. The city's patronal saint is Saint Agata. The city has been buried by lava a total of seven times in recorded history, and in layers under the present day city are the Roman city that preceded it, and the Greek city before that. Today, the tops of the immense Greek and Roman amphitheatres are at street level and in several places the adventurous can descend into the numerous and uncharted tunnels under the city, although the perils of finding pockets of poisonous gas or being found down there by nasty people make this highly unadvisable. Roman]]Under the city runs the river Amenano, visible in just one point, on the south side of Piazza Duomo. It has a commercial seaport in the city, an international airport (Catania Fontanarossa) to the South, a central train station (Catania Centrale) on the main lines Messina-Syracuse, Catania-Gela and Catania-Palermo, as well as the privately-owned small-gauge Circumetnea railway which runs for 110km from Catania round the base of Mount Etna, attaining the height of 976m above sea level before descending to rejoin the coast at Giarre-Riposto to the North. In the late 1990s/early 2000s the first line of an underground railway was built under the city, extending the Circumetnea from its stop on the north side of town to the Central Railway Station on the southeast. In the late 1980's and 1990's Catania had a very unique popular music scene with local radio stations such as Radio Marte (which is now defunct but which was the premier radio station in Catania in the 1995-1998 period, Radio Luna (which was the preier radio station in Catania in the 1998 - 1999 period and is also now defunct) and Radio Delfino (the premier radio station in the 2001 to 2003 period. As a result of these idiosyncratic and regional radio stations Catania boasted a youth culture in which indie pop and indie rock from lesser known international bands like The Violent Femmes, Robert Gordon, The Mexican Spitfires, Ben Vaughan, Dirty Looks, Alan Vega, Camper Van Beethoven, Pylon, Pixies and the Human Beinz were popular and received regular airplay. As a result of the eclectic taste in indie pop and indie rock Catania has been the birthplace of a number of dynamic and unusual independent music record labels such as No Tyme Records and BTV Service. Over the last decade, Catania has seen an explosion in its nightlife. In 1992 the city streets were almost deserted from 8pm until 8am but ten years later, thanks to more permissive licensing, restaurants, cafe's and bars are open and the streets and squares are lively until 3 and 4 in the morning. Catania is also the Italian city with the highest number of theaters per square kilometer, with numerous professional and amateur theatre companies based there. It is the home of Amatori Catania rugby union team, and Calcio Catania football team. See also: Etna valley.

External links

- [http://www.italianvisits.com/sicily/catania/ ItalianVisits.com] ---- This article incorporates some information taken from http://www.hostkingdom.net/ with permission. Other material is translated from the Italian wikipedia site. Category:Cities in Sicily Category:Euboean colonies of Magna Graecia Category:Sicilian Baroque ja:カターニア

Europe

:This article is about the continent. For other meanings, see Europe (disambiguation). Europe is geologically and geographically a peninsula or subcontinent, forming the westernmost part of Eurasia. It is conventionally considered a continent, which, in this case, is more of a cultural distinction than a geographic one. It is bounded to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the west by the Atlantic Ocean and to the south by the Mediterranean and Black Seas and the Caucasus. Europe's boundary to the east is vague, but has traditionally been given as the Ural Mountains and Caspian Sea to the southeast: the Urals are considered by most to be a geographical and tectonic landmark separating Asia from Europe. :See also Continent, Bicontinental country, and Table of European territories and regions. Table of European territories and regions Table of European territories and regions Europe is the world's second-smallest continent in terms of area, covering around 10,790,000 km² (4,170,000 sq mi) or 2.1% of the Earth's surface, and is only larger than Australia. In terms of population, it is the third-largest continent (Asia and Africa are larger) with a population of more than 700,000,000, or about 11% of the world's population.

Etymology

Africa.]] In Greek mythology, Europa was a Phoenician princess who was abducted by Zeus in bull form and taken to the island of Crete, where she gave birth to Minos. For Homer, Europé (Greek: Ευρωπη; see also List of traditional Greek place names) was a mythological queen of Crete, not a geographical designation. Later Europa stood for mainland Greece, and by 500 BC its meaning had been extended to lands to the north. The Greek term Europe has been derived from Greek words meaning broad (eurys) and face (ops) -- broad having been an epitheton of Earth herself in the reconstructed Proto-Indo-European religion; see Prithvi (Plataia). A minority, however, suggest this Greek popular etymology is really based on a Semitic word such as the Akkadian erebu meaning "sunset" (see also Erebus). From the Middle Eastern vantagepoint, the sun does set over Europe, the lands to the west. Likewise, Asia is sometimes thought to have derived from the Akkadian word asu, meaning "sunrise", and is the land to the east from a Mesopotamian perspective.

