Editing Italian language (section)

{{Short description|Romance language}}
{{About|the Italian language|the regional varieties of standard Italian|Regional Italian}}
{{Redirect|Italiano}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2024}}
{{Infobox language
| name             = Italian
| nativename       = {{lang|it|italiano}}, {{lang|it|lingua italiana}}
| pronunciation    = {{IPA|it|itaˈljaːno||It-italiano.ogg|}}
| ethnicity        = [[Italians]]
| states           = {{Plainlist|
* [[Italy]]
* [[San Marino]]
* [[Vatican City]]
* [[Switzerland]] ([[Ticino]] and [[Italian Grisons]])
* [[Slovenia]] ([[Slovenian Littoral]])
* [[Croatia]] (Western Croatia)
}}
| region           = 
| speakers         = [[L1 speakers|L1]]: {{sigfig|64.821530|2}} million
| date             = 2022
| ref              = e25
| speakers2        = [[Second language|L2]]: {{sigfig|3.080100|2}} million<ref name=e25/><br>Total: {{sigfig|67.901630|2}} million<ref name=e25/>
| speakers_label   = Speakers
| familycolor      = Indo-European
| fam2             = [[Italic languages|Italic]]
| fam3             = [[Latino-Faliscan languages|Latino-Faliscan]]
| fam4             = [[Latin]]
| fam5             = [[Romance languages|Romance]]
| fam6             = [[Italo-Western languages|Italo-Western]]
| fam7             = [[Italo-Dalmatian languages|Italo-Dalmatian]]
| fam8             = [[Italo-Dalmatian languages#Italo-Romance|Italo-Romance]]
| ancestor         = [[Old Latin]]
| ancestor2        = [[Vulgar Latin]]
| ancestor3        = [[Tuscan dialect|Tuscan]]
| ancestor4        = [[Florentine dialect|Florentine]]
| dia1             = [[Maltese Italian]]
| dia2             = [[Swiss Italian]]
| dia3             = Various forms of [[regional Italian]]
| script           = [[Latin script]] ([[Italian alphabet]])<br />[[Italian Braille]]
| nation           = {{Collapsible list
| titlestyle=font-weight:normal; background:transparent; text-align:left;
| title=4 countries
|[[Italy]]
|[[San Marino]]
|[[Switzerland]]
|[[Vatican City]]
}}<br />
{{Collapsible list
| titlestyle=font-weight:normal; background:transparent; text-align:left;
| title=3 regions
|[[Slovene Istria]] <small>([[Slovenia]])</small>
|[[Istria County]] <small>([[Croatia]])</small>
|[[Corsica]] <small>([[France]])</small>

