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Slovene minority in Italy (Slovene: slovenska manjšina v Italiji, Italian: minoranza slovena in Italia), also known as Slovenes in Italy (Slovene: Slovenci v Italiji, Italian: sloveni in Italia) is the name given to Italian citizens who belong to the autochthonous Slovene ethnic and linguistic minority living in the Italian autonomous region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia. The vast majority of members of the Slovene ethnic minority live in the Provinces of Trieste, Gorizia, and Udine. Estimates of their number vary significantly; the official figures show 52,194 Slovenian speakers in Friuli-Venezia Giulia, as per the 1971 census, but Slovenian estimates speak of 83,000 to 100,000 people.[1][2]
The Slovene minority in Italy enjoys legal protection of its collective rights, guaranteed by the Italian constitution and specific legislation, as well as by international treaties (especially the London Memorandum of 1954), and bilateral agreements initially stipulated first between Italy and Yugoslavia (especially the Treaty of Osimo of 1975), and since 1991 between Italy and Slovenia.
Since 1945, the Slovenes in Italy have enjoyed partial cultural autonomy, including an education system in Slovene. They have a wide net of cultural and civic associations. The Slovene language is co-official in many of the municipalities with presence of the Slovene minority, and visual bilingualism is applied in most of the non-urban settlements with traditional Slovene presence. However, the implementation of these rights largely depends on the local administrations; thus, the situation varies significantly from area to area.
Both Italy and Slovenia promote Slovene culture in Friuli-Venezia Giulia through subsidies for Slovene associations and organizations.
- ^ Zupančič, Jernej (August 2004). "Ethnic Structure of Slovenia and Slovenes in Neighbouring Countries" (PDF). Slovenia: a geographical overview. Association of the Geographic Societies of Slovenia. Retrieved 10 April 2008.
- ^ Zupančič, Jernej (author), Orožen Adamič, Milan (photographer), Filipič, Hanzi (photographer): Slovenci po svetu. In publication: Nacionalni atlas Slovenije (Kartografsko gradivo) / Inštitut za geografijo, Geografski inštitut Antona Melika. Ljubljana: Rokus, 2001.COBISS 18593837(in Slovene)