Austin

The BIG little

Book of Italy

By: Austin George, Cade Kalander, Austin Ciokiewicz, and Josh Butzman

Early Italy

The first people in modern day

Italy were hunters and gatherers. The

hunters and gatherers crossed the

Alps and settled. The migration of

these Indo-European people began at

about 2,000 B.C.

Neanderthal cave painting found in Italy.

The Etruscans

The Etruscans were the first

society based civilization in Italy.

Etruscans were famous for making

beautiful gold and silver jewelry. The

Etruscan empire ruled all of Italy, until

Rome broke free in 510 B.C.

The Romans

The Great Roman ruler Julius Caesar expanded the

Roman Empire until he was murdered. The Empire

stretched across almost all of Europe and to the Middle

East. After his death, Caesar’s great nephew, Octavian,

was proclaimed the first Roman emperor and for 200

years there was peace and stability. The Romans built

the great wonder, the Coliseum, for bloody gladiator

sports and other entertainment. After over 500 years,

the Roman Empire ended when emperor Romulus

Augustlus surrendered to the barbarian King Odoacer.

Middle Ages to Today

Italy was the cultural center of the western

world from the 13th-16th century. City-

states with high political and commercial

rivalries were intense and flourished in the

late middle ages. The great writer,

inventor, musician and artist Leonardo da

Vinci was born in Italy during the

Renaissance.

Roman Religion

The ancient Romans believed in many gods and goddesses. The

gods and goddesses were worshiped in temples. According to

the Romans, after you die your soul goes to the underworld.

The family of the person that died would put two coins on the

dead person’s eyes to give to the fairy man.

Gods and Goddesses of Rome

Saturn was a Ruler, and Jupiter was the god of the sky. Juno

was the goddess of watching over the women in ancient Rome,

and Neptune was the god of the seas. Minerva was the goddess

of wisdom and work, and Mars was the god of all the wars in

ancient Rome. Venus was the goddess of love.

The Churches of Italy

The Roman Catholic Church is considered the most powerful

church in Italy. The history of the Roman Catholic Church is

based as much on politics as it is on religion. Before Christianity,

Roman worshiped a series of gods and goddesses.

Catholicism and Faith

One cannot know the true nature of this

country and its people without understanding

the role faith plays in Italian life. Italy has

been a land of deep faith since time

immortal. Almost all the people in Italy are

Catholic. About ninety percent of Italy is

Catholic, seven percent are irreligion, two

percent are Islam, and one percent is other.

Religion in Italy

Cathlic

Irreligion

Islam

Other

Italian sports

Did you know that every spring the tour of Italy has

bicycle races which attract the world’s best riders?

In Italy girls prefer playing volleyball and basketball.

Boys are currently attracted to football, or in

America soccer. In Italy they also play a sport called

bocce. Bocce is played on dirt and you roll a

wooden ball to hit a bigger wooden ball.

In Italy there are millions of licensed hunters, no

wonder there is a shortage of animals. Pollution and

over fishing has resulted in smaller amounts of fish

catches in Italy. Italians spend months training for

the Polio races that last about 2 minutes riding on a

horse.

The Italian soccer team is a current title holder. Also

they are considered the second most successful

soccer team in the world. Did you know in Italy the

winter sports are the most watched and enjoyed

sporting events?

Italians consider basketball to be the next most

popular after soccer. After basketball cycling is the

next most popular sport in Italy. Italians say cycling

is apart of their life and cycling makes history.

Italian Foods.

Coffee is the most popular drink in all of Italy.

There is a food that they eat called chickpeas. Chickpeas are a

kind of round bean, and are eaten throughout Italy. For some

reason they only eat special foods only in the summer because

only certain foods grow in the summer

Italian Cooking

Italian chefs make pasta using rigatoni noodles.

Rigatoni is short, slightly curved, noodles. A dessert that they

make are maraschino cherries, they are a large type of cherry

that is soaked in a sweet liquid. An appetizer that they make is

called an antipasto. An antipasto is a large plate filled with

meat, vegetables, and cheese.

ItalIan’ DIet

Italians don’t have big breakfasts; they usually have a

light breakfast. The only big meal they have is at dinner time.

The dinner they eat has three different entrée’s, fish, pasta, and

any meat that is on the menu. The Italians eat hundreds of

different cheeses, like mozzarella, and parmesan.

History of pizza

There are many different styles of pizza, Italian, New

York, and Chicago style. They say that the word pizza came

from the word Pinza. Italy had tomatoes since the 1530’s, but

they thought tomatoes were poisonous, so they didn’t use

tomatoes until the 18th and 19th century. By the middle ages

Italian pizza took on more modern look and taste.