Message From the President

We appreciate your interest in wanting to know more about us and our association. We are a national federation of associations aiming particularly to unite all Friulian communities in Canada and in so doing help preserve the language and culture of Friuli.

Friuli-Venezia Giulia is that little corner in north-eastern Italy bordering Austria to the North, Slovenia to

the East and the Adriatic Sea to the South. The three main cities are Pordenone, Udine and Trieste.

This region benefits from a special status within the Italian state due mainly to its distinctly different culture and language. The language is friulano or furlan. It is not a dialect of Italian, but holds the special status one of Europe’s recognized minority languages like Catalan. Like French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan and Romanian it is also derived from Latin.

The geographic location of Friuli has impacted tremendously on its history and early economy. Its strategic location has made it the victim of many invasions and as such was, until now, not considered a place of good and safe investment. Adjacent countries vied for its access to the sea and great battles were fought on its soil, further undermining its mainly agricultural economy.

The greatest loss this region has suffered in the last century, however, has been wrought mainly through emigration. Because of the economic hardships imposed by continuous wars, the Furlans moved away in waves, sometimes temporarily and at times permanently, searching for work and an improved standard of living.

Furlans can be found in every continent and in almost every country. Canada is now the chosen home of more than eighty thousand Friulians who came as early as the beginning of the 20th century but more so in the late 1940s through the early 1960s. They can be found throughout the country and in many cities they have formed associations called Famèe Furlane (Friulan family) or Fogolâr Furlan ( Friulian Hearth).