Italian/Introduction
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[edit] Introduction / Introduzione
[edit] Why learn Italian? / Perché imparare l'italiano?
Italian is the official language of Italy and San Marino, and is an official language in Ticino and Grigioni cantons of Switzerland. It is also the second official language in Vatican City and in some areas of Istria in Slovenia and Croatia with an Italian minority. Italian is very important in music, as many operas are written in it, as well as musical expressions.
Italian is widely taught in many schools around the world. In parts of Canada, Italian is, after French, the second most taught language. In the United States and the United Kingdom, Italian ranks fourth. Throughout the world, Italian is the fifth most taught non-native language, after English, French, Spanish and German. It is also highly mutually intelligible with Spanish and Portuguese (and to a lesser extent French), and can give a broader understanding of Romance languages.
