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BOLOGNA - ITALY
Bologna (from Latin Bononia, Bulaggna in the
local dialect) is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna in northern Italy,
between the Po River and the Apennines.
History
Bologna was founded by the Etruscans with the name Felsina.
Next the city was the Roman colony known as Bononia, which survived as a
medieval city to become a centre of learning and then a major city of the
Renaissance papal states.
Due to an efficient system of canals,
Bologna was one of the trading centres in northern Italy. Part of taxes
raised from traders was used to pay the wages of the University
professors.
Overview
Over the centuries, Bologna has acquired many nicknames. "Bologna the
learned" is a reference to its famous university. "Bologna the fat"
refers to its cuisine.
Bologna is also called "Bologna the red" due to its abundance of brick
buildings. The historic town center is indeed striking, with its
mediaval street plan, leaning towers, and brightly colored buildings in
shades of red and orange. The townscape is further enriched by elegant
and extensive arcades. "Bologna the red" has also been said to refer to
the city's left-leaning politics. Until the election of a centre-right
mayor in 1999, the city was a historic bastion of socialism and
communism. The centre-left gained power again in the 2004 mayoral
elections, with the election of Sergio Cofferati. It was one of the
first European settlements to experiment with the concept of "free"
public transport.
Another nickname for Bologna is Basket City, referring to Bologna's
obsession with basketball, unusual for football-dominated Italy. The
local derby between the city's two principal basketball clubs, Fortitudo
and Virtus (often known respectively as Climamio and Kinder, after the
clubs' principal sponsors), is one of the most intense in the entire
world of sports; fortunately, violence has been largely absent in the
derby. Football is still a hugely popular sport in Bologna; the main
local club is the Serie A team Bologna F.C. 1909.
Bologna is home to Guglielmo Marconi International Airport. Its central
location also makes it northern Italy's major train hub.
Cuisine
Bologna is renowned for its cuilinary tradition and it is often regarded
as the food capital of Italy. Situated in the fertile Po River Valley,
the rich local cuisine depends on meats and cheeses. As in all Emilia-Romagna,
the production of cured pork meats such as prosciutto, mortadella and
salame is an important part of the local food industry. Tagliatelle al
ragů (pasta with meat sauce, from which the infamous spaghetti alla
Bolognese derive), tortellini, and mortadella (the original Bologna
sausage) are among the local specialites.
The University
The University of Bologna, founded in 1088, is widely regarded as the
oldest existing university in Europe, and was an important center of
European intellectual life during the Middle Ages. Gratian and Irnerius,
two of the formative influences on legal study both taught at the
university in the 12th century, and its students included Dante,
Petrarch, Thomas Becket, Erasmus, and Copernicus. Bologna is still very
much a university town, and its population rises from 400,000 to nearly
500,000 whenever classes are in session.
Famous People from Bologna
Guglielmo Marconi (inventor)
Stefano Benni (writer)
Pier Paolo Pasolini (writer, poet, director)
Giorgio Guazzaloca (politician, former mayor)
Pierluigi Collina (football referee)
Guido Reni (painter)
Ottorino Respighi (composer)
Annibale Carracci (painter)
Lodovico Carracci (painter)
Agostino Carracci (painter)
Pupi Avati (director)
Alex Zanardi (car driver)
Giorgio Morandi (artist)
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