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Why Are North & South Italy So Different From Each Other?
Mar 31, 2025
In this video I talk about how North Italy is very different from the South in a number of indicators such as GDP, industry, population, unemployment or foreign residents. Before I do that I take a look at why those differences exist, going back in the history of the Italian Peninsula all the way back to the fall of the Roman Empire up to the point of its unification into the modern country we know today. TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 Intro 00:32 Historical Context 04:26 Current Differences 10:56 Summary Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/GKonYoutube Check out the mentioned article here: https://bigthink.com/strange-maps/a-bizarre-peace-proposal-slice-europe-up-like-a-pie/ Become a member on Patreon & get exclusive content! https://www.patreon.com/generalknowledge Join the Discord Server: https://discord.com/invite/f4neAVWZfF Business Contact: [email protected] Thanks for watching, remember to subscribe to catch future videos!
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0:00
A couple weeks ago, I was scrolling through a maps page online, and an interesting map came up
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showing the pollution levels throughout Italy. As I looked at it, I was surprised that such a high
0:11
concentration of pollution is present in the north, in order to find out why I learned that
0:16
Northern Italy has a lot more people than the south, and that the country's industry is also
0:21
more concentrated there. So, this got me thinking, in which other ways is Northern Italy different
0:28
than the south. The unification of Italy took place in 1848. I won't get into the topic of it
0:36
If you'd like to see a summarization of the unification in a video, let me know in the
0:40
comments. But before unification, the Italian peninsula was made up of several different states
0:47
different in government type, in rulers, and most importantly, they had significant demographic
0:53
economic, and financial differences. This animated map shows us the unification process
0:58
and all those states becoming one. I think those initial differences by the constituent states are
1:05
the biggest reason why the north is different than the south today. They brought those differences
1:09
with them into the new country from their past ones. So why were those countries different
1:15
To answer that, we must go even further back in history. Until the unification of Italy took place
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the peninsula had only been united one other time during the times of the Roman Empire
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When the Western Roman Empire collapsed, so did unified Italy. Since then, and until 1848, various peoples ruled portions of the peninsula
1:35
Arabs, Greeks, and Spanish people reigned in the south, while French, Celtic, and Germanic people in the north
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For this reason, the culture, customs, and cuisine have been strongly influenced by these different people
1:47
It is said that when you visit the historical centers of each region, you can notice the different cultural influences in architecture and food
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In the south, you can find traces of the Greeks, the Romans, but even the Phoenicians and the Arabs, as well as the Spaniards
2:01
In the north, the Romans, the Celts, and the Germans, like I just said
2:05
But let's provide more of a full historical explanation. You can use the timestamp to skip ahead to the comparisons if you want
2:12
With the fall of the Romans, southern Italy remained under Byzantine rule for quite some time
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while northern Italy came under the control of the Lombards. I think we can trace the first moment of separation between north and south to this moment in
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around 750 AD. A while later, the Byzantines lost control of parts of the south to the Muslims, which
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were in turn defeated by the Normans, which then established the Kingdom of Sicily
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In the north, Charlemagne conquered Lombardy, beginning a long period of influence of both
2:42
France and the Holy Roman Empire over these territories. To combat this Germanic influence especially from the HRE the Lumbered League was created joining several northern Italian cities which wanted to rule themselves This is also the origin point for many of Northern Italy famous city like Genoa Florence or the Republic of Venice Some of these cities became
3:06
incredibly wealthy and developed during the Renaissance, especially due to their merchant
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empires, something that didn't happen in the south. This generational wealth of the cities
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might still impact differences today too. In the meantime, the Papal States continue to rule great
3:22
parts of central Italy, further dividing north and south and existing as almost a buffer state
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that divided the two regions. Spain eventually took control of southern Italy and a tiny bit
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of the north too, actually, but not enough to be relevant there. Eventually, Spanish control ended
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and the kingdom of the two Sicilies was created in the south, following a very agricultural-based
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economy while the northern states followed the example of central Europe and industrialized
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Italy then became unified in 1848 after Sardinia-Piamon invaded the two Sicilies
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leading to the full unification of the peninsula. Many southerners at the time blamed the north for this invasion and the destruction it caused
4:02
which, according to them, also partially justified their lesser development when compared to the north
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Whether that's a true reason or not, the reality is that today, while Italy still unified as one country
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its territories also still differ a lot, as they did back then. And the reason why is likely to be precisely this historical territorial division since the fall of the Roman Empire throughout time
4:26
So now that we understand why North and South Italy are so different, let's find out in which ways they are different today, comparing the two regions in a number of factors
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First, terrain. This is a difference that has nothing to do with political history
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despite the fact that the north reaches into the Alps, it's also the only large region of Italy
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which has a plains area, suitable for the establishment of large cities and large-scale
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farming and industry. As we can see, the rest of the peninsula is full of mountains and elevations
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with only the coastal areas having some flat lands. Climate is also different in the north
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and south. In this map, we can see it. Most of the north and east has an oceanic or humid
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subtropical climate, while most of the south and west has a hot, warm summer Mediterranean
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Sardinia aligns with the south on climate, and I believe in most indicators as well. After all
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it is in the south half of the country. Then, industry. The high pollution, low air quality
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we saw happens in the north of the country mostly has to do with the fact that Italian
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industrial production is concentrated in the north. This map shows it clearly, and this is
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one of, if not the most relevant difference between North and South Italy
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Milan is the biggest industrial center, followed by Torino, Rome and Naples are the third and
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fourth in the South but much smaller than the other two and we can see that the gigantic