}}<br />
{{Collapsible list
| titlestyle=font-weight:normal; background:transparent; text-align:left;
| title=An order and various organisations
| [[Sovereign Military Order of Malta]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ansa.it/english/news/2016/06/21/pope-to-receive-knights-of-malta-grand-master-thursday_a9e72a37-ec6c-421d-a632-92f2dfe81dd7.html|title=Pope Francis to receive Knights of Malta grand master Thursday – English|date=21 June 2016|website=ANSA.it|access-date=16 October 2019|archive-date=13 August 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230813173147/https://www.ansa.it/english/news/2016/06/21/pope-to-receive-knights-of-malta-grand-master-thursday_a9e72a37-ec6c-421d-a632-92f2dfe81dd7.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
|[[European Union]]
|[[Food and Agriculture Organization|FAO]]
|[[Holy See]]
|[[Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe|OSCE]]
| [[International Development Law Organization|IDLO]]
| [[International Institute of Humanitarian Law|IIHL]]
|[[Mediterranean Universities Union]]
|[[United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute|UNICRI]]
|[[UNIDROIT]]
|''and others''
}}
| minority         = [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]]{{efn|name=EUChart|Recognised as a minority language by the [[European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages]].<ref name=coe>{{cite web|url=https://www.coe.int/t/dg4/education/minlang/AboutCharter/LanguagesCovered.pdf|title=Languages covered by the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages|access-date=11 June 2019|archive-date=13 December 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221213191817/https://www.coe.int/t/dg4/education/minlang/AboutCharter/LanguagesCovered.pdf|url-status=live}} (PDF)</ref>}}<br />[[Brazil]] <small>([[Languages of Brazil#Language co-officialization|3 municipalities]])</small><br />[[Croatia]]<br />[[Romania]]{{efn|name=EUChart}}<br />[[Slovenia]]<br />[[Eritrea]]
| agency           = {{lang|it|[[Accademia della Crusca]]|italics=no}} ({{lang|it|de facto}})
| iso1             = it
| iso2             = ita
| iso3             = ita
| lingua           = 51-AAA-q
| map              = File:Map Italophone World - updated.png
| mapscale         = 
| mapcaption       = Geographical distribution of the Italian language in the world:
{{legend|#1E90FF|Areas where it is the majority language}}
{{legend|#87CEEB|Areas where it is a minority language or where it was the majority in the past}}
{{legend|#00FF00|Areas where notable Italian-speaking communities are present}}
| notice           = IPA
| sign             = {{lang|it|[[Italiano segnato]]}} "(Signed Italian)"<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cdila.it/cds/Index?q=object/detail&p=_system_cms_node/_a_ID/_v_33 |title=Centro documentazione per l'integrazione |publisher=Cdila.it |access-date=22 October 2015 |archive-date=1 January 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160101035439/http://www.cdila.it/cds/Index?q=object%2Fdetail&p=_system_cms_node%2F_a_ID%2F_v_33 |url-status=live }}</ref> <br />{{lang|it|[[italiano segnato esatto]]}} "(Signed Exact Italian)"<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cdila.it/cds/Index?q=object/detail&p=_system_cms_node/_a_ID/_v_37 |title=Centro documentazione per l'integrazione |publisher=Cdila.it |access-date=22 October 2015 |archive-date=23 September 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923201303/http://www.cdila.it/cds/Index?q=object%2Fdetail&p=_system_cms_node%2F_a_ID%2F_v_37 |url-status=live }}</ref>
| glotto           = ital1282
| glottorefname    = Italian
}}
{{Italian language|state=expanded}}

'''Italian''' ({{lang|it|italiano}}, {{IPA|it|itaˈljaːno|pron|It-italiano.ogg}}, or {{lang|it|lingua italiana}}, {{IPA|it|ˈliŋɡwa itaˈljaːna|pron}}) is a [[Romance languages|Romance language]] of the [[Indo-European languages|Indo-European language family]]. It evolved from the [[Vulgar Latin|Colloquial Latin]] of the [[Roman Empire]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Lepschy |first1=A. L. |last2=Lepschy |first2=G. |title=Italian |journal=Encyclopedia of Language & Linguistics (Second Edition) |date=2006 |pages=60–64 |doi=10.1016/B0-08-044854-2/02251-3|isbn=978-0-08-044854-1}}</ref> Italian is the least divergent language from [[Latin]], together with [[Sardinian language|Sardinian]].<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Romance-languages |title=Romance languages |encyclopaedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |access-date=19 February 2017 |quote=...if the Romance languages are compared with Latin, it is seen that by most measures Sardinian and Italian are least differentiated... |archive-date=6 January 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200106095325/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Romance-languages |url-status=live }}</ref> It is spoken by about 68 million people, including 64 million native speakers as of 2024.<ref name=e25/>

