Italian migration into what is today France has been going on, in different migrating cycles, for centuries, beginning in prehistoric times right to the modern age. In addition, Corsica passed from the Republic of Genoa to France in 1768, and the county of Nice and Savoy from the Kingdom of Sardinia to France in 1860. According to Robin Cohen, "about 5 million French nationals are of Italian origin if their parentage is retraced over three generations". According to official data of the Eurostat for 2012, the number of Italian citizens residing in France was 174,000.
Middle Ages and Renaissance
There has always been migration, since ancient times, between what is today Italy and France, but at a limited extent. This is especially true of the regions of northwestern Italy and southeastern France. As Italian wealth and influence grew during the Middle Ages, many Florentine, Genoese, Neapolitan, Piedmontese and Venetian traders, bankers and artisans settled, usually through family branches, throughout France. Regions of significant Italian diaspora sprang up as far north as Paris and Flanders. However it was not much as a percentage of the French global population.
This Italian migration developed more through the Renaissance, as previous generations became assimilated. Italian artists, writers and architects were called upon by the French monarchy and aristocrats, leading to a significant interchange of culture, but it was not a massive immigration of popular classes.
Since the 16th century, Florence and its citizens have long enjoyed a very close relationship with France. In 1533, at the age of fourteen, Catherine de' Medici married Henry, the second son of King Francis I and Queen Claude of France. Under the gallicised version of her name, Catherine de Médici, she became Queen consort of France when Henry ascended to the throne in 1547. Later on, after Henry died, she became regent on behalf of her ten-year-old son King Charles IX and was granted sweeping powers. After Charles died in 1574, Catherine played a key role in the reign of her third son, Henry III.
Other notable examples of Italians that played a major role in the history of France include Cardinal Mazarin, born in the Kingdom of Naples was a cardinal, diplomat and politician, who served as the chief minister of France from 1642 until his death in 1661. Mazarin succeeded his mentor, Cardinal Richelieu, and extended France's political ambitions not only within Italy but towards England as well.
Enrico Tonti, born near Gaeta, Italy (1649/50 - 1704) was an Italian-born soldier, explorer, and fur trader in the service of France. He was the son of Lorenzo de Tonti, a financier and former governor of Gaeta. Enrico was second in command of the La Salle expedition on his descent of the Mississippi River. Tonti's letters and journals are valuable source materials on these explorations.
Enrico's brother, Pierre Alphonse de Tonti, or Alphonse de Tonty, Baron de Paludy (ca. 1659 – 10 November 1727)[1] was an officer who served under the French explorer Cadillac and helped establish the first European settlement at Detroit, Michigan, Fort Pontchartrain du Detroit on the Detroit River in 1701. Several months later, both Cadillac and Tonty brought their wives to the fort, making them the first European women to travel into the interior of North America. He was the son of Lorenzo de Tonti who was a financier and former governor of Gaeta. Lorenzo de Tonti was the inventor of the form of life insurance known as the tontine. Henri de Tonti, involved in LaSalle's exploration of the Mississippi River and the establishment of the first settlement in Arkansas, was his older brother.
It should be noted that Napoleon Bonaparte, French emperor and general, was ethnically Italian of Corsican origin, whose family was of Genoese and Tuscan ancestry.
Italian popular immigration to France only began in the late 18th century, really developed from the end of the 19th century until the World War I and became quite massive after this war. France needed workforce to compensate for the war losses and its very low birthrate. Initially, Italian immigration to modern France (late 18th to the early 20th century) came predominantly from northern Italy (Piedmont, Veneto), then from central Italy (Marche, Umbria), mostly to the bordering southeastern region of Provence. It wasn't until after World War II that large numbers of immigrants from southern Italy immigrated to France, usually settling in industrialised areas of France, such as Lorraine, Paris and Lyon.
In both the County of Nice, parts of Savoy, "Italian" can refer to autochthonous speakers of Italian dialects (Ligurian and Piedmontese languages), natives in the region since before annexation to France, and also to descendants of Italians that migrated to the areas when they were part of Italian states. The number of inhabitants with Italian ancestry is generally indeterminable, and the use of French language is now ubiquitous. In addition, Corsica was a part of the Republic of Genoa until 1768 and many Corsicans speak along with French the Corsican language, a dialect of Italian, related to other central southern Italian dialects along with Tuscan, Neapolitan, Sicilian and others or closely related to the Tuscan dialect of Italian.
The list is organized chronologically, listing Italians in France by birth date periods
Bonaparte family
Philippe Antoine d'Ornano (1784-1863), general and cousin of Napoleon Bonaparte
Louis-Auguste Blanqui (1805-1881), politician.
Henri Cernuschi (Enrico Cernuschi; 1821-1896), banker, journalist, and art collector (born in Milan). His collection is known as the Musée Cernuschi.
