From slash and burn to winemaking: the historical trajectory of Italian colonos in the uplands of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

This contribution discusses the early years of Italian immigration in the uplands of southern Brazil, known as the Serra Gaucha (1875–1915). Tracing back early agrarian practices and deforestation techniques of the early settlement years, we investigate the consolidation of this human group in the southernmost Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul. In addition, analysing the development of both wood logging and winemaking industries in the region, the essay frames the identitarian construction of this social group, looking at the intersection between cultural traditions from the homeland, socioeconomic drives and local environmental factors. This analysis builds upon primary sources from both Brazilian and Italian institutions, local newspapers, and scholarly publications on environmental history, as well as Brazilian and Italian migration history.

Global Heritage Stone Resource in Brazil

<p>Since the establishment of the Heritage Stone Subcommission by the International Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS), in 2011, idealized with the purpose of designating stones of historical significance to compose the Global Heritage Stone Resource (GHSR), 22 of them have been designated. The nationalities of these GHSR are: 3 British, 1 Norwegian, 2 Belgian, 2 Swedish, 1 Slovenian, 3 Italian, 2 Portuguese, 3 Spanish, 1 Maltese, 1 Indian, 2 American and 1 Argentine. So far, no Brazilian stone has been designated as GHSR. We can observe in monuments and buildings in the Brazilian territory the following imported GHSR: Lioz Stone and Estremoz Marble from Portugal, Carrara Marble and Rosa Beta Granite from Italy and Larvikite from Norway. The use of stones from Portugal and Italy is related firstly to the Portuguese colonization and, later, to economic cycles, such as rubber and coffee, with Italian immigration being significant to the coffee cycle. The presence of Lioz is major, however, it is found almost exclusively in some Brazilian coastal capitals, such as Rio de Janeiro, Salvador and Belém. The churches of Salvador are richly decorated with numerous varieties of Lioz. In Belém, it is found in the Basilica of Nossa Senhora de Nazaré, among other churches, and in many tombstones in the Nossa Senhora da Soledade Cemetery. Estremoz Marble is found in commercial buildings and tombstones. In the city of São Paulo, lots of buildings have internal cladding and ornaments made in Carrara Marble, e.g. Municipal Theater, Palace of Justice, Metropolitan Cathedral and Obelisk Mausoleum for the Heroes of 32. In the city of Rio de Janeiro, the tomb of Orville Derby (founder of the Geological Survey of Brazil) at São João Batista Cemetery, among others, is decorated with Carrara Marble, which can also be seen in tomb art of Salvador, Belo Horizonte, Curitiba and São Paulo. Rosa Beta Granite can be seen at Monument to Bartolomeu de Gusmão in the city of Santos, costal area of São Paulo State. The use of Larvikite is contemporary. This stone is mainly present in tombstones, for example, at the Consolação Cemetery in São Paulo, but it also decorates the façades of several commercial buildings, both in capitals and several Brazilian cities. In Brazil, several types of Brazilian stones are found in monuments and religious or administrative buildings. These stones, which have been used since Colonial Brazil, are characteristic of certain regions, such as Augen Gneiss in Rio de Janeiro, Itaquera Granite in São Paulo, beachrock in northeastern Brazil, quartzites and steatite in Minas Gerais, among others. Some of them constitute UNESCO World Heritage Sites, and due to their historical importance to our heritage, these stones may be indicated as GHSR in the future.</p>

La italianidad en las letras

This article aims to analyse the way in which the descendants of Italian settlers living in southern Brazil have expressed, through writing, their belonging to the “Italian world” as a result of the migratory process of their ancestors what happened in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. This is a growing literature in post-1975 Brazil when the centenary of Italian immigration in the country was commemorated. Written in the form of memories, family stories, accounts, romances, poems, recipe books and other formats, this literature is the scenario in which gender, generation, class and other issues take a voice.

A IMIGRAÇÃO ITALIANA E A TRAJETÓRIA DA FAMÍLIA DE BONA SARTOR EM URUSSANGA, SC * THE ITALIAN IMMIGRATION AND THE TRAJECTORY OF THE DE BONA SARTOR’S FAMILY IN URUSSANGA, SC

Este artigo propõe uma contextualização histórica da imigração italiana para Urussanga, SC, través da análise da trajetória da família de Bona Sartor, oriunda da província de Belluno, Itália. O período analisado corresponde ao século XIX, com a crise socioeconômica e a grande emigração italiana, e à primeira metade do século XX, com o estabelecimento da família de Matteo e Domenica de Bona Sartor em Urussanga. Para recompor essa trajetória, foram utilizadas diversas fontes, como registros de nascimento, matrimônio e óbito, históricos familiares, árvores genealógicas, fotografias, entrevistas e dados antropológicos. Os estudos genealógicos e sobre os costumes do passado revelam adaptações e inovações nas dinâmicas familiares, podendo nos legar inspiração para buscarmos melhores condições de vida.*This article proposes a historical contextualization of Italian immigration to Urussanga, SC, through the analysis of the trajectory of the Bona Sartor family from the province of Belluno, Italy. The period analyzed corresponds to the nineteenth century, with the socioeconomic crisis and the great Italian emigration, and the first half of the twentieth century, with the establishment of the family of Matteo and Domenica de Bona Sartor inUrussanga. To compose this trajectory, several sources were used, such as birth, marriage and death records, family histories, genealogical trees, photographs, interviews and anthropological data. Genealogical studies and the customs of the past reveal adaptations and innovations in family dynamics, and can inspire us to seek better living conditions.