Plural form of Italian; people who are citizens or natives of Italy, or individuals of Italian descent. Can also refer to speakers of the Italian language.
From Medieval Latin Italianus, from Italia (Italy), which comes from Greek Italos, possibly from an ancient tribal name. The term evolved to describe the inhabitants of the Italian peninsula.
The identity 'Italian' is relatively recent in historical terms - Italy only unified as a nation in 1861. Before then, people identified as Venetian, Roman, Florentine, or by other regional identities, making 'Italian' both ancient and modern simultaneously.
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