Insubria
Insubria is a historical-geographical region which corresponds to the area inhabited in
History
Polybius claims the Insubres founded the city of Milan around 600 BC. They were a Celtic or Ligurian people which dwelt in the 4th–5th century BC in the area of pre-Alpine lakes (the Italian Lakes) and Milan. The name Insubres is visible in the middle portion of the Tabula Peutingeriana.
The symbol of Insubria (when conceived as the Duchy of Milan) is the
Regio Insubrica Euroregion
At present, the meaning of the term Insubria is perceived as more restricted, as it indicates the territory of the cross-boundary cooperation community
It is a Euroregion (complying with the
Linguistics
From an ethnolinguistic viewpoint, Insubria also comprises the provinces of
Modern and contemporary uses
The word "Insubria" was considered for long a mere synonym of Lombardy, especially in the Ducal age, that is, from the late Middle Ages to the Renaissance.
From the 14th to the 17th century, among the men of letters at the Milan Ducal Court, the terms "Insubre" and "Insubria" were used to give awareness of unity and a higher national identity to the still vital autonomous communes.
"Insubria" thus denoted the core of the then extensive Duchy of Milan, as attested in the writings of Benzo d'Alessandria, Giovanni Simonetta, Thomas Coryat, Bernardino Corio and Andrea Alciato. In the 17th century Gabriele Verri reaffirmed that concept using the following motto, which he placed as a heading in all his works: "Insubres sumus, non latini" ("We are Insubrians, not Latins").
In 1797, following the occupation of the
In the 1930s, a review called Insubria was published, whose aim was promoting tourism and culture of the pre-Alpine lakes area.
The term fell into oblivion until the 1990s, when Insubria came into favour again because of a series of events, the first of which was the founding (in 1995) of the above-mentioned "Regio Insubrica", a cross-boundary cooperation community whose aim is to promote the cultural, economic and social elements which draw Italian Switzerland and the border provinces together.
The newspaper La Prealpina, followed by others, added a daily page headed "Insubria" reporting local political news.
In 1996 the Terra Insubre Cultural Association was officially set up in Varese; its purposes are the spreading and promotion of the history and natural environment of the Insubrian territory to a vast audience. At present (2006) the association has about 1500 members and two detached branches (Milan and Marcallo con Casone), as well as a quarterly review also named Terra Insubre.
In those same years (i.e. 14 July 1998) the University of Insubria was set up as the university pole of the towns of Varese and Como.
Insubrism
In recent years, some politicians have begun to debate the possibility of institutionally constituting Insubria and/or gaining its political autonomy. However, as of today there exist no political parties striving for that goal, but only some cultural and opinion movements.
At the beginning of 2002 the "Movimento degli Indipendenti Insubrici" ("Insubrian Independence Movement") was constituted in the
The "Indipendenti Insubrici" had Nussbaumer as their representative in the
The activities of Domà Nunch opinion group, the promoter of the "El Dragh Bloeu" online review, started in 2005. The movement was officially presented in Piazza Insubria, Milan, on 6 February 2006. Domà Nunch has no institutional representatives, but it mainly organizes conferences, rallies and popular fairs; among them the annual Insubrian National Day every 5 September, to celebrate the foundation of the Duchy of Milan; the Forum on the Environmental Emergencies in Insubria, which took place in March 2007 in Uboldo; the Forum on the Milanese Language in April 2007 in Nerviano, which reconciled the biggest linguistic associations of the region; the summit Olona: A Broken Valley in March 2008 in Gorla Minore; the three-day Olona Valley Festival in June 2008; and the rallies against the Pedemontana highway project in November 2009 and February 2010. Domà Nunch draws its inspiration from the principles of eco-nationalism, that is to say, a synthesis of environmentalism and requests for the protection of Insubrian cultural identity; it promotes the project of an Insubrian Confederation, based on the Swiss state model.
"Domà Nunch" could be translated from
Cuisine
Common in the whole Insubria area are bruscitti, originating from Altomilanese, which consist in a braised meat dish cut very thin and cooked in wine and fennel seeds, historically obtained by stripping leftover meat. In particular the dish is widespread in the province of Varese (Lombardy),[1] in the Alto Milanese area (Lombardy; particularly in the area of the city of Busto Arsizio, where it originates), in the province of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola (Piedmont)[2] and in lower Ticino (Switzerland).[3]
See also
- List of euroregions
References
- ^ "Bruscitt" (in Italian). Retrieved February 17, 2024.
- ^ "Antonella Clerici si commuove in diretta. Ciò che succede in studio non la lascia indifferente: il ricordo che emoziona anche il pubblico" (in Italian). November 30, 2020. Retrieved February 17, 2024.
- ^ "Bruscitt con polenta di mais corvino e carciofi croccanti" (in Italian). Retrieved February 19, 2024.
External links
- Regio Insubrica cooperation community
- Terra Insubre cultural association
- Domà Nunch website – Foeuj per la Promozion de l'Insubria[permanent dead link]
- University of Insubria
- Insubrian Students
- Integrated tourism promotion of the Pre-alpine Lakes Region