Love and understand the Italians, for the people are more marvelous than the land.
E.M. Forster, English Novelist and Short Story Writer (1879-1970)
Italy has and continues to be home to some of the most renowned figures in the Western world. In nearly every area of culture- art, literature, politics, cuisine, music, fashion, sports, and cinema - famous italian people can be found.
It's no secret that Italian culture is one of the most celebrated in the world, and this is largely thanks to the people that have originated from this boot shaped country in southern Europe. If you have been considering learning more about the language and the culture, exploring the biographies of the most famous Italians may push you to take your Italian learning to the next level.
There are so many benefits to learning Italian - many of which we will explore in this article. Of course, it's you're still going to have to practice and put in the effort.
Let's take a look at the most famous Italian people to know about. We will start with important Italian historical figures, and move onto Italian artists, singers and celebrities.
Italian Historical Figures: Leaders, Politicians and Businessmen
Julius Caesar (100 to 44BC)
Roman military leader and politician Julius Caesar is perhaps one of the famous Italians to have lived.
Though his life is the stuff of legends, Caesar was a real person who lived 2000 years ago when Rome was the epicentre of a grand empire.
As a tactician and political genius, he became most famous for leading Roman legions in their conquest of what is known today as Europe.
As a leader, Caesar was instrumental in the rise of the Roman Empire, implementing many political and social reforms with a legacy that continues today. The Julian Calendar, for example, laid the foundations for the Gregorian calendar we use today.
Caesar declared himself dictator for life in 48AD but was assassinated 4 years later in the Senate following a plot. After his death, his adopted son Octavius reformed the Roman republic.
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Benito Mussolini (1883-1945)
Every country goes through some dark days, and these dark days are typically connected to the political leadership. In Italy, the leader of some the country's darkest times was Benito Mussolini. Born in 1883 in Dovia di Predappio, Mussolini was a journalist and leader of Italy from 1922-1943.
He created the National Fascist Party in 1921, after having been expelled from the Socialist Party in 1912. In 1922 he rose to power through threats, intimidation, and acts of violence, becomng the Minister of the Interior, Minister of Foreign Affairs, and the President of the Council of Ministers.
In 1936 Mussolini created a union and cooperation agreement with Nazi Germany, and the Italian army cooperated with the Nazis during World War II. The allies stopped his reign in 1943, and while attempting to flee he was captured and killed by communists.
Matteo Renzi (1975 - )
Born in Florence in 1975, Matteo Renzi started his career in marketing and got into politics after supporting Romani Prodi in 1996. A member of the left-wing Democratic Party, Renzi was elected as the President of the Region of Florence in 2004.
In 2009, Renzi was elected as the mayor of Florence and in 2012. He became Prime Minister of Italy in 2014.
Silvio Berlusconi (1936 - )
A businessman by trade, Silvio Berlusconi was born in Milan in 1936. He founded and directed Fininvest, a financial holdings company, and Mediaset, a media group.
In 1994, his Forza Italia political movement put him in the position of Prime Minister (PM) for the first time. He resigned, but later became the PM again in 2001. After leading two successful governments, he was defeated in 2006 but would become president two years later.
Berlusconi was convicted of tax fraud in 2013 and banned from public office for 6 years.
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Italian Explorers
Marco Polo (1254-1324)
Marco Polo was an Italian merchant and explorer born in 1254 in Venice. Famous for his voyages to China, Marco Polo was as much a merchant as he was an ambassador to the first Mongol emperor of the Yuan Dynasty Kublai Khan.
He subsequently became a messenger for the Overlord of China, Iran, and Russia and completed a large number of diverse missions across Asia.
The 13th-century work, Le Livre de Merveilles (Book of the Marvels of the World), details Marco Polo's experiences as told by the explorer himself. This book was not written by Marco Polo, but rather the stories were transcribed by Rustichello da Pisa, an Italian writer who had spent time in prison with Polo and had listened to his stories.
