Naples Eastern University
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Latin: Instituti Orientalis Neapolitani
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| Established | 1732 |
| Type | State-supported |
| Rector | Prof. Pasquale Ciriello |
| Location | Naples, Italy |
| Sports teams | CUS Napoli (http://www.cusnapoli.org/) |
| Website | www.iuo.it/ |
The Naples Eastern University (Italian: Università degli Studi di Napoli "L'Orientale") is a university located in Naples, Italy. It was founded in 1732 and is organized in 4 Faculties. It is the oldest school of Sinology and Oriental Studies of the European continent and the main university in Italy specialized in the study of non-European languages and cultures, with research and studies agreements with universities from all over the world.
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[edit] History
The "Naples Eastern University" (Università degli studi di Napoli L'Orientale) is the oldest school of Sinology and Oriental Studies of the European continent. The name "Orientale" is a clue to the fascinating origins of the institution. In the mid-1600s, the Manchus took over China and started a remarkable period of openness towards the west. This included welcoming Christian missionaries. One such person was the Jesuit, Matteo Ripa, from the kingdom of Naples, who worked as a painter and copper-engraver at the Manchu court of the emperor Kangxi between 1711 and 1723. He returned to Naples from China with four young Chinese Christians, all teachers of their native language; they formed the nucleus of what would become the "Chinese Institute" of Naples, sanctioned by Pope Clement XII in 1732 to teach Chinese to missionaries and thus advance the propagation of Christianity in China. Originally it was also created to educate Indian and Chinese languages experts for the Ostend Company. After the unification of Italy in 1861, the institution was transformed into the "Royal Asian College" and other languages such as Russian, Hindi, and Persian were added to the curriculum. The institution then became a secular school for the study of eastern languages in general, and then, over the course of decades, African languages and, indeed, all modern European languages. The Orientale moved into its current headquarters, Palazzo Giusso, in 1932.
In spite of the name, the "Orientale" focuses its teaching attention on modern European languages too. Students study English more than any other language, followed by Spanish, French, and German. A knowledge of those languages, is seen as crucial to any sort of a future within the European business community. Yet, a significant number of students study Asian and African languages. Arabic, Japanese and Chinese are high on the list of such languages, other languages taught include Swahili, Berber, Xhosa, Zulu, Hausa, Tibetan. Most of the faculty are native speakers of the foreign languages they teach.
[edit] Institutions
Like most universities in Italy, the IUO has no single main "campus," but is spread around the city at a number of different sites. There are several buildings that make up the teaching facilities of the Orientale. These include Palazzo Giusso in the historic center of Naples; the large converted monastery of Santa Maria Porta Coeli near the Naples cathedral; and the new Palazzo Mediterraneo on via Marina. Palazzo Mediterraneo now houses CILA, an acronym for the mouthful of Centro Interdipartimentale dei servizi Linguistici ed Audiovisivi— the "language lab," an award-winning facility that has satellite TV for international programming, an impressive recording studio, and computers for instant access to the internet.
4 faculties:
- Faculty of Foreign Languages and Literature
- Faculty of Arabic-Islamic and Mediterranean Studies
- Faculty of Letters and Philosophy
- Faculty of Political Sciences
9 departments:
- Asian Studies
- Classic world and Ancient Mediterranean
- African and Arabic countries
- Oriental Europe
- Social Sciences
- Philosophy and Politics
- Compared Studies
- American cultural and linguistic studies
- European literature and linguistic studies
Main Library:
- Maurizio Taddei, Palazzo Corigliano (over 60.000 volumes)
[edit] Notable Alumni
In the XVIII century Saint Alfonso Maria de' Liguori and Blessed Gennaro Sarnelli sojourned in the boarding school
- Giorgio Amitrano: Japanese lanaguage expert, translator of several books by Banana Yoshimoto and Murakami Haruki
- Franco Mazzei: Oriental Studies expert, received award for cultural merits by the Japanese Emperor
- Barbara Contini: former CPA appointed governor of Nassiryah, Iraq
- Torquato Cardilli: Ambassador
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Political Science Department English Website[1]
- (Italian) Naples Eastern University Website
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