:
See also :Category:Writers from Sicily and Sardinian Literary Spring •
John Italus (fl. 11th century), was a Neoplatonic philosopher of
Calabrian origin. •
Goffredo Malaterra (fl. 11th century), a Benedictin and historian, was the author of
De rebus gestis Rogerii et Roberti, which chronicles the history of the
Normans in Italy. •
Ibn Hamdis (c. 1056 – c. 1133), was the greatest Arab-Sicilian poet. He "considered himself a
Sicilian." •
Joachim of Fiore (c. 1135 – 1202), mystic, theologian, biblical commentator, and philosopher of history. In 1196 he founded the order of
San Giovanni in Fiore. •
Pietro della Vigna (c. 1190 – 1249), was a "jurist, poet, and man of letters." An exponent of the formal style of Latin prose called
ars dictandi. •
Julius Pomponius Laetus (1428–1497), was a great writer, humanist, and founder of the
Accademia Romana. •
Jacopo Sannazzaro (1456–1530), a "poet whose
Arcadia was the first pastoral romance." •
Thomas Cajetan (1469–1534), "was the most renowned Dominican theologian and philosopher in the sixteenth century." •
Bernardino Telesio (1509–1588), philosopher. He was a leader in the Renaissance movement against medieval Aristotelianism. •
Isabella di Morra (c. 1520 – 1545/1546), poet, cited as a "precursor of
Romantic poets". •
Lorenzo Scupoli (c. 1530 – 1610), was a writer, philosopher, and priest of the Theatine Congregation. He was the author of the great classic,
The Spiritual Combat. •
Caesar Baronius (1538–1607), was an ecclesiastical historian, cardinal of the
Roman Catholic Church. His best known work are his
Annales Ecclesiastici. •
Antonio Veneziano (1543–1593), was the greatest poet of the Sicilian cinquecento. •
Torquato Tasso (1544–1595), a genius, was the "greatest Italian poet of the late Renaissance." •
Giordano Bruno (1548–1600), philosopher and polymath whose theories anticipated modern science. •
Giambattista Basile (1566–1632), soldier, public official, poet, and short-story writer. •
Tommaso Campanella (1568–1639), was a philosopher,
polymath, and
child prodigy. He is best remembered for his socialistic work
The City of the Sun. •
Giambattista Marino (1569–1625), "poet, founder of the school of
Marinism (later
Secentismo), which dominated 17th-century Italian poetry." •
Lucilio Vanini (1585–1619), a famous philosopher and
free-thinker who was burnt at the stake for the atheism of his publications. •
Gemelli Careri (1651–1725), was a famous writer and traveler. Author of
Giro Del Mondo (1699). •
Giovanni Vincenzo Gravina (1664–1718), was "an eminent jurist and writer, born at Roggiano [Gravina], in
Calabria." •
Giambattista Vico (1668–1744), was a philosopher and polymath who is recognized today as a forerunner of cultural
anthropology, or ethnology. •
Raimondo di Sangro (1710–1771), was a writer, polymath, and Grand Master of Naples's first Masonic lodge. •
Antonio Genovesi (1713–1769), was a priest, professor of philosophy, and pioneer in ethical studies and economic theory. •
Giovanni Meli (1740–1815), was a poet and man of letters. He is "commonly considered one of the most important dialect poets of eighteenth-century Italy." •
Francesco Mario Pagano (1748–1799), politician, jurist and writer, was professor of law at the university of Naples. •
Pasquale Galluppi (1770–1846), was an epistemologist and moral philosopher, was born in
Tropea. •
Gabriele Rossetti (1783–1854), was a patriotic poet, commentator on
Dante. Professor of Italian at
King's College London, 1831–47. •
Michele Amari (1806–1889), was a patriot, historian and orientalist, author of
Storia dei Musulmani di Sicilia (History of the Muslims of Sicily) 1854. •
Girolamo de Rada (1814–1903), was a poet and writer, founding father of
Arbëresh literature and culture. •
Ferdinando Petruccelli della Gattina (1815–1890), was a revolutionary and writer. One of the greatest journalists of the 19th century and a pioneer of modern journalism. •
Francesco de Sanctis (March 1817 – 1883), critic, educator, and legislator. He was the foremost Italian literary historian of the 19th century. •
Bertrando Spaventa (June 1817 – 1883), historian of philosophy, was a major force in the tradition of Italian
Hegelianism. •
Goffredo Mameli (1827–1849), was a poet and patriot of the
Risorgimento. Author of the Italian national anthem,
Inno di Mameli, popularly known as
Il Canto degli Italiani. •
Luigi Capuana (1839–1915), novelist, journalist, critic, and the leading theorist of Italian
verismo. •
Giovanni Verga (1840–1922), novelist, short-story writer, and playwright, most important of the Italian
verismo school of novelists. •
