Immigration Italian Style, 1977–2018

Today, in Spain, Portugal, Italy, Malta and Greece, the incidence of the foreign population is entirely comparable to that of the more traditional European reception countries. Only forty years ago, however, the foreign population in these five southern European countries was decidedly modest. The migration balance with foreign countries has become positive since the 1970s, inverting a secular trend. However, after the migration boom at the beginning of the 21st century, a sudden and sharp decline was observed in the following years of crisis. This paper has a dual purpose. First it describes seventy years of Italian migrations, from the 1950s to date, systematically distinguishing the Centre and North from southern Italy, and connects them with the migratory history of previous decades. We show how the ‘stop and go’ of migrations can be interpreted in the light of the pull factors determined by structural changes in demography and in the labour market. Secondly, it identifies the persistent and structural peculiarities that have shaped the foreign population in Italy, building a model very different from that of central and northern Europe.