Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I've heard the Spanish have a bit more Teutonic-like reserve and orderliness than the Italians, who are more chaotic and spontaneous, which could explain their success in colonising the Americas, although those subsequent societies have been anything but. Do you think Spaniards (generalising of course) tend to differ noticeably from Italians? Or are regional differences more significant, e.g. Catalan vs Aragonese, or Milanese vs Sicilian? Would you say the Spanish are generally more reserved than Italians, or the opposite? In which society is it more common for strangers to talk to each other? Is Italy a lot more conservative/family-orientated? How does Milan compare with Madrid, or Rome with Barcelona? Or Naples with Seville, Florence with Valencia?
Strange because when I have been in Spain I have noticed the opposite.
North Italians are more teutonic-like. The half Spain i have visited is very mediterranean-like.
The stereotype was created by Romanticist, mainly French and American, taking as model Andalusia, Andalusian bandits and Andalusian Gypsies, Carmen and such.
As any Romantic recreation, never had much relation with reality.
Spanish temperament disappeared during Francoism and Spain became a militarised and very orderly country in which not even the flies could flie without flight plan. Compared to Italy, Spain is like a headquarter.
Last edited by Almansoor; 01-18-2015 at 07:49 AM..
Spaniards and Italians aren't similar at all in any way. Spaniards are latin Mediterraneans and Italians are Germanics. I don't know why you'd even compare the two to begin with
Italians are Germanics........................WTF are you talking about. Italy is a LATIN country....you are not too smart are you..................The Roman Empire..............a great empire till its downfall, while Germania was Barbarians....................
Italians are Germanics........................WTF are you talking about. Italy is a LATIN country....you are not too smart are you..................The Roman Empire..............a great empire till its downfall, while Germania was Barbarians....................
Maybe the Italy that he knows is the extreme northwestern part where the average "Italian" in reality is an ethnic German/Austrian that lives in Italy and speaks Italian.
Ok well, as someone who has studied European cultures, countries and languages since I was a child, I can assure you the following:
Italians have a very "laissez faire" attitude about life that was fostered with the artistic nature of renaissance era. The are very stylistic, artistic and nuanced with their expression and demeanor. Italians have a certain ZEST for life that in unparalleled in Europe and the world (accept for perhaps Brazil). Italians and rather conservative only when it comes to religious traditions, otherwise they are rather liberal and open-minded. Italians have a Joy about life and a Comedic sense of humor that is hard to understand at times by some of their more reserved neighbors. Italy as we know it today, came about rather recently in the 1800's. Before then it was a collection of city-states and little duchies, each with their own regional identity. Italians, because of their relaxed attitude, don't place much emphasis on order and mechanics as much as they do on style and personality.
Spaniards on the other hand are dry and HARSH when compared to Italians. Among Europeans they have the stereotype of being joyous, fun loving, funny, zesty blokes. However these are just stereotypes and they're not really based in reality. Real Spaniards are tough, strict, severe, staunch, rough, dry, sarcastic, fierce, extremely proud, yet very down to Earth. Spain had a very different history than Italy did, mired in Religious Conservatism and staunch moral zealotry, born out of 700 years of Bloody Warring with the Arab Muslim Invaders (Medieval Jihadi terrorists). Spain's History was NOT cute and fluffy! Add to this the fact that Spain has a rather extreme and harsh climate throughout most of the country, with Cold, wind-swept Winters and scorching hot summers with very little rain for irrigation and farming, created an environment where people learned to be hard, brave, serious and very pragmatic. Some regional differences do exist, but the general national Character (As in most countries) is evident in almost all parts of Spain. Galicians for example in the Northwest have a Portuguese-like superstition and are rather comical people. The Basques in the Central North are hard-working and reserved. Catalans are also hard-working and Intellectual types. The Castillians are Proud and Severe like their land, while the Andalucians in the South are decidedly more laid back, fun-loving and outgoing.
Those are stereotypes. There's no "national character", please!!
Italy's history was as tough as Spanish history.
People were like that 60 years ago.
Real Spaniards are tough, strict, severe, staunch, rough, dry, sarcastic, fierce, extremely proud, yet very down to Earth. Spain had a very different history than Italy did, mired in Religious Conservatism and staunch moral zealotry, born out of 700 years of Bloody Warring with the Arab Muslim Invaders (Medieval Jihadi terrorists). Spain's History was NOT cute and fluffy! Add to this the fact that Spain has a rather extreme and harsh climate throughout most of the country, with Cold, wind-swept Winters and scorching hot summers with very little rain for irrigation and farming, created an environment where people learned to be hard, brave, serious and very pragmatic. Some regional differences do exist, but the general national Character (As in most countries) is evident in almost all parts of Spain. Galicians for example in the Northwest have a Portuguese-like superstition and are rather comical people. The Basques in the Central North are hard-working and reserved. Catalans are also hard-working and Intellectual types. The Castillians are Proud and Severe like their land, while the Andalucians in the South are decidedly more laid back, fun-loving and outgoing.
Spaniards are not sarcastic, tough or extremely proud. I agree they are pragmatic and down to earth. They also tell you things directly, Spaniards don't use euphemisms like Americans do.
Spaniards don't speak in metaphores or use irony like the British, US Americans or Latin Americans. I can't speak for Italians because I don't know their culture.
I would say Spaniards have less BS tolerance because they have been screwed over and over. They tend to not trust big institutions and while they celebrate many festivities they are not particularly religious.
They also don't tend to follow rules and have a Robin Hood mentality. If a poor person steals, they condone that behavior. They don't agree with evictions and protests when banks want to remove people from their properties. In the US this mentality is unheard of. They are populists.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
