Difference between revisions of "Italian Department"
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==History== | ==History== | ||
| − | The teaching of Italian at Columbia can be traced back about 200 years. The first professor of Italian literature at Columbia College was [[Lorenzo Da Ponte]], who was the librettist of several Mozart operas before emigrating to the U.S. | + | The teaching of Italian at Columbia can be traced back about 200 years. The first professor of Italian literature at Columbia College was [[Lorenzo Da Ponte]], who was the librettist of several Mozart operas before emigrating to the U.S. Although Da Ponte was the first to lecture on the works of [[Dante]] in America, his enthusiasm failed to prove infectious, and early Columbia students remained largely uninterested in the language. |
[[Category:Departments]] | [[Category:Departments]] | ||
Revision as of 02:57, 23 January 2008
The Italian Department also teaches Hungarian, inexplicably. Students can take advantage of the cultural offerings on hand at the Casa Italiana, such as Mussolini's desk.
History
The teaching of Italian at Columbia can be traced back about 200 years. The first professor of Italian literature at Columbia College was Lorenzo Da Ponte, who was the librettist of several Mozart operas before emigrating to the U.S. Although Da Ponte was the first to lecture on the works of Dante in America, his enthusiasm failed to prove infectious, and early Columbia students remained largely uninterested in the language.
