Conchiglie (), commonly known as "shells" or "seashells", is a
type
Type may refer to:
Science and technology Computing
* Typing, producing text via a keyboard, typewriter, etc.
* Data type, collection of values used for computations.
* File type
* TYPE (DOS command), a command to display contents of a file.
* Ty ...
of
pasta. It is usually sold in the plain durum wheat variety, and also in colored varieties which use natural pigments, such as tomato extract,
squid ink
Cephalopod ink is a dark-coloured or luminous ink released into water by most species of cephalopod, usually as an escape mechanism. All cephalopods, with the exception of the Nautilidae and the Cirrina (deep-sea octopuses), are able to release ...
or spinach extract. The shell shape of the pasta allows the sauce to adhere to it. A miniature variety called ''conchigliette'' is also available.
Etymology
The name derives from the
Italian word for
seashell
A seashell or sea shell, also known simply as a shell, is a hard, protective outer layer usually created by an animal or organism that lives in the sea. The shell is part of the body of the animal. Empty seashells are often found washe ...
(''conchiglia''). The Italian word ''conchiglie'' and the English word "
conch
Conch () is a common name of a number of different medium-to-large-sized sea snails. Conch shells typically have a high spire and a noticeable siphonal canal (in other words, the shell comes to a noticeable point at both ends).
In North Am ...
" share the same Greek root in the form of κοχύλι (kochýli), which means "shell".
Other names
In the 1930s, fascism celebrated the
Italian colonial empire with new pasta shapes recalling the African lands:
tripoline
Tripoline is a type of ribbon pasta noodles, similar to mafaldine. It is a thick ribbon ridged on one side.
In the 1930s, Fascist Italy celebrated its colonial empire by creating new forms of pasta reminiscent of its African possessions: '' ...
(
Tripoli
Tripoli or Tripolis may refer to:
Cities and other geographic units Greece
*Tripoli, Greece, the capital of Arcadia, Greece
* Tripolis (region of Arcadia), a district in ancient Arcadia, Greece
* Tripolis (Larisaia), an ancient Greek city in ...
), bengasine (
Bengasi
Benghazi () , ; it, Bengasi; tr, Bingazi; ber, Bernîk, script=Latn; also: ''Bengasi'', ''Benghasi'', ''Banghāzī'', ''Binghāzī'', ''Bengazi''; grc, Βερενίκη (''Berenice'') and ''Hesperides''., group=note (''lit. Son of he Ghazi ...
), assabesi (
Assab
Assab or Aseb (, ) is a port city in the Southern Red Sea Region of Eritrea. It is situated on the west coast of the Red Sea.
Languages spoken in Assab are predominantly Afar, Tigrinya, and Arabic. Assab is known for its large market, beaches an ...
), and abissine (
Abissinia
Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
). In 2021, after an outcry in objection to pasta brand La Molisana's advertising campaign, abissine were renamed as conchiglie (shells). However, some complained, claiming this re-naming constituted
cancel culture
Cancel culture, or rarely also known as call-out culture, is a phrase contemporary to the late 2010s and early 2020s used to refer to a form of ostracism in which someone is thrust out of social or professional circles—whether it be online, on ...
.
References
See also
*
List of pasta
Types of pasta
{{Italy-cuisine-stub
