Fratelli d’Italia : Differences and similarities in social values between Italian macro- regions

According to many scholars, politicians and opinion-makers, the social, economic and cultural differences within Italy are of such magnitude to be able to speak of ‘three Italies’: the North, the Centre and the South. For example, the GDP per capita of the South is around 58% of the North and Centre, with 36% of the Italian population (Malanima and Zamagni 2010). Debates about the disparity between the North and South have been present almost from Italy’s creation as a unified state in the nineteenth century. 150 years later, during the national celebrations of 2011, the presumed cultural differences remain at the core of the public debate on Italian national identity.