Salvatore Farina (1846–1918), was a novelist. He enjoyed great popularity in his lifetime, to the point that many critics referred to him as the "Italian
Charles Dickens." •
Errico Malatesta (1853–1932), was an anarchist writer and revolutionary. His most important works are
Anarchy and
Fra Contadini (
Between peasants). •
Matilde Serao (1856–1927), was a novelist, journalist and newspaper proprietor who published around 40 novels focussing on the lives of women, including in the
Verismo style. •
Gaetano Mosca (1858–1941), was a jurist, philosopher, and proponent of the theory of élite domination. •
Nicola Zingarelli (1860–1935), was a philologist and man of letters. The founder of the
Zingarelli Italian dictionary. •
Federico De Roberto (1861–1927), was a renowned
verismo writer. His best-known work is
I Vicerè (The Viceroys) 1894. •
Gabriele D'Annunzio (1863–1938), "poet, novelist, dramatist, short-story writer, journalist, military hero, and political leader." •
Benedetto Croce (1866–1952), "historian, humanist, and foremost Italian philosopher of the first half of the 20th century." •
Luigi Pirandello (1867–1936), playwright, novelist, and short-story writer, winner of the 1934 Nobel Prize for Literature. •
Grazia Deledda (1871–1936), novelist and short-story writer. She was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1926. •
Gaetano Salvemini (1873–1957), was a writer, historian, and politician who fought for universal suffrage and the uplift of the Italian South. •
Giovanni Gentile (1875–1944), major figure in Italian idealist philosophy, politician, educator, and editor. •
Emilio Lussu (1890–1975), was a writer and politician, minister in the first Republican governments. •
Antonio Gramsci (1891–1937), a writer and polymath. He was one of the most important
Marxist thinkers in the 20th century. •
Corrado Alvaro (1895–1956), novelist and journalist whose works investigated the social and political pressures of life in the 20th century. •
Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa (1896–1957), novelist. Internationally renowned for his work,
The Leopard, published posthumously in 1958. •
Julius Evola (1898–1974), was a philosopher and polymath. The historian
Mircea Eliade described him as "one of the most interesting minds of the war [WW I] generation." •
Leonida Repaci (1898 - 1985), novelist. He won the Bagutta Prize in 1933 and was one of the originators of the Viareggio Prize. •
Ignazio Silone (1900–1978), novelist, short-story writer, and political leader. Internationally known for his novel
Fontamara. •
Nicola Abbagnano (July 1901 – 1990), a famous philosopher. He "was the first and most important Italian
existentialist." •
Salvatore Quasimodo (August 1901 – 1968), poet, critic, and translator. He received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1959. •
Lanza del Vasto (September 1901 – 1981), was a writer, philosopher, and follower of Gandhi's movement for non-violence. •
Vitaliano Brancati (1907–1954), was a writer of ironic and sometimes erotic novels. •
Elio Vittorini (July 1908 – 1966), novelist, translator, and critic.
Conversations in Sicily, which clearly expresses his antifascist feelings, is his most important novel. •
Tommaso Landolfi (August 1908 – 1979), was a writer of fiction and literary critic. •
Alfonso Gatto (1909–1976), renowned poet who was also an editor, journalist, and cultural broadcaster. •
Elsa Morante (1912–1985), was one of the most important novelists of the postwar period, author of the bestseller
La storia. •
Gesualdo Bufalino (1920–1996), was a "novelist who, saw his literary career blossom after his retirement from teaching in 1976." •
Leonardo Sciascia (1921–1989), writer noted for his metaphysical examinations of political corruption and arbitrary power. •
Italo Calvino (1923–1985), journalist, short-story writer, and novelist. One of the most important Italian fiction writers in the 20th century. •
Andrea Camilleri (6 September 1925), popular novelist who was formerly a theatre director and television producer in Rome. •
Luciano De Crescenzo (born 1928), is one of the most popular Neapolitan writers. •
Vincenzo Consolo (1933–2012), was one of the most important Italian writers of the 20th century. •
Gavino Ledda (born 1938), is a Sardinian shepherd and self-taught student who became a famous writer. •
Giulio Angioni (born 1939), writer and anthropologist. He is the author of about twenty books of fiction and a dozen volumes of essays in anthropology. •
Erri De Luca (born 1950), is one of the most important contemporary Italian writers. •
Caterina Davinio (born 1957), is a poet, writer, and new media artist. Initiator of Italian
Net-poetry in 1998. == Other notables ==