of the Italian population with other populations Due to historic demographic shifts in the
Italian peninsula throughout history, its geographical position in the center of the
Mediterranean Sea, and Italy's regional ethnic diversity since ancient times, modern Italians are genetically diverse.
Bronze Age Italians, like most Europeans, largely descend from three distinct lineages: Neolithic
Early European Farmers who migrated from
Western Asia and the
Middle East during the
Neolithic Revolution 9,000 years ago; and
Yamnaya Steppe pastoralists who expanded into Europe from the
Pontic–Caspian steppe of Ukraine and southern Russia during the Indo-European migrations 5,000 years ago. The first wave of
Indo-European migrations into Italy in the
Bronze Age occurred from
Central Europe (e.g. the
Bell Beaker culture), followed by the
Italo-Celts (e.g. the Celtic-speaking
Canegrate culture and the Italic-speaking
Proto-Villanovan culture, both deriving from the Proto-Italo-Celtic
Urnfield culture). Recent DNA studies confirmed the arrival of
Steppe-related ancestry in Northern Italy to at least 2000 BCE and in Central Italy by 1600 BCE, with this ancestry component increasing through time. In the late Bronze Age and early
Iron Age, Celtic-speaking
La Tène and
Hallstatt cultures spread over a large part of Italy, with related archeological artifacts found as far south as
Apulia.
Italics occupied northeastern, southern, and central Italy. The "West Italic" group (including the
Latins) were the first wave. Major tribes included the Latins and
Falisci in Lazio; the
Oenotrians and Italii in
Calabria; the
Ausones,
Aurunci and
Opici in
Campania; and perhaps the
Veneti in
Veneto and the
Sicels in Sicily. They were followed, and largely displaced by the East Italic (
Osco-Umbrians) group.
Iron Age , before the
Roman expansion in Italy During the Iron Age, prior to Roman rule, Italy was predominantly inhabited by
Italic tribes. The peoples living in the area of modern Italy and the islands were: •
Etruscans (
Camunni,
Lepontii,
Raeti); •
Sicani in
Sicily •
Elymians; •
Ligures (
Apuani,
Bagienni,
Briniates,
Corsi,
Friniates,
Garuli,
Hercates,
Ilvates,
Insubres,
Orobii,
Laevi,
Lapicini,
Marici,
Statielli,
Taurini); •
Italics (
Latins,
Falisci,
Marsi,
Umbri,
Volsci,
Marrucini,
Osci,
Aurunci,
Ausones,
Campanians,
Paeligni,
Sabines,
Bruttii,
Frentani,
Lucani,
Samnites,
Pentri,
Caraceni,
Caudini,
Hirpini,
Aequi,
Fidenates,
Hernici,
Picentes,
Vestini,
Morgeti,
Sicels,
Veneti); •
Iapygians (
Messapians,
Daunians,
Peucetians); •
Celts (
Allobroges,
Ausones,
Boii,
Carni,
Cenomani,
Ceutrones,
Graioceli,
Lepontii,
Lingones,
Segusini,
Senones,
Salassi,
Veragri,
Vertamocorii); •
Greeks of
Magna Graecia; •
Sardinians (
Nuragic tribes), in
Sardinia By the beginning of the
Iron Age, the
Etruscans had emerged as the dominant civilization on the Italian peninsula. The Etruscans, expanded from
Etruria over a large part of Italy, covering what is now
Tuscany, western
Umbria, and northern
Lazio, as well as what are now the
Po Valley,
Emilia-Romagna, south-eastern
Lombardy, southern
Veneto, and western
Campania. Ancient authors report
several hypotheses for the origin of the Etruscans, including that they came from the Aegean Sea. Modern archaeological and genetic research concluded that the Etruscans were
autochthonous and had a genetic profile similar to their Latin neighbors, notably lacking recent admixture with Anatolia or the Eastern Mediterranean. women in the
Tomb of the Dancers in
Ruvo di Puglia, 4th–5th century BC The Ligures were one of the oldest populations in Italy and Western Europe, possibly of Pre-Indo-European origin. According to Strabo, they were not Celts but later became influenced by the Celtic culture of their neighbours, and thus are sometimes referred to as Celticized Ligurians or Celto-Ligurians. They primarily inhabited the regions of
Liguria,
Piedmont, northern
Tuscany, western
Lombardy, western
Emilia-Romagna and northern
Sardinia, but are believed to have once occupied an even larger portion of ancient Italy as far south as
Sicily. They were also settled in
Corsica and in the
Provence region along the southern coast of modern
France. Beginning in the 8th century BCE, Greeks arrived in Italy and founded cities along the coast of southern Italy and eastern Sicily, which became known as
Magna Graecia ("Greater Greece"). The Greeks were frequently at war with the native Italic tribes, but nonetheless managed to
Hellenize and assimilate much of the indigenous population located along eastern Sicily and the Southern coasts of the Italian mainland. According to
Beloch, the number of Greek citizens in southern Italy reached only 80,000 to 90,000 at most, while the local people subjected by the Greeks were between 400,000 and 600,000. By the 4th and 3rd centuries BCE, Greek power in Italy was challenged and began to decline, and many Greeks were pushed out of peninsular Italy by the native