History

Europe has a long history of cultural and economic achievement, starting as far back as the Palaeolithic, although this is true for the rest of the Old World as well. The recent discovery at Monte Poggiolo, Italy, of thousands of hand-shaped stones, tentatively carbon-dated to 800,000 years ago, may prove to be of particular importance. The origins of Western democratic and individualistic culture are often attributed to Ancient Greece, though numerous other distinct influences, in particular Christianity, can also be credited with the spread of concepts like egalitarianism and universality of law. The Roman Empire divided the continent along the Rhine and Danube for several centuries. Following the decline of the Roman Empire, Europe entered a long period of changes arising from what is known as the Age of Migrations. That period has been known as the "Dark Ages" to Renaissance thinkers. During this time, isolated monastic communities in Ireland and elsewhere carefully safeguarded and compiled written knowledge accumulated previously. The Renaissance and the New Monarchs marked the start of a period of discovery, exploration, and increase in scientific knowledge. In the 15th century Portugal opened the age of discoveries, soon followed by Spain. They were later joined by France, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom in building large colonial empires with vast holdings in Africa, the Americas, and Asia. After the age of discovery, the ideas of democracy took hold in Europe. Struggles for independence arose, most notably in France during the period known as the French Revolution. This led to vast upheaval in Europe as these revolutionary ideas propagated across the continent. The rise of democracy led to increased tensions within Europe on top of the tensions already existing due to competition within the New World. The most famous of these conflicts was when Napoleon Bonaparte rose to power and set out on a conquest, forming a new French empire that soon collapsed. After these conquests Europe stabilised, but the old foundations were already beginning to crumble. The Industrial Revolution started in the United Kingdom in the late 18th century, leading to a move away from agriculture, much greater general prosperity and a corresponding increase in population. Many of the states in Europe took their present form in the aftermath of World War I. From the end of World War II through the end of the Cold War, Europe was divided into two major political and economic blocks: Communist nations in Eastern Europe and capitalist countries in Western Europe. Around 1990, with the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Eastern bloc disintegrated.

Geography and extent

Eastern bloc Geographically Europe is a part of the larger landmass known as Eurasia. The continent begins at the Ural Mountains in Russia, which define Europe's eastern boundary with Asia. The southeast boundary with Asia isn't universally defined. Most commonly the Ural or, alternatively, the Emba river can serve as possible boundaries. The boundary continues with the Caspian Sea, and then the Araxes river in the Caucasus, and on to the Black Sea; the Bosporus, the Sea of Marmara, and the Dardanelles conclude the Asian boundary. The Mediterranean Sea to the south separates Europe from Africa. The western boundary is the Atlantic Ocean, but Iceland, much farther away than the nearest points of Africa and Asia, is also often included in Europe. There is ongoing debate on where the geographical centre of Europe is. At times "Europe" is defined with greater regard to political, economic, and other cultural considerations. This has led to there being several different Europes that are not always identical in size, including or excluding countries according to the definition of Europe used. Almost all European countries are members of the Council of Europe, the exceptions being Belarus, and the Holy See (Vatican City). The idea of the European continent is not held across all cultures. Some non-European geographical texts refer to the continent of Eurasia, or to the European peninsula, given that Europe is not surrounded by sea. In the past concepts such as Christendom were deemed more important. In another usage, Europe is increasingly being used as a short-form for the European Union (EU) and its members, currently consisting of 25 member states. A number of other European countries are negotiating for membership, and several more are expected to begin negotiations in the future (see Enlargement of the European Union).

Physical features

In terms of shape, Europe is a collection of connected peninsulas. The two largest of these are "mainland" Europe and Scandinavia to the north, divided from each other by the Baltic Sea. Three smaller peninsulas (Iberia, Italy and the Balkans) emerge from the southern margin of the mainland into the Mediterranean Sea, which separates Europe from Africa. Eastward, mainland Europe widens much like the mouth of a funnel, until the boundary with Asia is reached at the Ural Mountains. Land relief in Europe shows great variation within relatively small areas. The southern regions, however, are more mountainous, while moving north the terrain descends from the high Alps, Pyrenees and Carpathians, through hilly uplands, into broad, low northern plains, which are vast in the east. This extended lowland is known as the Great European Plain, and at its heart lies the North German Plain. An arc of uplands also exists along the northwestern seaboard, beginning in the western British Isles and continuing along the mountainous, fjord-cut spine of Norway. This description is simplified. Sub-regions such as Iberia and Italy contain their own complex features, as does mainland Europe itself, where the relief contains many plateaus, river valleys and basins that complicate the general trend. Iceland and the British Isles are special cases. The former is a land unto itself in the northern ocean which is counted as part of Europe, while the latter are upland areas that were once joined to the mainland until rising sea levels cut them off. Due to the few generalisations that can be made about the relief of Europe, it is less than surprising that its many separate regions provided homes for many separate nations throughout history.

