Italy, with a population of over 60 million people, is the fourth largest populated country in Europe. It is ranked twenty-third in the world chart. Italy is now a country where people love to visit because of its beauty and tourist attractions that are linked history. The history of Italy is complex but also extremely interesting.
It is believed that the first humans settled in Italy approximately 100,000 years ago. The early inhabitants of Italy were divided into three races, the Iapygian, Etruscan, and Italian. But, the first to settle in Italy were the Iapygians around the 800-600 B.C. The Greeks absorbed them after they came from the north and were pushed more towards the south. The first significant settlement of people came from the Greeks. They settled in Italy in the eighth and seventh centuries on the southern end of the peninsula. The Etruscans were powerful and superior to Italians when it came to civilization. Soon after the Romans gradually lessened their power and they practically became extinct (Ancient Rome). The roman republic unified the entire Italian peninsula in 300 BC along with much of the Mediterranean.
During the Renaissance period the Roman Empire collapsed which caused Italy to suffer. Because of the collapse of the Roman Empire Italy lost political structure, which resulted in Italy constantly being invaded and put under temporary rule. In result of this, Italy suffered from a weak economy. In 1100 A.D. Italy started to look up because the commercial prosperity had finally noticed an increase because of the renaissance. But this didn’t last for long because in 1500 A.D. Italy started to decline again. By the 19th century Italy had thought of the idea of becoming an independent nation and it has greatly improved Italy’s future. At the end of the 19th century, Italy experienced mass emigration. In 1860, the entire Italian peninsula had been unified besides Rome. Rome had unified with the rest of the country around 1870. With the addition of Rome it led to the creation of the Constitutional monarchy.
In modern day Italy there has been only a few changes in the settlement patterns. The first change was after WWI because Italy was awarded a small piece of land that had been a part of Austria (Settlement Patterns). Then after WWII the border between France and Italy was changed and had given Italy more land (Settlement Patterns).
For the most part, I would say that people migrated to Italy in hope of something new or were forced to move out of the original settled country. Although, the benefits were so noticeable for most people who settled in Italy because of things such as a lack of natural resources. Italy is comprised of a lot of land that is not suitable for farming. Most people stayed in Italy because they lacked power and time and time again it was being ruled over.
To connect this to the previous activity "Guns, Germs, and Steel", there was a quote that stood out to me, " ... human wealth and success depends on interaction with the environment." I chose this quote to relate the two topics because in Italy, there is a lack for natural resources like I stated earlier. I feel that Italy struggled with economic problems because of such factors like this. If there was an abundance of natural resources throughout the country than there could be more food to sell rather than importing goods. Also, another example to connect the two topics is how the people who had the most power were able to rule others to have things be there way. The higher the power, the greater advantages.
Sources:
Ancient Rome from the Earliest Times Down to 476 A.D. (2015, January 1). Retrieved
February 4, 2015, from http://ancienthistory.about.com/library/bl/bl_pennellhistoryofrome2.htm#II
Settlement Patterns - Italy: Demographics. (n.d.). Retrieved February 5, 2015, from
http://italiandemographics.weebly.com/settlement-patterns.html
It is believed that the first humans settled in Italy approximately 100,000 years ago. The early inhabitants of Italy were divided into three races, the Iapygian, Etruscan, and Italian. But, the first to settle in Italy were the Iapygians around the 800-600 B.C. The Greeks absorbed them after they came from the north and were pushed more towards the south. The first significant settlement of people came from the Greeks. They settled in Italy in the eighth and seventh centuries on the southern end of the peninsula. The Etruscans were powerful and superior to Italians when it came to civilization. Soon after the Romans gradually lessened their power and they practically became extinct (Ancient Rome). The roman republic unified the entire Italian peninsula in 300 BC along with much of the Mediterranean.
During the Renaissance period the Roman Empire collapsed which caused Italy to suffer. Because of the collapse of the Roman Empire Italy lost political structure, which resulted in Italy constantly being invaded and put under temporary rule. In result of this, Italy suffered from a weak economy. In 1100 A.D. Italy started to look up because the commercial prosperity had finally noticed an increase because of the renaissance. But this didn’t last for long because in 1500 A.D. Italy started to decline again. By the 19th century Italy had thought of the idea of becoming an independent nation and it has greatly improved Italy’s future. At the end of the 19th century, Italy experienced mass emigration. In 1860, the entire Italian peninsula had been unified besides Rome. Rome had unified with the rest of the country around 1870. With the addition of Rome it led to the creation of the Constitutional monarchy.