Oscan,
Brutti, and
Lucani tribes. , Italy, c. 360 BC The
Gauls crossed the Alps and
invaded northern Italy in the 4th and 3rd centuries BC, settling in the area that became known as
Cisalpine Gaul. Although named after the Gauls, the region was mostly inhabited by indigenous tribes, namely the Ligures, Etruscans,
Euganei, and Veneti. Estimates by Beloch and
Brunt suggest that in the 3rd century BCE, Gaulish settlers in north Italy numbered between 130,000 and 140,000 out of a total population of about 1.4 million. The northern half of Cisalpine Gaul was already inhabited by the Celtic
Lepontii since the Bronze Age. Speaking about the Alpine region, the Greek historian
Strabo, wrote: According to
Pliny and
Livy, after the invasion of the Gauls, some of the Etruscans living in the Po Valley sought refuge in the Alps and became known as the
Raeti. The Raeti inhabited the region of
Trentino-Alto Adige, as well as eastern
Switzerland and
Tyrol in western
Austria. The
Ladins of north-eastern Italy and the
Romansh people of Switzerland are said to be descended from the Raeti.
Roman The
Romans — who according to legend originally consisted of
three ancient tribes: Latins, Sabines and Etruscans — would go on to
conquer the whole Italian peninsula. During the Roman period hundreds of cities and colonies were established throughout Italy, including
Florence,
Turin,
Como,
Pavia,
Padua,
Verona,
Vicenza,
Trieste and many others. After the Roman conquest of Italy, "the whole of Italy had become Latinized". The Romans continued expansion northward to
conquer Cisalpine Gaul and establish colonies in the former Gallic territory, including
Bologna,
Modena,
Reggio Emilia,
Parma,
Piacenza,
Cremona and
Forlì. According to
Strabo: The
Boii, the most powerful and numerous of the Gallic tribes, were expelled by the Romans after 191 BCE and settled in
Bohemia, while the
Insubres still lived in
Mediolanum in the 1st century BCE. Latin colonies were founded at
Ariminum in 268 BCE and at
Firmum in 264 BCE, while large numbers of
Picentes, who previously inhabited the region, were moved to
Paestum and settled along the river
Silarus in
Campania. Between 180 and 179 BCE, 47,000 Ligures belonging to the Apuani tribe were removed from their home along the modern Ligurian-Tuscan border and deported to
Samnium, an area corresponding to inland Campania, while Latin colonies were established in their place at
Pisa,
Lucca and
Luni. Such population movements contributed to the rapid Romanization and Latinization of
Italy.
Middle Ages of Sicily: in light blue: the cities where Gallo-Italic language is spoken today. In dark blue: the cities where there is a good influence of the Gallo-Italic language. In purple: ancient Gallo-Italic colonies, the influence in these cities is variable, also some districts of
Messina were colonized. A large Germanic confederation of
Sciri,
Heruli,
Turcilingi, and
Rugians, led by
Odoacer, invaded and settled Italy in 476 CE. They were preceded by the
Alemanni, including 30,000 warriors with their families, who settled in the Po Valley in 371 CE, and by
Burgundians who settled between Northwestern Italy and Southern France in 443 CE. Since Italy had a population of several million, the Goths did not constitute a significant addition to the local population: at most, several thousand Ostrogoths in a population of 6 or 7 million. After the
Gothic War, which devastated the local population, the Ostrogoths were defeated. Nevertheless, according to Roman historian
Procopius of Caesarea, the Ostrogothic population was allowed to live peacefully in Italy with their Rugian allies under Roman sovereignty. In the sixth century, another Germanic tribe known as the
Longobards invaded Italy, which in the meantime had been reconquered by the East Roman or Byzantine Empire. The Longobards were a small minority compared to the roughly 4 million inhabitants of Italy at the time. They were later followed by the
Bavarians and the
Franks, who conquered and ruled most of Italy. Some groups of
Slavs settled in parts of the northern Italian peninsula between the 7th and 8th centuries, while
Bulgars led by
Alcek settled in
Sepino,
Bojano, and
Isernia. These Bulgars preserved their speech and identity until the late 8th century. Following Roman rule, Sicily, Corsica, and Sardinia were conquered by the
Vandals, then by the Ostrogoths, and finally by the Byzantines. Sicily was later invaded by the
Arabs in the 9th century and the
Normans in the 11th century, leading to the formation of a unique
Norman-Arab-Byzantine culture in Sicily. During the subsequent
Swabian rule under the Holy Roman Emperor