Italian is an [[official language]] in [[Languages of Italy|Italy]], [[Languages of San Marino|San Marino]], [[Languages of Switzerland|Switzerland]] ([[Ticino]] and the [[Grisons]]), and [[Languages of Vatican City|Vatican City]]; it has official [[Minority language|minority status]] in [[Minority languages of Croatia|Croatia]], [[Slovenian Istria|Slovene Istria]], [[Romania]],<ref name="coe" /><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dri.gov.ro/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/Multilingvism-si-limbi-minoritare-in-Romania.pdf|title=MULTILINGVISM ŞI LIMBI MINORITARE ÎN ROMÂNIA|language=ro|access-date=13 June 2019|archive-date=14 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191214095127/http://www.dri.gov.ro/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/Multilingvism-si-limbi-minoritare-in-Romania.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]],<ref name="coe" /> and the municipalities of [[Santa Teresa, Espírito Santo|Santa Tereza]], [[Encantado, Rio Grande do Sul|Encantado]], and [[Venda Nova do Imigrante]] in [[Languages of Brazil#Language co-officialization|Brazil]].<ref name="encantado">{{Cite web |url=https://direitolinguistico.com.br/repositorio/s/rbll/item/164 |title=Lei n. 5.048/2023 - Do Município de Encantado / RS |access-date=11 August 2024 |archive-date=11 August 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240811141927/https://direitolinguistico.com.br/repositorio/s/rbll/item/164 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://direitolinguistico.com.br/repositorio/s/rbll/item/95 |title=Lei n. 2.812/2021 - Do Município de Santa Teresa / ES |access-date=11 August 2024 |archive-date=11 August 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240811141902/https://direitolinguistico.com.br/repositorio/s/rbll/item/95 |url-status=live }}</ref> Italian is also spoken by large [[Italian diaspora|immigrant and expatriate communities]] in the [[Americas]] and [[Australia]].<ref name=e25/> Some speakers of Italian are native bilinguals of both Italian (either in its standard form or [[Regional Italian|regional varieties]]) and a [[Languages of Italy|local language of Italy]], most frequently the language spoken at home in their place of origin.<ref name=e25/>

Italian is a major [[European language|language]] in Europe, being one of the official languages of the [[Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe]] and one of the working languages of the [[Council of Europe]]. It is the third-most-widely spoken native [[Languages of the European Union|language in the European Union]] (13% of the EU population) and it is spoken as a second language by 13 million EU citizens (3%).<ref name="europa2024">{{Cite web|title=Europeans and their languages - Report - en|pages=10 and 19|series=[[Eurobarometer]]|website=[[Europa (web portal)|europa.eu]]|url=https://europa.eu/eurobarometer/surveys/detail/2979|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240528002002/https://europa.eu/eurobarometer/surveys/detail/2979|archive-date=2024-05-28}}</ref><ref name="forbes">{{cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/davekeating/2020/02/06/despite-brexit-english-remains-the-eus-most-spoken-language-by-far/|title=Despite Brexit, English Remains The EU's Most Spoken Language By Far|last=Keating|first=Dave|website=Forbes|language=en|access-date=7 February 2020|archive-date=7 June 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230607135739/https://www.forbes.com/sites/davekeating/2020/02/06/despite-brexit-english-remains-the-eus-most-spoken-language-by-far/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="europa2012">[http://ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/archives/ebs/ebs_386_en.pdf Europeans and their Languages] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160106183351/http://ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/archives/ebs/ebs_386_en.pdf |date=6 January 2016 }}, [http://ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/archives/ebs/ebs_386_anx_en.pdf Data for EU27] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130429224902/http://ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/archives/ebs/ebs_386_anx_en.pdf |date=29 April 2013 }}, published in 2012.</ref> There are also Italian speakers in non-EU European countries (such as Switzerland, [[Albania]], [[Monaco]], and the [[United Kingdom]]) and on other continents.<ref name="Italian language">{{cite web |url=http://www2.le.ac.uk/departments/modern-languages/lal/languages%20at%20lal/italian |title=Italian — University of Leicester |publisher=.le.ac.uk |access-date=22 October 2015 |archive-date=2 May 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140502004444/http://www2.le.ac.uk/departments/modern-languages/lal/languages%20at%20lal/italian |url-status=dead }}</ref> Italian is the main working language of the [[Holy See]], serving as the [[lingua franca]] in the [[Roman Catholic hierarchy]] and the official language of the [[Sovereign Military Order of Malta]]. Italian has a significant use in [[musical terminology]] and [[opera]] with numerous Italian words referring to music that have become international terms taken into various languages worldwide.<ref>See [[List of Italian musical terms used in English]]</ref> Almost all native Italian words end with [[vowel]]s, and the language has a 7-vowel [[Sound system (linguistics)|sound system]] ('e' and 'o' have mid-low and mid-high sounds).<ref>{{Citation |last= Paoli | first= Sandra |title= A Short Guide to Italian Phonetics and Phonology for Students of Italian Paper V | year = 2016| publisher = Oxford University | url=https://www.ling-phil.ox.ac.uk/romance-linguistics/assets/uploads/paoli/Booklet_P&P_right.pdf}}</ref> Italian has contrast between short and [[consonant length|long consonants]] and [[gemination]] (doubling) of consonants.

{{anchor|Middle Ages}}