Biodiversity

Having lived side-by-side with agricultural peoples for millennia, Europe's animals and plants have been profoundly affected by the presence and activities of man. With the exception of Scandinavia and northern Russia, few areas of untouched wilderness are today to be found in Europe, except for different natural parks. The main natural vegetation cover in Europe is forest. The conditions for growth are very favourable. In the north, the Gulf Stream and North Atlantic Drift warm the continent. Southern Europe could be described as having a warm, but mild climate. There are frequent summer droughts in this region. Mountain ridges also affect the conditions. Some of these (Alps, Pyrenees) are oriented east-west and allow the wind to carry large masses of water from the ocean in the interior. Others are oriented south-north (Scandinavian Mountains, Dinarides, Carpathians, Apennines) and because the rain falls primarily on the side of mountains that is oriented towards sea, forests grow well on this side, while on the other side, the conditions are much less favourable. Few corners of mainland Europe have not been grazed by livestock at some point in time, and the cutting down of the pre-agricultural forest habitat caused disruption to the original plant and animal ecosystems. Eighty to ninety per cent of Europe was once covered by forest. It stretched from the Mediterranean Sea to the Arctic Ocean. Though over half of Europe's original forests disappeared through the centuries of colonisation, Europe still has over one quarter of the world's forests - spruce forests of Scandinavia, vast pine forests in Russia, chestnut rainforests of the Caucasus and the cork oak forests in the Mediterranean. During recent times, deforestation has been stopped and many trees were planted. However, in many cases conifers have been preferred over original deciduous trees, because these grow quicker. The plantations and monocultures now cover vast areas of land and this offers very poor habitats for European forest dwelling species. The amount of original forests in Western Europe is just two to three per cent (in the European part of Russia five to ten per cent). The country with the smallest forest-covered area is Ireland (eight per cent), while the most forested country is Finland (72 per cent). In "mainland" Europe, deciduous forest prevails. The most important species are beech, birch and oak. In the north, where taiga grows, a very common tree species is the birch tree. In the Mediterranean, many olive trees have been planted, which are very well adapted to its arid climate. Another common species in Southern Europe is the cypress. Coniferous forests prevail at higher altitudes up to the forest boundary and as one moves north within Russia and Scandinavia, giving way to tundra as the Arctic is approached. The semi-arid Mediterranean region hosts much scrub forest. A narrow east-west tongue of Eurasian grassland—the steppe—extends eastwards from Ukraine and southern Russia and ends in Hungary and traverses into taiga to the north. Glaciation during the most recent ice age and the presence of man affected the distribution of European fauna. As for the animals, in many parts of Europe most large animals and top predator species have been hunted to extinction. The woolly mammoth and aurochs were extinct before the end of the Neolithic period. Today wolves (carnivores) and bears (omnivores) are endangered. Once they were found in most parts of Europe. However, deforestation caused these animals to withdraw further and further. By the Middle Ages the bears' habitats were limited to more or less inaccessible mountains with sufficient forest cover. Today, the brown bear lives primarily in the Balkan peninsula, in the North and in Russia; a small number also persist in other countries across Europe (Austria, Pyrenees etc.), but in these areas brown bear populations are fragmented and marginalised because of the destruction of their habitat. In the far North of Europe, polar bears can also be found. The wolf, the second largest predator in Europe after the brown bear, can be found primarily in Eastern Europe and in the Balkans. Other important European carnivores are Eurasian lynx, European wild cat, foxes (especially the red fox), jackal and different species of martens, hedgehogs, different species of snakes (vipers, grass snake...), different birds (owls, hawks and other birds of prey) Important European herbivores are snails, amphibians, fish, different birds, and mammals, like rodents, deers and roe deers, boars, and living in the mountains, marmots, steinbocks, chamoises among others. Sea creatures are also an important part of European flora and fauna. The sea flora is mainly phytoplankton. Important animals that live in European seas are zooplankton, molluscs, echinoderms, different crayfish, squids and octopuses, fish, dolphins, and whales. Some animals live in caves, for example proteus and bats.

Demographics

Almost all of Europe was possibly settled before or during the last ice age ca. 10,000 years ago. Neanderthal man and modern man coexisted during at least some of this time. Roman road building helped with the interbreeding of the native Europeans' genetics. In contemporary times Europe has one of the lowest inbreeding rates in the world because of an extensive transport network paired with open borders. Europe passed well over 600 million people before the turn of the 20th century, but now is entering a period of population decline, for a variety of social factors.

Territories and divisions

Political divisions

Independent states

interbreeding on this map.]] :See also: Table of European territories and regions The following independent states have territory in Europe: ² Azerbaijan and Georgia lie partly in Europe according to the usual definition which consider the crest of the Caucasus as the boundary with Asia.
³ Kazakhstan's European territory consists of a portion west of the Ural and Emba Rivers.
⁴ The name of this state is a matter of international dispute. See Republic of Macedonia for details.
⁵ Those territories of Russia lying west of the Ural Mountains are considered as part of Europe.
⁶ State union of Republic of Serbia and the Republic of Montenegro.
⁷ European Turkey comprises territory to the west and north of the Bosporus and the Dardanelles straits.
^{2, 3, 5, 7} See Countries in both Europe and Asia for details.

Dependent territories

The European territories listed below are recognised as being culturally and geographically defined. Most have a degree of autonomy. In the list below, each territory is followed by its legal status.
- Faroe Islands (autonomous region of Denmark)
- Gibraltar (UK overseas territory)
- Guernsey (British crown dependency)
- Jersey (British crown dependency)
- Man, Isle of (British crown dependency)
- Svalbard (autonomous region of Norway) Note that this is not a list of all dependencies of a