In the eighth and seventh centuries BC, Greeks began to settle in southern Italy because of famine, overcrowding, climate change and other deomgraphic crisis which befell them. They were in search of a new commercial outlet and port, and began to establish Greek colonies. They included settlements in Sicily and the southern part of the Italian peninsula.

The Romans referred to the people of this region as Graeci, and the region itself as Magna Graecia, meaning “Great Greece” since it was mostly inhabited by the Greeks. The Greeks, however, referred to the people as Italiotai and ancient geographers differed on whether the term included Sicily or merely Apulia and Calabria.

As they colonized the area, they brought their culture and dialects of the Ancient Greek language as well as their religious rites and traditions. The most important cultural transplant was the Chalcidean/Cumaean variety of the Greek alphabet, which was adopted by the Etruscans; the Old Italic alphabet subsequently evolved into the Latin alphabet, which became the most widely used alphabet in the world.

Here an original Hellenic civilization soon developed, later interacting with the native Italic and Latin civilizations and many of the new Hellenic cities became rich and powerful, like Capua, Neapolis (Naples), Syracuse, Acragas, Sybaris but following the Pyrrhic War, Magna Graecia was absorbed into the Roman Republic and it is believed by our descendants that northern Italian government invaded and occupied this region, taking from the people their prosperity and independence.

The region and its people have long been deemed inferior by the northern Italy. During World War I, the southern region did not whole-heartedly embrace Mussolini and many of the Southerns saw hope for their future more in America, rather than in Rome. They were destitute and stricken with povertry and today the stigmas of Southern Italy are still associated with the negative stereotypes of peasantry, poverty, illiteracy and crime.

Many Italians dreamed of coming to America. Some came, and some did not. The Laratta family was split ... Armando setting out for the American shores while his sister Antonia and her family remained in Crotone. Separated by thousands of miles and decades, our families have reunited. Our cousins in Crotone are extremely proud of their heritage, they have been well-educated at the universities and like the gracious character of our ancestors, have opened their hearts to me. I am blessed to open my heart in return.