Marco Polo's Livre de Merveilles contains many interesting accounts of his first encounters with unfamiliar territories. Polo was one of the first Europeans to explore Asia, and due to having never heard of many of the flora and fauna of faraway lands, he wrongly believed some animals to be mythical creatures upon sighting them. One famous example of his blunder is his mistaking of a rhinoceros for a unicorn because of its horn!
A TV series was recently made about his life and he was also said to have influenced Christopher Columbus, another renowned explorer who is said to have carried a copy of Polo's famous travelogue with him while on his travels.
Christopher Columbus (1451-1506)
Everyone knows the most famous European explorer, Christopher Columbus (otherwise known as Cristoforo Colombo), but did you know that he was Italian? He was born in 1451 in Genoa, Italy and died in 1506 in Valladolid, Spain.
Columbus became famous when he became the first man to cross the Atlantic. Although he had intended to end up in East Asia rather than the Americas, Columbus' pioneering trip led him to the Caribbean, and he became commonly known as the first European to discover the Americas in 1492.
Christopher Columbus' discoveries weren't only major feats in the world of European exploration at the time, they also represented the spread of a European presence around the world.
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According to historians, Christopher Columbus played an important role in some of the greatest discoveries of the 15th and 16th centuries, and his first voyage is mentioned as a turning point for modern humans as he is often credited with the building of the West.
However, behind the pioneering character depicted in history textbooks who changed the world with his discovery are many dark facts surrounding Columbus within the history of the European colonization of the Americas.
Perhaps Columbus' most shocking contribution to the beginning of European domination of the Americas was his founding of the transatlantic slave trade after having captured a group of indigenous people from the Caribbean who he intended to transport to Europe to be sold as slaves.
Italian Academics
Antonio Meucci (1808 - 1889)
Antonio Santi Giuseppe Meucci was an Italian inventor, and arguably the first to invent the telephone rather than Alexander Graham Bell. However, he is best known as a voice communication apparatus developer.
Meucci investigated electromagnetic voice communication for many years following his career in Cuba and, in 1856, he succeeded in broadcasting his voice through a wiring setup. He had created a telephone-style piece of equipment in his house so he could communicate with his then very poorly and disabled wife.
Meucci, unfortunately, lacked finances to support his inventions, and A. Graham Bell was granted a patent in 1875 for the same type of device. Meucci didn't give up, though, and continued inventing and designing prototypes throughout the rest of his life, achieving patents including candle moulds, a lamp burner, a hygrometer and a method of testing milk.
Galileo (1564-1642)
Galileo is one of the greatest European scholars of physics, mathematics, astronomy, and geometry. Born in 1564 in Pisa and died in Arcetri in 1641, Galileo (Galileo Galilei) was a pioneer of physics. In fact, since 1680 he’s been considered the founder of the discipline. Furthermore, he established the foundations of modern mechanics.
Galileo's passion for pursuing the truths that explain our place in the universe led him to make some remarkable discoveries, not least because he crafted an advanced version of the telescope after having heard about the invention of such a device in Holland, but also because of his involvement in many fields which paved the way for modern science.
Galileo's world was heavily involved with astronomy and understanding the solar system - he was even accused of heresy for suggesting that the planets revolved around the sun! Sadly, his passion for studying the universe landed him a life sentence in prison, once again for heresy because he supported the Copernican theory. Thankfully, Galileo was able to soften his punishment to house arrest, but sadly, he was not entitled to share his thoughts, and his belief that the sun was at the centre of the solar system had to be publicly rejected by Galileo himself.
Italian Writers and Poets
Dante Alighieri (1265-1321)
Dante Alighieri (real name Durante degli Alighieri) was a Florentine poet, writer, and politician. He was born in Florence in 1265 and died in Ravenna in 1321. He’s most famous for his epic poem La Divina Commedia, or The Divine Comedy.
According to many historical sources, it’s thanks to Dante Alighieri that the Italian language is the way it is today. In fact, his literary masterpiece helped impose the Tuscan dialect (particularly the Florentine subdialect) across Italy as the standard language of the nation.
Dante shaped modern Italian by enriching the language as he expanded the vocabulary available to speakers of Italian.
