Italian Word of the Day: Gennaio (January)

January, or gennaio in Italian, is the month that marks the beginning of the new year. Despite the days being short and the weather cold, it is a wonderful time to visit Northern Italy if you enjoy skiing and hiking in the mountains.

/gen·nà·io/
Ski paradise in the Italian Dolomites. Ski lift, piste, slopes in the Alps
Le Dolomiti italiane a gennaio – January in the Italian Dolomites

Gennaio is the first month (primo mese) of the year according to the Julian and Gregorian calendars and it consists of 31 days (trentun giorni). As is the case with all months of the year, gennaio isn’t capitalised in Italian as it is in English.

Oggi è il diciannove di gennaio.Caspita! Siamo già oltre la metà del mese!

Today is January 19th. Wow! We’re already over halfway through the month!


It derives from the Latin Ienuarius meaning ‘month of Janus‘. Janus is the Roman god who presided over doors and beginnings.

The star sign (segno zodiacale) for those born in gennaio is either Capricorno (Capricorn) if you were born between January 1st and January 20th or Aquario (Aquarius) if you were born after the 20th.


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