Slovenes in Italy: A Fragmented Minority

Abstract

The study examines the Slovenian-speaking minority in the northern Italian autonomous region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia. It explores the spatial fragmentation in the Slovenian settlement area in Italy and analyzes the socio-economic and demographic processes that exert influence on the minority. The work is based on the critical evaluation of the current status of research, of statistical data from the state censuses and results of own research on site. The Slovenian-language population in the entire region is currently estimated at about 46,000 people. The main settlement area is the eastern border region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, which is characterized by different cultural and regional identities. While the Slovenian-speaking population of Friuli focuses more on its cultural and regional distinctions, the majority of the Slovenian-language group in Venezia Giulia considers itself a “national minority.”

Identity and Discursive Practices of Friulians and Slovenes in the Province of Udine, Italy, in Recent Decades.

“…Second, I myself as a researcher and regular visitor of the area can also see the increasingly stronger presence of Slovene and Friulian in public places and in formal or semiformal communication situations, 8 which clearly indicates changes in the discursive practices of Slovenes and Friulians. 7 The connection between Friulian language, Friulian identity and the cultural rights of the Friulian community have been thematised in works by by Žabjek-Scuteri (1987), Strassoldo (1996), Roseano (1999Roseano ( , 2002, Cisilino (2001Cisilino ( , 2008Cisilino ( , 2014Cisilino ( , 2015 Picco (2008Picco ( , 2013Picco ( , 2014 Stolfo & Cressati (2016), and the connection between Slovene language and Slovene identity in the Slovene community in Italy (especially in the Province of Udine) by Zuljan Kumar (2011Kumar ( , 2016Kumar ( , 2018 Steinicke et al (2016), Mezgec, (2016. The identities of ethnic or linguistic minorities in FVG and in Italy in general have been treated, for example, by Bonamore (2004), Coluzzi (2007), Susič, Janežič & Medeot (2010) and Vidau (2012Vidau ( , 2013Vidau ( , 2015a.…”

Identity Changes in the Slovenian and Friulian Linguistic Communities in the Province of Udine, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy

“…Changes of attitude in the use of Friulian and Slovenian can be noticed from the speakers' statements, the newspapers' articles, the scientific research (cf. Fusco, 2015;Coluzzi, 2015;Melchior, 2015;Steinicke et al, 2016;Vidau, 2015;Vidau, 2012;Sillani et al, 2011;Burelli, 2011;Picco, 2008, Bogatec et al, 2004 as well as in the linguistic landscape (on public and commercial signs), although the latter still on a small scale (Mezgec, 2016).…”