Dante's literature didn't just enrich modern Italian, it practically constructed it. At the beginning of the 14th century (around the time that Dante was writing), the Italian language contained just sixty percent of the vocabulary which is essential to modern-day communication in Italian, whereas, by the end of the same century, ninety percent of the language spoken in Italy was considered essential to modern-day Italian speaking.
Italian Visual Artists
Michelangelo (1475 – 1564)
Michelangelo was a Renaissance painter, sculptor, architect, poet and artist. In 1488, Michelangelo became an apprentice to the painter Domenico Ghirlandaio and his primary artworks were in the form of sculpture. In 1505, he was summoned back to Rome by Pope Julius II to design Julius' own tomb.
Things didn't work out but Michelangelo did produce a sculpture of Moses for the tomb. Michelangelo's next major commission was the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican (1508-1512), which made him rise in popularity and what has made him most famous until this day. In 1534, the artist returned to Rome once again where he was asked to paint 'The Last Judgement' on the altar wall of the Sistine Chapel.
Michelangelo additionally designed monuments to Giuliano and Lorenzo de' Medici in the Medici Chapel in San Lorenzo.
Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519)
Leonardo da Vinci was born in 1452 in Vinci, Italy. Nowadays he is seen as a symbol of the Renaissance. A jack of all trades, and seemingly a master of all, too, Leonardo da Vinci was a painter, scientist, architect, mathematician, poet, diplomat, astronomer, and even a sculptor.
He most famous for his painting, The Mona Lisa, and is also remembered as a major figure in science. Da Vinci made critical discoveries in the fields of optics, anatomy, hydrodynamics, and civil engineering.
Giovanni Bellini (1453-1516)
Giovanni Bellini is one of the most influential Venetian artists. He had an art career for 65 years with always working and living in Venice. Bellini is more notably known for his portrayal of natural light in his landscape paintings. He was born into a family of Venetian painters from his birth, father and brother in law also having well-known paintings.
Bellini is known for his paintings, Doge Leonardo Lordan, Madonna of the Meadow, and Saint Jerome Reading in a Landscape. There are still many of his signed paintings that have survived to this day.
Artemisia Gentileschi (1593- 1652)
She was an Italian painter that is known for several paintings such as Susana and the Elders, Madonna and Child, and Judith Slaying Holofernes. Artemisia is credited to be one of the greatest female painters of her time. She learned under her father, Orazio, who was a great painter as well.
Works like "Saint Cecilia" (1620) capture her mastery of light, shadow, and human expression (photo left). She captures the patron saint of music's feeling of rapture as she plays the lute.
Artemisia's earliest work is dated around 1610. She painted throughout her life and even until her final days. Most experts believe she painted her best in her early years. She continues to be an inspiration for her artwork as well as her ability to overcome the prejudices during her time.
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Giorgio Morandi (1890-1964)
Morandi was an Italian painter and printmaker. He is most known for his still-life paintings of bottles, cars and boxes. His paintings expressed the infinite nature of time and space, and light and dark.
He knew he wanted to focus on still life drawings, and found interest in painting simple objects found at second-hand shops. It was noted that he would stare at the objects all day. He had a passion for still life and it showed through his devotion to painting.
Interested in learning about the people who have shaped Italian art? Check out the most famous Italian writers and painters.
Italian Musicians And Composers
Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741)
Vivaldi was a famous composer and musical genius. Born in Venice in 1678, Vivaldi left a major mark in musical history as one of the most important composers during the Baroque period. His most famous works include The Four Seasons, Stabat Mater, and L'Estro Armonico.
Vivaldi's music is recognized for its bright and lively style, and in his time as a composer, Vivaldi penned upwards of 500 concertos (the majority of which were for the violin), 46 operas and many other arrangements for instruments and voice. Aside from being a musical genius, Vivaldi was also a music teacher at an all-girls school, and an ordained priest.
