Italiaanse

Italiaanse is a Dutch adjective meaning Italian or related to Italy. It is used to describe things associated with Italy, including culture, language, cuisine, design, and geography. In front of nouns it typically takes the -e ending, as in Italiaanse keuken (Italian cuisine), Italiaanse kunst (Italian art), or Italiaanse Design (Italian design).

The term also appears in reference to the Italian language, where the language name in Dutch is Italiaans. For example, Ik leer Italiaans means I am learning Italian. In this context Italiaans is the standalone noun used to refer to the language, while Italiaanse serves as the describing form when paired with other nouns.

In Dutch, Italiaan is the common masculine noun for a person from Italy, with Italianen as the plural. The feminine form is constructed with the rest of the adjective system and is typically used with feminine nouns (for example, een Italiaanse vrouw would be “an Italian woman”). In everyday usage, Italiaan/Italiaanse are part of a broader set of terms used to identify Italy and Italian culture, alongside related demonyms and cultural identifiers.

Overall, Italiaanse functions as a versatile descriptor for Italian origin or influence and is widely used across media, education, and everyday speech to denote Italy-related topics.