The journalist Domenico Lanciano, founder in April 1982 and animator of the cultural association “Calabria Prima Italia”, recently put forward the proposal to erect a statue of King Italo in front of Lamezia airport, the one who gave Italy its name in the Isthmus area about 3500 years ago.
Now he proposes to call the future conurbation city between Catanzaro, Lamezia and the Municipalities of the Isthmus “Prima Italia”. And, from Molise where he considers himself in exile, he explains why in the following way. I have read in numerous Calabrian newspapers the proposal (dated 1991 and recently revived with vigor) of the possible or desirable conurbation between the cities of Catanzaro and Lamezia Terme, i.e. the entire territorial strip of the so-called Isthmus of approximately 40 km between the Ionian Sea and the Tyrrhenian Sea.
That Isthmus which – as the most ancient historians and geographers wrote – a caravan could travel and cross in just half a day’s walk… that stretch of the territory of the Italian peninsula which appears to be the shortest or narrowest between a sea and the other. So much so that some are already thinking of calling this conurbation “City of the two seas”… a rather generic definition, like that of “City of the Isthmus”. And so on.
Then he continues: As happens with children still in gestation who do not already have a name generally derived from their grandparents, the welter of proposals goes freely. There is, however, the so-called “patronymic” name which, by extension, could concern the metropolitan city derived from the conurbation of the Isthmus between Catanzaro and Lamezia.
The most ancient roots and history can intervene to clarify the nature of a place as well as a person. In fact, if we rely on the origins and history, the choice seems inevitable, since this area of the Isthmus is the area where the name ITALIA was born. Having said that, it would certainly not be appropriate to adopt the name ITALA since there already exists a municipality with that name on the Ionian side of the province of Messina. Probably, it would be useful to call it “ITALY CITY” … or “FIRST ITALY”. If “Città Italia” seems to evoke the “Piazza Italia” chain of shops… the term PRIMA ITALIA is unequivocal, since it only means that this is the place where the name Italia was born, the territory where Italy was born, precisely the FIRST ITALY.
On the other hand, the Municipality of Catanzaro, over a decade ago, had timidly tried to claim the birth of Italy… but also with a mega-road sign (later removed, no one knows why) in front of the tunnel Sansinato to welcome you to the city of the three hills, capital of Calabria.
He then argues: Since the spring of 1982 I have been busy trying to valorise everything that is PRIMA ITALIA, with the FESTA DEL NAME ITALIA, a Prima Italia Award. Furthermore and among much else, I had also suggested, several times, to the provincial administration of Catanzaro to call itself “Province of Catanzaro Prima Italia” just as I still insist in urging the various regional administrations (Board and Council) to officially name the entity precisely CALABRIA FIRST ITALY. Furthermore, as beautiful as it is, the name Calabria is not even ours since it belonged to southern Puglia already in Roman times. PRIMA ITALIA, however, is all ours and no one can take it away from us, even if there are, here too, various attempts at counterfeiting and misappropriation almost everywhere in central-southern Italy… one more reason to decide to intervene !.
And he concludes: I believe that time is a “gentleman” (as they say). Therefore, we still need to work hard so that citizens and institutions can become fully aware of the value of their history and geography. It is inevitable, sooner or later, whether near or extremely far away, our region will be called CALABRIA PRIMA ITALIA. We must give time to the Calabrians, inside and outside the borders, and above all to the institutions to rediscover their most ancient values, their most legitimate pride and that dignity currently lacking or not yet up to par with their historical, geographical and cultural traditions. I therefore have the hope that CALABRIA PRIMA ITALIA will be realized in all its facets, including the naming of the PRIMA ITALIA conurbation of the Municipalities of the Isthmus between the Ionian and the Tyrrhenian Sea.
