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Italian History A-Z

Guess these people, places, and things from Italian history that start with each letter of the alphabet.
Quiz by torny81
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Last updated: December 14, 2018
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First submittedDecember 8, 2018
Times taken8,508
Average score65.4%
Rating4.08
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Hint
Answer
A
One of the most important Roman roads, still existing
Appian Way
B
Where the above ends, seat of the government for six months
between 1943 and 1944
Brindisi
C
This explorer was born in Genoa in 1451
Christopher Columbus
D
Title given to the leader of Venice
Doge
E
Island where Napoleon was exiled
Elba
F
Far-right political philosophy espoused by Mussolini
Fascism
G
One of the "fathers of the fatherland" he led the Redshirts in conquering
the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies
Giuseppe Garibaldi
H
Commonly known as the Vatican, this state was established in 756 and once
controlled large swaths of Italy
Holy See
I
One of the books in Dante's "Divine Comedy", a place with nine circles
Inferno
J
While many people think that this was Caesar's given name,
it was actually his family name
Julius
K
Victor Emmanuel or Umberto, for example
King
L
These Germanic people ruled Italy from 568-774 and gave their name to
the region in which Milan is located
Lombards
M
A number of his works of painting, sculpture, and architecture rank among
the most famous in existence
Michelangelo
N
Viking group that gradually conquered Southern Italy, starting in 999 A.D.
Normans
O
Form of musical theater that started in Italy around 1600
Opera
P
Roman temple to all the gods, now a church
Pantheon
Q
Official residence of the President of the Italian Republic, named after
one of the seven hills of Rome
Quirinale
R
European cultural "rebirth" that started in Florence in the late 1300s
The Renaissance
S
Last royal family of Italy
House of Savoy
T
First capital city of Italy from 1861 to 1865, home to Fiat automobiles
Turin
U
More than 1/3rd the population of this country have Italian descent
Uruguay
V
Town where Leonardo was born
Vinci
W
The collapse of this empire in 476 AD marks the beginning of the Dark Ages
Western Roman
Empire
X
How an ancient Roman would have written the number 33
XXXIII
Y
Country invaded by Italy in 1941
Yugoslavia
Z
This vegetable originally came from the Americas, but the variety we eat today
was created by Italian growers
Zucchini
20 Comments
+8
Level 83
Dec 11, 2018
I felt kind of dumb for missing V, when I saw the answer...
+2
Level 91
Dec 11, 2018
Same here so I totally absolutely agree!!!
+6
Level 90
Dec 20, 2018
When I saw the answer I thought, "Duh. Vinci".
+1
Level 74
Feb 28, 2019
That sound you hear is my head banging against the desk for not getting that one.
+4
Level 77
Dec 11, 2018
Nice! I suggest adding a few italian type-ins (Colombo, zucchine...)
+1
Level 73
Dec 11, 2018
Any chance of adding another minute to the quiz? I could have used more time for head scratching!
+2
Level 73
Dec 12, 2018
The time is in line with all the quizzes of these kind (American, French, Spanish, German History A-Z)
+3
Level 73
May 5, 2019
Standardisation can be handy, but then again if all my friends jump off a cliff, that doesn't mean I have to follow them.
+2
Level 70
Dec 11, 2018
I see that some webpages claim "B", but can you provide any serious evidence for "B"? While not a serious source by its own, wikipedia more prudently states that "B" has been the seat of the government of the ally-occupied part of Italy, which has been true. But I hardly doubt that you can provide any evidence that any state of the the world including (both parts of) Italy claimed that something else than Rome is the capital of Italy.
+2
Level 83
Dec 12, 2018
at least change to "seat of government" instead of capital
+2
Level 73
Dec 13, 2018
B, as well as Salerno, was never officially recognized as (temporary) capitals of Italy. I agree with the suggestion of changing the question and use 'seat of government'.

Still, a number of Italian historians recognize it as de facto capital (sources in Italian). At least, they consider it capital of the Regno del Sud/Kingdom of the South (no, it's not Game of Thrones!), made of some territories not under control of Allied Military Government of Occupied Territories, namely some Apulian provinces, including B, and Sardinia to establish an official government to the country in opposition to the Fascist Republic of Salò.

A final note, just for the sake of curiosity: a law from 1871 recognized Rome as capital of Italy until then Florence; but only in 2001 it was recognized in the Constitution.

+2
Level 81
Feb 28, 2019
I thought I was spelling Giuseppe wrong. I guess the Garibaldi was the important element that was missing.
+3
Level 74
Feb 28, 2019
Pushing it a bit to say the Normans are a Viking group. They originated in Normandy, surely?
+2
Level 73
May 5, 2019
Well, "Normans" as an ethnic group emerged from Franks, Romanised Gauls, and Norse Vikings. The term itself is Latinised Old Norse and originally meant Viking. But calling Normans "Vikings" isn't really correct unless you're taking this quiz a thousand years ago. William the Conquerer was involved in this invasion, as well as the Norman invasion of Britain. It's hard to say the correct term without giving the answer away, but yeah, the clue could be more nuanced (and therefore less incorrect) for sure.
+2
Level 63
Aug 29, 2019
The Holy See is not per se a state, nor it is a different name for the Vatican state (established in 1929) or for the former Papal state (756-1870). The Holy See is the sovereign entity which represents the jurisdiction over the Catholic church worldwide and exercises an exclusive dominion over the Vatican state, where it is headquartered. Although the Pope is both the head of the Catholic church and of the Vatican state, the two administration are separated: for example, the official language of the Holy See is Latin, while the Vatican laws are written in Italian.
+2
Level 55
Mar 23, 2021
Can you atleast accept ‘Savoia’ for ‘Savoy’? Strange that its original italian name isn’t accepted.
+2
Level 73
Apr 21, 2021
It's now accepted. It was originally not as it clearly says "house of..." therefore in English.
+1
Level 67
Jun 15, 2024
I feel you could accept "courgette" for "zucchini" too, seeing as American English is irrelevant to this question
+2
Level 22
Jan 13, 2023
Guess me having an obsession with Italian History paid off, few I didn't know but maaaan I'm mad I didn't get Savoy (Savoia)
+1
Level 68
Jun 28, 2024
Yes.