WEEK OF THE ITALIAN LANGUAGE IN THE WORLD 2025

In celebration of the 25th edition of the Week of the Italian Language in the World, the Istituto Italiano di Cultura Toronto hosts a presentation and panel discussion exploring the use of the Italian language in Toronto.

NOTE: The event will be presented in both Italian and English, with no translation provided.

The essay L’italiano in Canada. Il caso-studio di Toronto (The Italian Language in Canada: A Case Study of Toronto) by presenters Prof. Sara Galli, Prof. Mohammad Jamali, and Prof. Franco Pierno, examines the evolution and current status of Italian in Toronto. From early migration in the late 19th century to the postwar boom, the language has been sustained through media, education, and cultural institutions. Despite recent decline, Italian remains among the city’s main languages, supported by schools, festivals, and professional networks. The authors stress that collaboration, outreach, and openness to new generations are key to ensuring its vitality in the future. The essay was published by the prestigious Accademia della Crusca in its recent collection, Italofonia: lingua oltre in confini, edited by Annalisi Nesi and Bruno Moretti.

Presented by the Istituto Italiano di Cultura Toronto, the Department of Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, and Latin American Studies (ISPLAS) at the University of Toronto, the Accademia della Crusca.

ABOUT DR. SARA GALLI
Dr. Galli is an International Visiting Lecturer in the Department of Italian & Italian Studies at Dickinson College, Pennsylvania. She earned her Ph.D. in Italian Studies from the University of Toronto, specializing in Dante and the didactic of the Italian language. Her teaching focuses on Italian language, literature, and culture.

ABOUT DR. MOHAMMAD JAMALI
Dr. Jamali is a sessional lecturer in the Department of Language Studies at the University of Toronto Mississauga. He earned his Ph.D. in Italian Studies from the University of Toronto, specializing in Italian literary linguistics. His teaching focuses on Italian language, literature, and culture.

ABOUT DR. FRANCO PIERNO
Dr. Pierno, Canadian-born, is a Full Professor (Italian Linguistics) at the University of Toronto, and an “Accademico della Crusca”. Before coming to Toronto, he taught at the universities of Strasbourg, Basel, and Neuchâtel. He has also been invited as Visiting Researcher by the following academic institutions: John Carter Brown Library (Brown University, Providence; Visiting Fellow); “Fondation Maison Sciences de l’Homme” (Paris; “Directeur d’Études Associé”); Universität Dresden (Senior Fellow).

ABOUT THE WEEK OF THE ITALIAN LANGUAGE IN THE WORLD
The Week of the Italian Language in the World, established in 2001 and promoted by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, is an annual celebration of Italian as a language of both classical and contemporary culture. Held each October under the High Patronage of the President of the Republic, the program features conferences, exhibitions, performances, and meetings with writers and cultural figures, engaging Embassies, Consulates and Italian Cultural Institutes around the world.

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