The ministry issued a memorandum Friday outlining its opposition to symbols used to degender Italian words, urging institutions to “maintain the use of correct and accessible language” in official communications.
“The Ministry of Education and Merit has sent a circular to all schools to reiterate that in official communications it is essential to respect the rules of the Italian language,” ministry officials said in a memo. “The use of non-compliant graphic signs, such as the asterisk (*) and the schwa (ə), is contrary to linguistic norms and risks compromising the clarity and uniformity of institutional communication.”
The Italian language, like other Romance languages, uses gendered grammar patterns observable in aspects such as noun endings and the classification of words as “masculine” and “feminine.”
Novel symbols such as the asterisk and the schwa, an upside-down “E,” are used by Italian gender ideology activists to replace gendered endings such as the masculine “O” and the feminine “A.”
Use of these endings is rare, but advocates say they extend a sense of inclusion to “nonbinary” people, or those who are uncomfortable identifying with either sex.
The same principle has been seen in the United States with the use of “Latinx” to avoid the gendered terms “Latino” and “Latina.”
The Ministry of Education and Merit cited guidance from the Accademia della Crusca, the world’s oldest linguistic academy, in its statement. The Florence-based institution is considered among the highest authorities on the proper use of the Italian language.
“The Accademia della Crusca has, in fact, repeatedly highlighted that [gender-neutral symbols] are not grammatically correct and that their use, especially in official documents, hinders the readability and accessibility of texts,” ministry officials wrote.
“The arbitrary use of these symbols introduces elements of ambiguity and inhomogeneity, making communication less comprehensible and less effective,” the memo continues
It is the latest cultural battlefield for Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s conservative government, which seeks to rout out more progressive trends that it believes countersignal Italian society and culture.
Meloni’s government has removed progressive executives from public arts and culture institutions across the country and replaced them with experts more celebratory of Italian heritage.
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Her party, the Brothers of Italy, asserts that Italy’s most valuable exports are not natural resources or raw materials but the peninsula’s thousands of years of cultural achievements.
The Brothers of Italy consistently push bills seeking to protect the Italian language and cement its status as the country’s only official language.
