Advance in Tuscany

Municipality bans English words in official communications

The municipality of Castiglion Fiorentino bans English words in official communication.(Bild: anghifoto/stock.adobe.com)

A municipality in Tuscany has taken a drastic step: it is now banning English words in official communications. The reason: they want to protect the weaker section of the population, such as older citizens, and also defend the Italian language.

Specifically, the municipality of Castiglion Fiorentino has declared war on the English language. "We want to defend the right of citizens to receive all communication and information from the public administration in Italian," emphasized Mayor Mario Agnelli, who belongs to the right-wing governing party Lega.

"Identity of the nation"
"English words have now entered the common language and unfortunately their misuse sometimes hinders correct communication, especially towards the weaker sections of the population, such as the elderly," the mayor emphasized. The protection of the Italian language is important for the "identity of the nation". He went on to say that defending the Italian language meant defending culture and history. 

Agnelli's initiative was applauded by Paolo D'Achille, President of the "Accademia della Crusca" language society founded in the 16th century, whose mission to this day is the "study and preservation of the Italian language". "It is important that words are understood by everyone, especially older people. Initiatives that protect our language are therefore welcome," says D'Achille.

The Italian language has its roots in Tuscany. In the 13th century, the famous poet Dante Alighieri played a central role in making the Tuscan dialects he used in his works into a basis for the modern Italian language. Through Dante's influence, the Tuscan language established itself as a literary language and spread to other regions of Italy thanks to its clear and elegant style.

German as a "research language"
The language is also reportedly the subject of heated debate in Austria - for example in the negotiating group on education and research. As reported, one of the proposals put forward by the Freedom Party is that research papers should in future only be written in German and not in English.