Léon Gambetta (1838-1882), lawyer and politician (his father was from Genoa)
Paul Cézanne (1839-1906), painter (his family came from Cesana Torinese)
Émile Zola (1840-1902), writer and politician (his father, Francesco Zolla, was born in Venice)
Philippe Solari (1840-1906), artist
Joseph Galliéni (1849-1916), French officer (father from Lombardy)
Jean-François Raffaëlli, (1850-1924), artist
Raoul Pugno (1852-1914), composer, pianist
Pierre Savorgnan de Brazza (Pietro Paolo Savorgnan di Brazzà; 1852-1905), explorer (born at Castel Gandolfo, near Rome)
Vincenzo Bellini (1801-1835), Italian-born opera composer
Clément Castelli (1870-1959), Italian-born painter (from Premia, Verbano-Cusio-Ossola region)
Vincent Scotto (1874-1952), composer
Ricciotto Canudo (1879-1923), Italian-born writer (from Gioia del Colle)
Ettore Bugatti (1881-1947), Italian-born automobile designer and manufacturer (from Milan)
Rembrandt (Annibale) Bugatti (1884-1916), Italian-born sculptor (from Milan)
Amedeo Clemente Modigliani (1884-1920), Italian-born painter and sculptor (from Livorno)
Henri Bosco (Fernand Marius Bosco) (1888-1976), novelist
Michel Carlini (1889-1967), lawyer and politician
Elsa Schiaparelli (1890-1973), Italian-born fashion designer (from Rome)
Jean Giono (1895-1970), novelist (Italian ancestry)
José Corti (José Corticchiato; 1895-1984), publisher
Lazare Ponticelli (Lazzaro Ponticelli; 1897- 2008), Italian-born veteran of the First World War (from Bettola, near Piacenza)
Paul Belmondo (1898-1982), sculptor (born in Algiers of Italian ancestry)
Cino Del Duca (1899-1967), Italian-born businessman, film producer and philanthropist (from Montedinove, Ascoli Piceno)
Fernand Joseph Désiré Contandin dit Fernandel (1903-1971), actor and singer
Stéphane Grappelli (Stefano Grappelli; 1908-1997), jazz violinist (his father was from Alatri, near Frosinone)
Rina Ketty (Rina Pichetto; 1911-1996), Italian-born singer (from Sarzana)
Marcel Bich (1914-1994), Italian-born manufacturer and co-founder of Bic (from Turin)
Édith Piaf (Édith Giovanna Gassion; 1915-1963), singer (her mother, Line Marsa, born in Livorno, was of Italian-Berber descent)
Achille Zavatta (1915-1993), clown
Léo Ferré (1916-1993), Singer and songwriter
Henri Betti (1917-2005) composer and pianist (his father is born in Savona and his grandfather is born in Parma).
Claude Barma (1918-1992), director and screenwriter
César Baldaccini (1921-1998), sculptor
Georges Brassens (1921-1981), singer
Émile Bongiorni (1921-1949), footballer
Stellio Lorenzi (1921-1990), screenwriter
Yves Montand (Ivo Livi) (1921-1991), actor and singer
Roger Grava (1922-1949), footballer
Serge Reggiani (1922-2004), singer
Pierre Cardin (Pietro Cardin) (1922-), fashion designer
François Cavanna (1923-2014), author
Marcel Zanini (1923-), jazz musician
Armand Gatti (1924-), also known as Dante Savoir Gatti, poet, author, playwright, director, screenwriter, producer, journalist
Michel Piccoli (1925-), actor
Philippe Castelli (1926-2006), actor
Marcel Azzola (1927-), accordionist
Remo Forlani (1927-2009), writer and screenwriter
Emmanuelle Riva (1927-), actress
Albert Uderzo (1927-), comic author
Daniel Filipacchi (1928-), photographer, art collector and publisher
Willy Rizzo (1928-2013), photographer and designer
Luc Ferrari (1929-2005), composer
Claude Nougaro (1929-2004), jazz singer and poet
Bernard Stasi (1930-2011), politician
Robert Enrico (1931-2001), film director
Roger Piantoni (1931-), footballer
Annie Fratellini (1932-1997), circus artist, clown, singer and film actress
Francesca Solleville (1932-), singer
Paul Virilio (1932-), philosopher, cultural theorist and urbanist
Max Gallo (1932-), writer, historian and politician
Pierre Milza (1932-), historian
Loris Azzaro, (1933-2003), fashion designer and perfumer, born in Tunisia to Sicilian parents.
