decenni

Decenni is the plural form of decennio in Italian and refers to decades, or ten-year periods. Each decennio spans ten consecutive years and is used to describe historical phases, demographic trends, economic cycles, and cultural shifts. The term can denote a specific ten-year interval, as in i decenni degli anni ’60 e ’70, or more generally the collective span of ten-year periods, as in nei decenni successivi.

Etymology and form: Decennio comes from Latin decennium, with the Italian plural decenni following the standard masculine -io noun pattern that forms plurals with -i (decennio → decenni). The word is primarily used in Italian-language contexts and appears in historical and analytical prose to emphasize long-term change.

Usage and scope: In historiography and the social sciences, decenni are used to organize data and narratives by ten-year blocks, which helps summarize long-term patterns without focusing on yearly fluctuations. The term is common in discussions of postwar development, economic cycles, or cultural trends when contrasting multiple ten-year periods. It is distinct from the singular decennio, which designates one ten-year interval, and from casual references to a calendar decade (the 1960s, the 1970s).

See also: Decennio, Decade, Time period, History, Chronology.