"Learn and free your mind," was the introductory note from Santino Spinelli, the first Rom professor to teach gypsy culture in Europe.
The new course at the University of Trieste will give a closer look at a misunderstood segment of the Italian population.
Spinelli, born in Pietrasanta di Lucca (Abruzzo), grew up asking for alms then studied at Language and Letters at the University of Bologna.

"There are 120,000 Italian Roms," said Spinelli, a poet and accordion player who also heads up the band Alexian Group. "Previously they had two options — either be assimilated or emarginated. My choice is a third option: to remain profoundly Rom, without losing the cultural characteristics, but take an active role in society."
The course, part of the intercultural studies department, is divided into two sections: the history of gypsies and the history of the serenade in Abruzzi Rom. The Rom group in Abruzzo, in Italy since the 1300s, is the oldest in the country.

http://web.tiscali.it/themromano
Music sample "Echi d’oriente" & poetry by Spinelli.

Italy by Numbers: Snapshot of the Country

27 million: Italians in 1870
56 million: Italians 2001
45.5% live in North
24.2% South
18.9% Central Italy
11.4% Islands
for every 1,000 Italians = 17.5 resident foreigners

Initial results for Italy’s 14th census are almost two months late — and arrived amid claims that entire towns either never received or never returned the 11-page poll. The results show a steady, if shrinking population at about 56.8 million people. Families also decreased to 2.6 members — down slightly from 2.8 in the 1991 census — but almost half the size of postwar families composed of 4.2 members.
The number of families is increasing (from around 19 million to 21 million since 1991) as more one-person families or single-parent families are created. As a result there are also considerably more houses, more telephones and television sets.
While the immigrant population is growing (tripled since the last census), Italy still has one of the lowest ratio of nationals to foreigners: 1.7% compared to Germany’s 9%. National statistics agency ISTAT plans to release final figures in 2003.

www.censimenti.it
Wade through the preliminary results.