Dalida (Iolanda Cristina Gigliotti) (1933-1987), singer
Emanuel Ungaro (1933-), fashion designer
Nino Ferrer (Nino Agostino Arturo Maria Ferrari) (1934-1998), singer
Lucien Bianchi (1934-1969), racing driver
Pia Colombo (Eliane Marie Amélie) (1934-1986), singer
Claude Faraldo (1936-2008), actor, screenwriter and film director
Bruno Gigliotti (Orlando) (1936-), music producer
Claude François (1939-1978), singer and songwriter
Michèle Mercier (1939-), actress
Raymond Forni (1941-2008), politician
Catherine Tasca (1941-), politician
Edwige Fenech (1948-), actor and film producer
Jean-François Mattei (1943-), doctor and politician
Jean-Louis Bianco (1943-), politician
Pino Presti (1943-), musician, composer and producer
Luc Merenda (1943-), actor
Gérard Rinaldi (1943-2012), actor and singer
Walter Spanghero (1943-), rugby player
Jean-Pierre Castaldi (1944-), actor
Nicole Grisoni, also known as Nicoletta (1944-), singer
Michel Gérard Joseph Colucci (Coluche) (1944-1986), humorist
Daniel Bevilacqua (Christophe) (1945-), singer
Jean-Claude Izzo (1945-2000), writer
Patrick Modiano (1945-), writer
Richard Cocciante (Riccardo) (1946-), singer
Alice Donadel, also known as Alice Dona (1946-), singer
Hervé Forneri, also known as Dick Rivers (1946-), singer
Hubert Falco (1947-), politician
Max Guazzini (1947-), entrepreneur
Daniel Russo (1948-), film actor
Henri Proglio (1949-), manager
Corinne Cléry (1950-), actress
Richard Galliano (1950-), accordionist
Gérard Schivardi (1950-), politician
Claude Bartolone (1951-), politician
Fabrice Luchini (1951-), stage and film actor
Marc Cerrone (1952-), musician, composer and producer
Jean-Marc Todeschini (1952-), politician
Francis Cabrel (1953-), singer
Patrick de Carolis (1953-), TV presenter
Angelo Parisi (1953-), judoka
Philippe Risoli (1953-), television and radio presenter
Christian Estrosi (1955-), politician
Michel Platini (1955-), footballer
Roger Amalfitano (1955-), footballer
Thierry Beccaro (1956-), actor and TV presenter
André Vallini (1956-), politician
Claude Onesta (1957-), handball player
Thierry Gilardi (1958-2008), stage actor and television presenter
Jeannie Longo (1958-), cyclist
Thierry Mariani (1958-), politician
Gérard Onesta (1960-), politician
Catherine Malandrino (1963-), fashion designer
Stéphane Sanseverino (1961-) , singer
Michel Petrucciani (1962-1999), jazz pianist
Roberto Alagna (1963-), tenor singer
Nadine Morano (1963-), politician
Jean Alesi (1964-), formula 1 driver
Valeria Bruni-Tedeschi (1964-), actress
Christophe Neff (1964), geographer
Eric Ciotti (1965-), politician
Jean-Marc Morandini (1965-), journalist, radio, and TV host (Corsican father and Sardinian mother)
Florent Emilio Siri (1965-), flim director and screenwriter
Éric Cantona (1966-), footballer
Carla Bruni-Sarkozy (1967-), actress
David Ginola (1967-), footballer
Bruno Putzulu (1967-), actor
Bruno Caliciuri (1968-), singer-songwriter
Laurence Ferrari (1969-), journalist and TV anchor
Benjamin Castaldi (1970-), television personality
Marina Foïs (1970-), actress
Dominique Casagrande (1971-), footballer
Hélène Ségara (née Hélène Rizzo) (1971-), singer
Sylvie Testud (1971-), actress, writer and film director
Philippe Candeloro (1972-), figure skater
Chiara Mastroianni (1972-), actress and singer
Vincent Candela (1973-), footballer
Aurélie Filippetti (1973-), novelist and politican
Florence Foresti (1973-), comedian and actress
Elsa Lunghini (1973-), singer and actress
Alessandro Mercuri (1973-), author and director
Gilles Marini (1976-), actor
Alice Taglioni (1976-), actress and model
Fanny Biascamano (1979-), singer
Seth Gueko (Nicolas Salvadori) (1980-), rapper
Benoît Pedretti (1980-), footballer
Franck Signorino (1981-), footballer
Laëtitia Tonazzi (1981-), footballer
Vitaa (Charlotte Gonin) (1983-), singer
Mathieu Flamini (1984-), footballer
Morgan Amalfitano (1985-), footballer
Anthony Scaramozzino (1985-), singer
Élise Bussaglia (1985-), footballer
Soko (singer) (1985-), singer
Charlotte Casiraghi (1986-), princess of Monaco
Frédéric Sammaritano (1986-) , footballer
Anais Zanotti (1986-), model and stunt woman
Vincent Muratori (1987-), footballer
Elisa Sednaoui (1987-), model, actress, philantropist and film director
Yoann Maestri (1988-), rugby union player
Romain Alessandrini (1989-), footballer
Romain Amalfitano (1989-), footballer
Vincent Laurini (1989-), footballer
Benjamin Toniutti (1989-), volleyball player
Jules Bianchi (1989-2015), formula 1 driver
Rémy Cabella (1990-), footballer
Sébastien Corchia (1990-), footballer
Alexy Bosetti (1993-), footballer
Nabilla Benattia (1992-), model and tv personnality
Paul Nardi (1994-), footballer
Yoan Cardinale (1994-), footballer
Enzo Crivelli (1995-), footballer
Sandie Toletti (1995-), footballer
Lorenzo Callegari (1998-), footballer
