Terziarie

Terziarie is the term used to denote the tertiary sector of the economy, comprising services rather than goods production. The word derives from Latin tertiarius, meaning “third,” and is used in Italian and other European languages to describe activities that follow the primary (extractive and agricultural) and secondary (manufacturing) sectors. In Italian, the feminine plural form terziarie is used to modify feminine nouns such as attività terziarie.

Activities within the terziario include trade, transport, hospitality, finance and real estate, healthcare, education, information technology, professional and business services, public administration, and cultural sectors. The sector is characterized by activities that add value through expertise, information processing, customer interaction, or service delivery rather than through physical production.

Economic role and trends: In many advanced economies, the terziario accounts for a large share of GDP and employment, growing with urbanization and rising income. Digitalization, globalization, and demographic changes have reshaped services, promoting outsourcing, platform-based models, and new forms of service delivery. The sector often expands as economies develop, complementing manufacturing and resource extraction.

Education and terminology: The term is also used to refer to tertiary education (istruzione terziaria), encompassing universities and other post-secondary institutions. In economic discourse, the terziario is sometimes further subdivided into knowledge-intensive services and, in some models, includes quaternary and quinary services.

See also: primary sector, secondary sector, tertiary sector, quaternary sector, tertiary education.