By Marianna Gatto, ISDA Contributing Editor

That’s often the first question Italian Americans ask one another.

Most Italian Americans trace their roots to villages in the Mezzogiorno, or the regions that comprise Italy’s south: Sicily, Campania, Calabria, Basilicata, Abruzzo, Puglia, Molise, and Sardinia.

The Observatory on Italian Roots, which is funded by the AsSud Association, an entity that studies Italian immigration, has launched a research study entitled “Discovering Italian: Roots Travel in Italy” in cooperation with Italy’s Minister of Foreign Affairs.

While many Italian Americans will visit Italy at some point in their lives, a smaller number venture to the towns from where their families emigrated.

The Observatory on Italian Roots launched a survey, available in six languages (English, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, French, German, Italian), with the hope that the descendants of Italian immigrants living abroad will shed more light on genealogy tourism through their responses.

Unlike visits to Italy that center around major tourist destinations, roots tourism is often more personal, heartfelt, motivated by a desire to understand one’s origins, and connect with one’s past.

Participating in the survey is FREE and those who complete the entire questionnaire will be entered in a contest to receive a 600 Euro travel voucher to Italy!

The findings of the survey will be published in 2022 and will help guide Italian municipalities, institutions, tourism agencies, and associations in their efforts to travelers seeking to discover their roots.

COMPLETE THE SURVEY USING THIS LINK!

 

Marianna Gatto is the executive director and cofounder of the Italian American Museum of Los Angeles (IAMLA), a historian and author with more than a decade of experience in public history, non-profit leadership, museums, and education.