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paese

Paese is an Italian noun with several related meanings. In everyday Italian, it commonly denotes a country or land in a broad sense, as in phrases like il mio paese (my homeland) or paese natale (birthplace). It can also refer to a village or small town, especially in rural or regional usage, where the sense emphasizes a local community rather than an administrative city. The word is often contrasted with nazione or stato when speaking of sovereign political entities, and with città when referring to a larger urban center.

The term derives from Latin pagus, meaning a rural district or district territory, and traveled into Italian

Paese also serves as a proper place name. Paese is the name of a comune in the

In summary, paesi span linguistic and geographic senses—from the general notion of country or homeland to the

through
the
romance
languages.
It
is
cognate
with
the
French
pays
and
the
Spanish
país.
The
evolution
reflects
its
broad
sense
of
a
defined
territorial
community,
whether
imagined
as
homeland
or
lived
as
a
local
settlement.
Related
forms
include
paesaggio
(landscape),
from
paesi
+
-aggio,
and
paesano
(a
person
from
the
country
or
village;
rural
resident).
Veneto
region
of
northeastern
Italy,
located
in
the
Province
of
Treviso.
As
a
municipality,
it
represents
one
of
the
many
small
communities
that
contribute
to
the
regional
tapestry
of
northern
Italy.
The
use
of
the
capitalized
form
Paese
distinguishes
the
place
name
from
the
common
noun.
specific
idea
of
a
village
or
locality,
and
even
to
a
named
municipality
in
Italy.