Bologna's Three Identities
- williamggerson
- Aug 31, 2024
- 2 min read
Updated: Feb 18
Known variously as la grassa (the fat), la dotta (the learned), and la rossa (the red), Bologna is famous throughout Italy for its rich cuisine, vibrant academic culture, and distinctive architecture defined by its 24 miles (38 kilometers) of porticoes and numerous medieval towers.
La Grassa
Often cited as one of Italy’s premier food cities, Bologna’s most well-known export is the world-famous Bolognese sauce, but this is only scratching the surface. Owing to its location in the fertile Po River Valley, the city’s cuisine has been shaped by its access to some of the world’s finest meats and cheeses, specifically the cured meats prosciutto, mortadella, and salumi. In addition to the obligatory meat and cheese plate known as the tagliere, local delicacies also include tagliatelle al ragù alla bolognese, lasagna, and tortellini in brodo, best washed down with a glass of Sangiovese or frizzante Lambrusco from a nearby vineyard.
Le Sette Chiese
La Dotta
Home to the world’s oldest university––the University of Bologna, founded in 1088––the city’s large student population lends it a youthful air that is not found in many other Italian cities. The university counts Dante, Petrarch, Erasmus of Rotterdam, and Enzo Ferrari among its notable alumni, and its sprawling campus (città universitaria) centered around Via Zamboni represents both the old and the new of the city. Here you will see Renaissance palaces next to street art and leftist graffiti; this part of the city seeks to preserve the old but also to give it an injection of youthful energy.
La Rossa
Well-known for its red-tiled rooftops and landmark medieval towers (most famous among them Le due torri), the city’s defining architectural characteristic is without a doubt its miles and miles of porticoes, which cover nearly every sidewalk in the city center. Erected spontaneously beginning in the 11th century, the porticoes were first conceived of as a way to increase living space by expanding the upper floors of homes over the streets; this was especially necessary due to the rapid population growth spurred by the presence of the university. Originally made of wood, the city decreed in the 16th century that all of the porticoes be rebuilt using bricks or stones, though some of the wooden arcades remain to this day. Today, the porticoes’ main function (apart from their aesthetic value) is to keep you dry from rain and snow or to shade you from the hot summer sun.
The ‘red’ moniker also comes from the city’s leftist political leanings, which date back all the way to labor movements arising as early as the 12th century, when Bologna was beginning its expansion as an important industrial center. More recently, the city was the heart of the anti-fascist resistance movement during the Second World War and a political stronghold of the Italian Communist Party in the following decades. Today, this tradition is reflected in street art and anti-establishment graffiti, particularly in the area of the university campus, as well as in the many student-led protests that often shut down the surrounding streets.