This week Italian students in Years 3 and 4 journeyed through time, learning about the history of Italian nationhood beginning with the Roman Empire and concluding with the unification, known in Italian as the Risorgimento, of the region’s city-states and the formation of the modern Italian state in 1861.
Unification resulted in an Italian state made up of 20 clearly defined regions each with its own identity.
To bring this history to life the students were split into groups and took part in a race to unify Italy!
Many students were surprised to learn that Italy, as we know it today, is only around 150 years old and that the language they learn in class is a variation of the Tuscan dialect that was adopted by the state after Unification, having previously been a literary language used by the upper-classes.
Today, each region still retains their unique dialect and cultural traditions.