Friuli

Regions: Friuli-Venezia Giulia

Provinces: Pordenone (PN) and Udine (UD)

Situation and general information

The north Italian region of Friuli, in the basins of the Tagliamento and the lower Isonzo, extends from the Carnic and Julian Alps to the Adriatic. Together with the eastern part of the old province of Veneto (provinces of Trieste en Gorizia) it now forms the region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, which occupies 7,846sq.m/3,029sq.mi (pop. 1,200,000).

History

The region, originally occupied by an Illyrian tribe, the Carni, was conquered by Rome around 150 B.C. Its name comes from the Roman town of Forum Iulii (Cividale del Friuli). Later a Lombard duchy, in the time of Charlemagne it was held by a Frankish margrave, in 952 it passed to Bavaria, in 976 to Carinthia, and in 1077 was a gift to the Patriarchate of Aquileia. In the 15th century the western (and larger) part was conquered by Venice, while the smaller eastern part was granted to the counts of Gorizia as a fief and in 1500 passed to Austria, which in 1797 also acquired the territory held by Venice. Italy secured the Venetian territory in 1866 and the county of Gorizia in 1918, but in 1947 was compelled to cede the eastern part, predominantly inhabited by Slovenes, to the former Yugoslavia. Earthquake damages

Much of the region was ravaged by a series of earthquakes in 1976 in which more than 1,000 people lost their lives, and many valuable works of art and architecture as well as complete villages were destroyed. In many places many houses, streets, castles and palaces have since been rebuilt or restored.

Population and economy

Of the 1.2 million inhabitans of the region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia some 520,000 are Friulians (in Italian "Friulani", in Friulian "Furlani"), the descendants of Rhaetians who were Romanised at an early date. They speak Friulian, a Rhaeto-Romanic dialect. The economy is traditionally based on agriculture (including viticulture), but many Friulians now find employment in other parts of Italy in building or other trades.

Tourism

In the mountains the opening up of new skiing areas has made tourism an increasingly important element in the economy of the region. The favorite winter sports resorts are Piancavallo, Forni di Sopra, Ravascletto, Sella Nevea and the area around Tarvisio. In Sella Nevea there is a summer ski-school. On the Adriatic coast there are a great number of popular seaside resorts, including Grado, nearby which bird's nesting areas (lagoon) and small fishing islands can be found, and Lignano Sabbiardoro, with a wide beach. Interesting to visit are the towns of Aquileia, Cividale del Friuli and Udine.