Teachers' Blog

Toscana petalosa!

Tuscany is in bloom, with wild flowers popping up everywhere!

Have you heard about the Italian word "petaloso", and adjective meaning "full of petals"?  You might have seen the news about this brand-new Italian word that was invented by an 8-year-old boy named Matteo from the Province of Ferrara. Matteo's word "petaloso" was officially approved as a new addition to the Italian vocabulary earlier this year by the Accademia della Crusca, the foremost research institution on Italian language, and the oldest linguistic academy in the world!

Some news postings about the approval of the new word "petaloso":

Here are some recent snapshots I took in mid-April of some "fiori petalosi" (petal-filled flowers) in the Chianti region, just north of Siena:

Lisa Nonken,

Drawing teacher