Arengario Explained

In Italy, an arengario (also spelled arrengario or arengo; pl.: arengari, arrengari, arenghi) is a government building in various historic periods.[1] The word comes from the verb "arringare" ("to address"), as arengari usually have balconies from which the authorities would address the population in public speeches.[2]

It was originally the town hall of Italian medieval communes, especially in Northern Italy.[2] Under Fascism, it was also local governments seats, such as the seat of the podestà (mayor).[3] As a consequence, a number of both medieval and modern (Fascist) buildings in different Italian cities are known as "Arengario". Notable arengari include:

See also

Footnotes

  1. http://guide.travelitalia.com/it/guide/brescia/2474/ Arengario di Brescia
  2. http://dizionari.hoepli.it/Dizionario_Italiano/parola/arengario.aspx?idD=1&Query=arengario&lettera=A Definition of Arengario
  3. http://dizionari.corriere.it/dizionario_italiano/A/arengario.shtml Arengario: definition