Luciano Pavarotti (1935-2007)
Luciano Pavarotti was born in 1935. He became known as one of the best opera singers of his generation. With over 100 million albums sold worldwide, he had unprecedented success in bringing the classical style of opera to popular culture.
The tenor collaborated with artists like Mariah Carey, U2, and Barry White for humanitarian causes like War Child. It was not just his crossover into pop that made him a household name. His distinctive voice made him a legend and he is hailed by many as one of the best tenors of the 20th century.
Andrea Bocelli (1958 - )
Another one of the world's most famous singers, Andrea Boccelli performed opera while also releasing a catalogue of albums that became popular outside of the genre. Born in Lajatico in 1958, Bocelli has sold over 80 million albums worldwide.
Andrea Bocelli's contributions to music have earned him a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and he has also been given the title of Grand Officer of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic.
Giuseppe Verdi (1813 – 1901)
Giuseppe Verdi was a leading Italian composer of opera in the 19th century, best known for operas such as Rigoletto (1851), Il Trovatore (1853), La Traviata (1853), Don Carlos (1867), Aida (1871), Otello (1887), and Falstaff (1893) and his Requiem Mass (1874). Verdi first showed promise with his musicality at a young age and started studying musical composition before getting his first big break in 1833 after he was hired to conduct at the Philharmonic Society in Busseto.
After several family tragedies and unsuccessful operas, Verdi eventually became known for his skill in creating melodies and his use of grand theatrical effects. His move away from the traditional Italian opera style subsequently added to his fame. For the rest of the 1840s, and up until the 1870s, Verdi continued to rise in success and fame.
Despite the retirement plans he had, in the mid-1880s, Verdi collaborated with composer and novelist Arrigo Boito to complete Otello, based on Shakespeare's Othello'. It was initially met with high acclaim throughout Europe and continues to be regarded as one of the greatest operas of all time even to this day.
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Giacomo Puccini (1858 – 1924)
Giacomo Puccini was, and remains, one of opera’s most popular composers. His operas are famous worldwide because of the high levels of drama brought into their plots, for their fantastic melodies and for the wealth of great roles they provide to singers looking to perform on stage.
Puccini was born to a family of church musicians and moved to Milan in 1880 to study at the Milan Conservatory. As a student, he attended many performances at La Scala. Puccini completed his first opera, the one-act Le villi', for the Sonzogno Competition; which was rejected by the judges but went on to premiere in 1884 with much success. His second opera, Edgar (1889) was, unfortunately, a failure, but the third work (and first mature work) brought him back on track.
While completing Manon Lescaut, Puccini joined librettists Giuseppe Giacosa and Luigi Illica, and the threesome wrote Puccini's three greatest operas: La bohème (1896), Tosca (1900) and Madama Butterfly (1904). Following the death of Giacosa in 1906, however, Puccini struggled to find inspiration.
In his last years, Puccini began work on his final opera Turandot, set in ancient China, but sadly never completed the final act as he died of throat cancer. The opera was later completed by Franco Alfano and premiered two years after Puccini's death.
Mina Mazzini (1958-)
She is known as one of the greatest Italian singers of all time. Her music career took off in the 60s and 70s. Her music features a number of different genres such as Italian pop, R&B, Jazz and Disco. Through her actions and her movement, she became a symbol of female empowerment by pushing boundaries with her lyrics. Mina retired in 1978 but came back to the music scene in the 80s and 90s.
Mina first started singing in 1958 where she sang at a club. She later got discovered by a music producer David Matalon. In the 1960s she recorded multiple albums and continued to produce music till her retirement.
Laura Pausini (1974-)
She is a top ten recording artist and has sold millions of albums worldwide. Laura has been incredibly successful on the charts in Europe and Latin America. She had a number one album in Italy in 1998. Laura had her first live performance at the young age of 12 and had her first recording debut at the age of 18. She sang La Soltiudine which became the number one song in Italy.
Laura has continued to have a successful music career and continues to break records. Her most recent work was in 2018 where she delivered her 13th studio album. Aside from singing, Laura makes the occasional television appearance. She was a judge on the Spanish version of the X-Factor.
