Italian Argentines
Italian Argentines are a cultural diaspora in the Kingdom of Argentina following the wars that unified Italy. Many followed King Charles I, original Duke of Parma, to the New World upon his ascension to the throne. The largest migration began in the 1860's as the Sicilian people escaped the war torn land by the invitation of the Argentine court.
These Sicilians were granted land and titles in Argentina. From there, Sicilian became the lingua franca of the nobility. Many of them were the granted the lands acquired following the War of the Pacific and the conquest of Padagonia. During the Argentine Revolution, the Italian citizens united with their Spanish speaking counterparts against the squabbling nobility. King Elias I was forced to give concessions, though the teaching of Sicilian as a primary language remained.
During the Great War, many Europeans, Italians among them, were offered sanctuary in Argentina, increasing the population. Many of these immigrants found jobs in the industrial sector of the big cities, making Argentina one of the main industrial suppliers in the New World.
By the start of the Great War, an estimate of 71% of Argentina had some degree of Italian ancestry. The Sicilian language is among the most widely spoken languages in the nation alongside Spanish, with most of the population being bilingual. Argentina remains the largest Italian nation outside of Europe.
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