5:47
majority of industrial centers are in fact in the North. In most centers the mechanical industry is the dominant one followed by textiles at a distant second and then everything else The reason most industries are located in the north perhaps has to do with the flat terrain and the historical context of larger cities larger populations and wealthier states existing there
6:08
However, researcher Pietro Gigi from the London School of Economics argues that a big factor in
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choosing the north to settle industry was the reduction in transportation cost, market integration
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and greater proximity to European consumers. This makes sense. If the biggest amount of
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consumers for the products are closer to the northern border, it's cheaper to make them as
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close to it as possible. Because if we look at natural resources, they're a little more available
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up north, but not as concentrated as the industry is. Italy, however, doesn't have many natural
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resources altogether. When it comes to the GDP, this becomes evident too. Northern regions have
6:45
a much higher percentage of the national GDP. Lombardy, Emilia Romagna, Veneto, and Piemont alone
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account for 47%, almost half the entire country's. Lazio's is 11%, which shows us the center sets
6:59
itself apart from both North and South, similarly to what the Papal States did. But overall, as we
7:04
can see on this chart, the North has a much larger economy. And regarding GDP per capita, this is
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also visible, even though the North has a larger population. According to 2021 statistics from
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Eurostat, Italy is more geographically divided than any other country in Europe. Lombardy in the
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north has a GDP per capita equal to 127% of the EU average, while Calabria in the south has one of
7:28
56%. This map shows us that difference across the country. The further north you go, the higher the
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GDP per capita, and the further south, the opposite. Something that's also visible in the
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unemployment map. This is from 2017, but it does show a tendency of more unemployment existing in
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the south. There are also other interesting differences economic-wise. According to the OECD
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North Italy has a higher percentage of jobs suitable for remote working, leading us to believe
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that they have more jobs in the third sector, providing services, therefore being more developed
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if you will, with the south likely having many rural jobs still. Population-wise, like I mentioned
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the north has more people, but not that many more. In this map of population density, whole plains in
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the north seem to be the country's most populated area, but the south is also vastly populated along
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the coastlines, especially in Rome and Naples. However, there are many more red cities in the
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north than in the south. This other map, showing us where two halves of the population live
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also point this out. Rome and Naples are key population centers, but the rest is mostly up
8:32
north. Most foreign people that move into Italy also choose to move north. It makes sense if
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there's more industry and a larger economy there, that's where the most jobs are and the jobs that
8:42
pay best. This map is from 2011, so 10 years outdated, but it shows the percentage of foreign
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population in each region with the south having very small percentages The north is known for having better infrastructure the road network for instance is more dense there but it might just be because there more cities that need to be connected which isn the case in the less populated and more nature south The same happens with the railway system
9:05
Human development is higher in the north too. The HDI takes into account available healthcare
9:11
education, and housing, among other things. It's literally almost a gradient of darker to lighter
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as you go north to south. But even the lowest value in Sicily isn't low. Italy has a pretty
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high HDI, it's just interesting that the north is higher. The south however shows a smaller
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elderly dependence rate, meaning that all people are more autonomous in the south
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many of which living in the countryside. In fact, some of the world's longest lifespan regions are
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in southern Italy, many of which in small countryside villages with low population
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The south is also usually preferred for vacation destinations for tourists, being seen as prettier, not polluted, and visually appealing due to its nature
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which contrasts with the North's heavy urbanization. When it comes to languages, Italy is one language, but there are many small regional dialects
9:59
In this map, we can see them. In this case, it's not only the South that differs from the North
10:04
but pretty much all regions differing from each other, although it is said that in the South, they actually use the dialects way more on a day-to-day basis
10:12
Religion is another way in which the two regions differ. According to this map, Italy isn't as religious as it used to be
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but the South surpasses the North with almost all its regions over 30%
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while in the North, only two surpass this mark. Other cultural differences also exist, like holidays, culinary habits
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the language dialect I mentioned, among many more. Northern Italians can be blonde, some of French or Germanic descent
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while southern Italians tend to be more dark-haired, many with Arabic descent
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Food habits are also different not only in what they eat, but how and when Southern Italians tend to, for instance, have later dinner times than Northerners
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People also say Southern Italians are friendlier and more hospitable, but I'm not sure if this is really the case
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So, those are the main differences between North and South Italy. Understanding where those differences come from, which they are, and why they last up to today
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some with very old origins in the history of the territories, and others having more recent reasons for existing
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with the collapse of the Roman Empire marking the end of a unified peninsula
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and the separation of the north ruled by Lombards and the south by Byzantines
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as the first moment of separation between these two regions, with history unfolding in each of them in such a manner that it explains and justifies
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many of the differences they still have today. Did I make any mistakes and do you know of any other differences between these two parts of Italy
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that I didn't mention? Also, which other countries or regions of countries should I compare next
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Let me know in the comments. Thanks so much for watching this video. Subscribe if you want
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And I will see you next time for more general knowledge
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