Frederick II, who spent most of his life as
king of Sicily in his court in
Palermo, Moors were progressively eradicated until the massive deportation of the last
Muslims of Sicily. As a result of the Arab expulsion, many towns across Sicily were left depopulated. By the 12th century,
Swabian kings granted immigrants from northern Italy (particularly
Piedmont,
Lombardy and
Liguria),
Latium and
Tuscany in central Italy, and
French regions of
Normandy,
Provence and
Brittany (all collectively known as
Lombards.) settlement into Sicily, re-establishing the Latin element into the island, a legacy which can be seen in the many
Gallo-Italic dialects and towns found in the interior and western parts of Sicily, brought by these settlers. Before them, other
Lombards arrived in
Sicily, with an expedition departed in 1038, led by the Byzantine commander
George Maniakes, which for a very short time managed to snatch Messina and
Syracuse from
Arab rule. The Lombards who arrived with the Byzantines settled in
Maniace,
Randazzo and
Troina, while a group of
Genoese and other
Lombards from Liguria settled in
Caltagirone. After the marriage between the Norman
Roger I of Sicily and
Adelaide del Vasto, descendant of the
Aleramici family, many Northern Italian colonisers (known collectively as
Lombards) left their homeland, in the Aleramici's possessions in
Piedmont and
Liguria (then known as
Lombardy), to settle on the island of Sicily. It is believed that the Lombard immigrants in Sicily over a couple of centuries were a total of about 200,000. An estimated 20,000
Swabians and 40,000
Normans settled in the southern half of Italy during the 10th and 11th centuries. Additional Tuscan migrants settled in Sicily after the Florentine conquest of Pisa in 1406. Some of the Muslims expelled by the Normans were deported to
Lucera (Lugêrah, as it was known in Arabic). Their numbers eventually reached between 15,000 and 20,000, leading Lucera to be called
Lucaera Saracenorum because it represented the last stronghold of Islamic presence in Italy. The colony thrived for 75 years until it was sacked in 1300 by Christian forces under the command of the
Angevin Charles II of Naples. The city's Muslim inhabitants were exiled or sold into slavery. After the expulsions of Muslims in Lucera, Charles II replaced Lucera's Saracens with Christians, chiefly
Burgundian and
Provençal soldiers and farmers, following an initial settlement of 140 Provençal families in 1273. A remnant of the descendants of these Provençal colonists, still speaking a
Franco-Provençal dialect, has survived until the present day in the villages of
Faeto and
Celle di San Vito.
Modern period Substantial migrations of Lombards to Naples, Rome, and Palermo continued in the 16th and 17th centuries, driven by the constant overcrowding in the north. Minor but significant settlements of
Slavs and
Arbereshe in Italy have been recorded, while
Scottish soldiers – the
Garde Ecossaise – who served the French King,
Francis I, settled in the mountains of
Piedmont. The geographical and cultural proximity with Southern Italy pushed Albanians to cross the
Strait of Otranto, especially after
Skanderbeg's death and the conquest of the
Balkans by the
Ottomans. In defense of the Christian religion and in search of soldiers loyal to the Spanish crown,
Alfonso V of Aragon, also king of Naples, invited Arbereshe soldiers to move to Italy with their families. In return the king guaranteed to Albanians lots of land and a favourable taxation. Arbereshe and Schiavoni were used to repopulate abandoned villages or villages whose population had died in earthquakes, plagues and other catastrophes. Albanian soldiers were also used to quell rebellions in Calabria. Slavic colonies were established in eastern
Friuli,
Sicily and
Molise (
Molise Croats). Between the
Late Middle Ages and the
early modern period, there were several waves of immigration of Albanians into Italy, in addition to another in the 20th century. The descendants of these Albanian emigrants, many still retaining the
Albanian language, the
Arbëresh dialect, have survived throughout southern Italy, numbering about 260,000 people, with roughly 80,000 to 100,000 speaking the Albanian language.
Italian Surnames Most of
Italy's surnames (
cognomi), with the exception of a few areas marked by linguistic minorities, derive from Italian. Many are derived from an individual's physical qualities (e.g.
Rossi,
Bianchi,
Quattrocchi,
Mancini,
Grasso, etc.), occupation (
Ferrari,
Auditore,
Sartori,
Tagliabue, etc.), fatherhood or lack thereof (
De Pretis,
Orfanelli,
Esposito,
Trovato, etc.), and geographic location (
Padovano,
Pisano,
Leccese,
Lucchese, etc.). Some of them also indicate a remote foreign origin (
Greco,
Tedesco,
Moro,
Albanese, etc.). == Italian diaspora ==