Terrone

Not to be confused with Torrone.

The Terra di Lavoro in the 18th century, included in the so-called Campania Felix.

Terrone (Italian pronunciation: [terˈroːne]; plural terroni, feminine terrona)[a] is an epithet of the Italian language with which the inhabitants of Northern and Central Italy depreciatively or jokingly indicate the inhabitants of Southern Italy. Southern Italians, in turn, call Italians from the northern regions polentoni.

The term certainly originates from the word terra (Italian for "land"), with developments that are not always clear,[1][2][3] and was perhaps linked in the past by the denominations of southern areas such as the Terra di Lavoro (in Campania) or the Terra di Bari and the Terra d'Otranto (in Apulia).[4]

The word was recorded for the first time in 1950 by Bruno Migliorini, as an appendix to Alfredo Panzini's Dizionario moderno ("Modern Dictionary") in 1950.[1] Originally only derogatory and racist, over time the term has also acquired a joking meaning among southern Italians themselves.[1]


Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).

  1. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference Terroni was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ "Terrone" (in Italian). Corriere della Sera. Retrieved 23 May 2023.
  3. ^ "Terrone" (in Italian). Garzanti. Retrieved 23 May 2023.
  4. ^ "Terrone" (in Italian). Treccani. Retrieved 23 May 2023.