TuscanyTuscany (ˈtʌskəni ; Toscana tosˈkaːna) is a region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of about 3.8 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence (Firenze). Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, artistic legacy, and its influence on high culture. It is regarded as the birthplace of the Italian Renaissance and of the foundations of the Italian language. The prestige established by the Tuscan dialect's use in literature by Dante Alighieri, Petrarch, Giovanni Boccaccio, Niccolò Machiavelli and Francesco Guicciardini led to its subsequent elaboration as the language of culture throughout Italy.
De vulgari eloquentiaDe vulgari eloquentia (de vulˈgaːri eloˈkwɛntsja; "On eloquence in the vernacular") is the title of a Latin essay by Dante Alighieri. Although meant to consist of four books, it abruptly terminates in the middle of the second book. It was probably composed shortly after Dante went into exile, circa 1302–1305. In the first book, Dante discusses the relationship between Latin and the vernacular languages, and the search for an "illustrious" vernacular in the Italian area; the second book is an analysis of the structure of the canto or song (also known as canzuni in Sicilian), which is a literary genre developed in the Sicilian School of poetry.
CorsicaCorsica (ˈkɔrsɪkə , Upper ˈkorsiɡa, Southern ˈkɔrsika, ˈkɔrsika; Corse kɔʁs; Còrsega) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the 18 regions of France. It is the fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of the French mainland, west of the Italian Peninsula and immediately north of the Italian island of Sardinia, which is the land mass nearest to it. A single chain of mountains makes up two-thirds of the island. , it had a population of 351,255. The island is a territorial collectivity of France.
Kingdom of ItalyThe Kingdom of Italy (Regno d'Italia, ˈreɲɲo diˈtaːlja) was a state that existed from 17 March 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Sardinia was proclaimed King of Italy, until 2 June 1946, when civil discontent led to an institutional referendum to abandon the monarchy and form the modern Italian Republic. The kingdom was established through the unification of several states over a decades-long process, called the Risorgimento. That process was influenced by the Savoy-led Kingdom of Sardinia, which can be considered Italy's legal predecessor state.
Florentine dialectThe Florentine dialect or vernacular (dialetto fiorentino or vernacolo fiorentino) is a variety of Tuscan, a Romance language spoken in the Italian city of Florence and its immediate surroundings. A received pedagogical variant derived from it historically, once called la pronuncia fiorentina emendata (literally, 'the amended Florentine pronunciation'), was officially prescribed as the national language of the Kingdom of Italy, when it was established in 1861.
PistoiaPistoia (USpɪˈstɔɪə,_piːˈstoʊjɑː, pisˈtoːja) is a city and comune in the Italian region of Tuscany, the capital of a province of the same name, located about west and north of Florence and is crossed by the Ombrone Pistoiese, a tributary of the River Arno. It is a typical Italian medieval city, and it attracts many tourists, especially in the summer. The city is famous throughout Europe for its plant nurseries.
LivornoLivorno (liˈvorno) is a port city on the Ligurian Sea on the western coast of Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Livorno, having a population of 158,493 residents in December 2017. It is traditionally known in English as Leghorn (pronounced lɛˈɡɔːrn , 'lɛɡhɔːrn or 'lɛɡərn ). During the Renaissance, Livorno was designed as an "ideal town".
AjaccioAjaccio (ˈaɪətʃoʊ, UKalsoəˈdʒæ(k)sioʊ, USalsoɑːˈjɑːtʃ(i)oʊ; French: aʒaksjo; Aiaccio or Ajaccio aˈjattʃo; Aiacciu aˈjattʃu, locally: Aghjacciu aˈɟattʃu; Adiacium) is a French commune, prefecture of the department of Corse-du-Sud, and head office of the Collectivité territoriale de Corse (capital city of Corsica). It is also the largest settlement on the island. Ajaccio is located on the west coast of the island of Corsica, southeast of Marseille.
PisaPisa (ˈpiːzə , ˈpiːza or ˈpiːsa) is a city and comune in Tuscany, central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for its leaning tower, the city contains more than twenty other historic churches, several medieval palaces, and bridges across the Arno. Much of the city's architecture was financed from its history as one of the Italian maritime republics.
Divine ComedyThe Divine Comedy (Divina Commedia; diˈviːna komˈmɛːdja) is an Italian narrative poem by Dante Alighieri, begun 1308 and completed around 1321, shortly before the author's death. It is widely considered the pre-eminent work in Italian literature and one of the greatest works of world literature. The poem's imaginative vision of the afterlife is representative of the medieval worldview as it existed in the Western Church by the 14th century. It helped establish the Tuscan language, in which it is written, as the standardized Italian language.
