''Viaggio in Dalmazia'' ("Journey to Dalmatia"), also known by its full title ''Viaggio in Dalmazia dell'abate Alberto Fortis'' ("Journey to Dalmatia by Abbot Alberto Fortis"), is a 1774 book by the Venetian writer

Alberto Fortis Alberto Fortis (1741–1803) was a Venetian writer, naturalist and cartographer. Life His real name was Giovanni Battista Fortis (his religious name was ''Alberto'') and he was born in Padua on either 9 or 11 of November 1741. He journeyed exten ...

published in the city of

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 bridges. The isla ...

. On it, Fortis recounted his journey to

Dalmatia Dalmatia (; hr, Dalmacija ; it, Dalmazia; see names in other languages) is one of the four historical regions of Croatia, alongside Croatia proper, Slavonia, and Istria. Dalmatia is a narrow belt of the east shore of the Adriatic Sea, stre ...

, a region now in

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

. He described the region, its mineral resources and its inhabitants and their way of life, paying great attention to the native

Morlachs Morlachs ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Morlaci, Морлаци or , ; it, Morlacchi; ro, Morlaci) has been an exonym used for a rural Christian community in Herzegovina, Lika and the Dalmatian Hinterland. The term was initially used for a bilingual Vlach past ...

. Fortis' book reached great popularity in Western Europe and increased the interest on Croatia and other South Slavic countries among

ethnologist Ethnology (from the grc-gre, ἔθνος, meaning 'nation') is an academic field that compares and analyzes the characteristics of different peoples and the relationships between them (compare cultural, social, or sociocultural anthropology) ...

s and anthropologists. Furthermore, ''Viaggio in Dalmazia'' would start a new movement in

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

, Ragusan and Venetian literature known as Morlachism, which consisted on the portrayal of the Morlachs and their customs, traditions and lifestyle by Italian and other Western European writers. This movement started in 1774 and lasted until the 1830s or 1840s. In 1776, the Croatian writer

Ivan Lovrić Ivan Lovrić (also ''Giovanni Lovrich''; c. 1756 in Sinj – 1777 in Sinj) was a Croatian writer, ethnographer, and medical student from the Republic of Venice, best known for his work ''Observations on 'Travels in Dalmatia' of Abbot Alberto ...

, a native of Dalmatia, published ''Osservazioni di Giovanni Lovrich sopra diversi pezzi del viaggio in Dalmazia del signor abbot Alberto Fortis coll'aggiunta della vita di Soçivizça'' ("Observations of Giovanni Lovrich van Lovrićon several pieces of the journey to Dalmatia of Mr. Abbot Alberto Fortis with the addition of the life of Soçivizça"), in Venice as well, as a response to Fortis' book. Lovrić criticized Fortis' writings and tried to rectify some of his accounts about the people of Dalmatia on it. Furthermore, instead of including folk poems as Fortis had done, Lovrić included in his book the biography of the Serbian

hajduk A hajduk ( hu, hajdúk, plural of ) is a type of irregular infantry found in Central and parts of Southeast Europe from the late 16th to mid 19th centuries. They have reputations ranging from bandits to freedom fighters depending on time ...

(

brigand Brigandage is the life and practice of highway robbery and plunder. It is practiced by a brigand, a person who usually lives in a gang and lives by pillage and robbery.Oxford English Dictionary second edition, 1989. "Brigand.2" first recorded us ...

) Stanislav Sočivica (Soçivizça in Lovrić's

). Lovrić's book also met criticism from other authors, some of whom may have been Fortis under a

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...

References

{{Wikisourcelang, it, Viaggio in Dalmazia, ''Viaggio in Dalmazia'' 1774 books 18th-century Italian literature Italian-language books Dalmatia Morlachs Books about Croatia Geography books Travel books Italian non-fiction books

See also

References