In modern day Italy there has been only a few changes in the settlement patterns. The first change was after WWI because Italy was awarded a small piece of land that had been a part of Austria (Settlement Patterns). Then after WWII the border between France and Italy was changed and had given Italy more land (Settlement Patterns).
For the most part, I would say that people migrated to Italy in hope of something new or were forced to move out of the original settled country. Although, the benefits were so noticeable for most people who settled in Italy because of things such as a lack of natural resources. Italy is comprised of a lot of land that is not suitable for farming. Most people stayed in Italy because they lacked power and time and time again it was being ruled over.
To connect this to the previous activity "Guns, Germs, and Steel", there was a quote that stood out to me, " ... human wealth and success depends on interaction with the environment." I chose this quote to relate the two topics because in Italy, there is a lack for natural resources like I stated earlier. I feel that Italy struggled with economic problems because of such factors like this. If there was an abundance of natural resources throughout the country than there could be more food to sell rather than importing goods. Also, another example to connect the two topics is how the people who had the most power were able to rule others to have things be there way. The higher the power, the greater advantages.
Sources:
Ancient Rome from the Earliest Times Down to 476 A.D. (2015, January 1). Retrieved
February 4, 2015, from http://ancienthistory.about.com/library/bl/bl_pennellhistoryofrome2.htm#II
Settlement Patterns - Italy: Demographics. (n.d.). Retrieved February 5, 2015, from
http://italiandemographics.weebly.com/settlement-patterns.html
If you want to know more about Italy,
please visit the following sites:
http://ancienthistory.about.com/library/bl/bl_pennellhistoryofrome2.htm#II
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/297474/Italy/26968/Plant-life#toc26975
*I chose these websites because they offer a wide range of knowledge when it comes to the history of Italy. It talk about it in detail and give you an option to click on any section you would prefer reading. They are easy websites to navigate and provide you with a lot of information.
please visit the following sites:
http://ancienthistory.about.com/library/bl/bl_pennellhistoryofrome2.htm#II
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/297474/Italy/26968/Plant-life#toc26975
*I chose these websites because they offer a wide range of knowledge when it comes to the history of Italy. It talk about it in detail and give you an option to click on any section you would prefer reading. They are easy websites to navigate and provide you with a lot of information.
population
Current population: 61,070,224
Women population: 51,389%
Men population: 48.661%
Birth this year: 8.84 births/1,000 population
Net migration this year: 900,000
Population growth this year: 0.10%
In Italy the death rate is surpassing it's birth rate and the country is expected to decline due to the slow population growth. Italy is a "rapidly aging" country and will need a great deal of work to make sure their economy does not crash. The population growth is predicted to drop 20% by 2050.
WPR. (2015, January 1). Retrieved February 5, 2015, from
http://worldpopulationreview.com/countries/italy-population/
Women population: 51,389%
Men population: 48.661%
Birth this year: 8.84 births/1,000 population
Net migration this year: 900,000
Population growth this year: 0.10%
In Italy the death rate is surpassing it's birth rate and the country is expected to decline due to the slow population growth. Italy is a "rapidly aging" country and will need a great deal of work to make sure their economy does not crash. The population growth is predicted to drop 20% by 2050.
WPR. (2015, January 1). Retrieved February 5, 2015, from
http://worldpopulationreview.com/countries/italy-population/
Retrieved from http://sedac.ciesin.columbia.edu/downloads/maps/gpw-v3/gpw-v3-population-density/itadens.jpg
Population pyramids
italy's climate
Retrieved from http://www.geni.org/globalenergy/library/renewable-energy-resources/europe/Solar/g13y_it.png
italy's natural resources
Italy is poor of natural resources because much of the land is unsuitable for farming. Only about 20% of the land is actually suitable for farming. Although some examples of what they do have are marble, stool, and wheat.