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In
Canada, Toronto displays its Italian roots with pride in its two
Italian neighborhoods: Little Italy and Corso
Italia. The number of Torontonians of Italian descent is more than
650,000. In many school districts, children learn both Italian and
English. The Italian population in Canada maintains its traditions
while building their own community within Toronto, complete with
trattorias, outdoor terraces, and multilingual TV stations.
Little Italy is an area of town which was heavily populated in the
years after WW II by the large number of Italian immigrants who
arrived in Toronto. These Italian immigrants settled in a neighborhood
surrounding an Italian grocery store on the corner of College and
Clinton Streets. This microcosm strove to create a cultural community
in their new country by setting up shops that catered to Italians.
The “social club” in Little Italy, located in coffee shops and billiard
halls, is where older Italian men meet and converse about soccer
scores and gossip in the neighborhood. Little Italy is also a popular
spot for Toronto nightlife.
Corso Italia is the second Italian neighborhood
which has shopping districts and some of Toronto’s best Italian
restaurants, many of which are family-owned. In this neighborhood,
the streets are lined with lampposts and potted plants which give
a European air to the community. There is even an indoor bocce court
at the Earlscourt Recreation Center. It
is said that when Italy won the World Soccer Cup in 1982, over 200,000
people celebrated by lining the streets, waving Italian flags and
shouting “Viva Italia!”. These two Italian communities contribute
to the culture of the city of Toronto, and proudly showcase their
ethnic heritage.
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