Italian Celebrities
Giorgio Armani (1934 - )
Giorgio Armani was born in 1934 in Piacenza, Italy. He is one of the world's most famous designers for men and women, and his name is recognized around the world.
Armani rose to fame in the 1980s as his sharp designs for men's power suits came to the forefront of fashion, with his garments even being featured in the popular TV series, Miami Vice as well as other designs being donned by many stars of the silver screen, giving the Armani brand the A-list reputation it has today.
Monica Bellucci (1964 - )
Model and actress Monica Bellucci was born in Citta di Castello in 1964. She is famous for her roles in films like The Matrix, The Passion of the Christ, and Spectre. She is also considered to be one of the most beautiful women in the world. Was she in any of our top Italian films?
Interestingly, Monica Bellucci never intended to follow an acting career, in fact, she was originally pursuing a career in law. Whilst studying for her law degree, Bellucci worked as a model to earn some extra money to help her through university. However, this turned into a full-time career, and after her television debut in 1990, Bellucci's acting career was born.
Sophia Loren (1934 - )
Sophia Loren is an Academy Award-winning Italian actress. Loren was born in Rome in 1934 and raised in poverty. She first began her film career as a teenager and quickly came to be regarded as one of the most beautiful women of all time.
She won the Best Actress Academy Award for the film 'Two Women' in 1961 and an Academy Honorary Award in 1991.
Some of the movies she was known for are: 'Aida,' 'The Gold of Naples', 'The Pride and the Passion', 'Two Women', 'Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow', and 'Marriage, Italian Style'.
Loren continued to star in Italian, American and French films throughout the 1960s. Loren returned to her home country during the 1980s to spend more time with her family, which now included two teenage sons. During this time out of the film studio, she launched her own perfume followed by a make-up line and then a book.
Francesco Totti (1976 - )
Francesco Totti is a footballer who was born in Rome in 1976. He spent his entire career playing for Roma and the Italian National Team. He won the World Cup with Italy in 2006, and scored a total of 250 goals for Roma
Damniano David (1999-)
Damiano David is a relatively new addition to the roster of most famous Italians. The lead vocalist of the rock band Måneskin, Damniano gained international fame after Måneskin won the 2021 Eurovision Song competition with the song, Zitti e buoni.
With his 2021 win at Eurovision, David is currently one of the most popular Italian singers and public figures. He is known for having a charismatic stage presence, powerful vocals, and androgynous style. He has drawn comparisons to rock legends Freddie Mercury and Mick Jagger. As a fashion icon and advocate for self-expression, David has revived rock music for a new generation of young fans.
Finding Inspiration From Famous Italians
The growing list of famous Italians is a reminder of how rich and remarkable the country and culture is. If you've ever been wondering about whether or not to learn Italian, or continue an existing study you have already started, this is your sign to go for it!
There are so many great benefits to language learning, particularly Italian. It is one of the most beautiful languages out there, one of the most phenomenal places to travel to, and you'll be able to converse with wonderful Italian people. The Italian culture is full of amazing literature, artwork and speeches. Once you learn Italian you'll be able to appreciate their culture in the original language.
Here are more benefits to learning Italian:
What is the Best Way to Learn Italian?
Now that you have made a decision to start learning Italian, you just need to decide how! One great way to learn is to hire a private tutor or teacher from Superprof. Superprof is a tutoring platform that offers lessons in multiple languages including Italian. They have 1000s of tutors across the country that are ready to work with you. They all have the experience and knowledge to help you learn Italian the best way possible. Superprof also offers lessons online and in-person giving you the freedom and flexibility to learn when you want to learn.
Now you've got a taste for the culture, consider taking Italian lessons with a private Italian tutor or learn Italian online.
Final Thoughts
Now that you've explored the biographies of many of the most famous Italians, we hope you've found some inspiration to learn the language. Whether you plan to take an Italy to see Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel for yourself, want to review the speeches of some of enigmatic leaders, or plan to do a deep dive into cinema - learning Italian will only lead to amazing learning.
Start learning Italian today.
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