North Italy

(This page is a work in progress, as are all the other individual character pages. Please add or remove anything you must!)

North Italy or Veneziano is the main and titular character of Hetalia: Axis Powers (anime) and Hetalia: Axis Powers: Paint it, White. The title was created by blending the worlds hetare  ( へたれ,  Japanese for "useless" or "unreliable" in an endearing way) and Italia  (the Italian word for Italy) together in a single-word katakana title, ヘタリア (Hetaria/Hetalia).

He one of the most important forces in the Axis Powers, along with Germany and Japan.

His full name is Italy Veneziano, used to distinguish him from his brother Italy Romano. It's derived from Venezia, the Italian name for the northern Italian city of Venice.

Italy's human name is Feliciano Vargas, as given to him by Himaruya between the years 2007 and 2008.

Appearance
Full Article: Uniform Guide: North Italy 

Italy has light-brown or auburn (depending on what coloration), straight hair with a long curl that serves as an erogenous zone on the left side of his head and fair skin. He is nearly always depicted with his eyes closed, but on the few occasions that he is portrayed with his eyes open they are an amber or golden color. His all-around appearance is said to be "cute", which he uses to his advantage while flirting. He bears multiple physical similarities to South Italy, but is generally lighter-coloured. He's best seen in media wearing a blue Italian military uniform with tall brown boots with white cuffs (which is different to his brother's, despite them both being Italy), and sometimes with an Iron Cross necklace given to him by Germany. Italy is iconically seen holding food or waving a white flag in surrender.

Character Summary
As the title implies, North Italy is a rather cowardly and comically clumsy character, but is very friendly and energetic towards most other nations and humans. He's very different from his older brother Italy Romano (the former(?) southern half of Italy before its unification) in many ways, personality-wise. Veneziano is normally very outspoken and often shows how terrible his ability to "read the atmosphere" is, persisting with his ideas until the one he's bothering snaps and either gives in or openly expresses their frustration. Italy's tendency to constantly chatter or hum during meetings or while being given instructions can also easily make others irritable. He can make some nations feel very awkward or embarrassed around him; however, when he's around someone he fears (such as Russia), he tends to just quietly cower. Italy is a very good flirt and seems to do so as a hobby, as a stereotypical young Italian man would, as well as much to the irritation of those around him (particularly Germany). His tendency to flail his arms around excessively as he speaks can get to the point where he accidentally smacks others, and according to Germany, he might die if you tie them down. He also has a passion for fine food, particularly foods such as pasta dishes, pizza, and cheeses, as a reference to Italian cuisine; it gets to the point where he eats it almost exclusively. Some hobbies he's said to have include painting, cooking, and taking siestas.



Although Italy's genetics all point towards him being a powerful and skilled fighter, his lack of motivation to train, unwillingness to follow orders, and his cowardice in the face of danger leave much to be desired (although he did once beat up a fully-grown Turkey when he was a child). Italy seems to suffer during the basic training regimens set up by Germany and normally insists on surrendering or running away instead of risking the possibility of getting beaten up, though he's said to be quite impressive is there are girls around to bear witness. When neither of the first given options are available to him, he'll call Germany to come help him. These traits are made up by Italy's history of seeming weak and being pushed around. However, off-battlefield, Veneziano shows many talents in arts, the likes of which surpass even those of his older brother.

Italy is a descendant (grandson) of the ancient Roman Empire, along with his older brother Italy Romano. Rome took Italy away from the Holy Roman Empire as well as the other European nations, including South Italy, and raised Veneziano until his eventual death, leaving both of his grandsons vulnerable to all the dangerous superpowers surrounding them in Europe. Italy was eventually split up, and Veneziano was sent to work for Austria while Romano was given to Spain. There, Veneziano was raised away from his brother as part of the Holy Roman Empire again, notably by Austria and Hungary and alongside the personification of the Holy Roman Empire itself. Both halves of Italy were noted to have grown very slowly due to their unstable economy and development. The personification of the Holy Roman Empire eventually became Italy's childhood love, although he never knew Italy's real gender. Their romance was unfortunately brought to an end when the Holy Roman Empire was dissolved. Himaruya has promised us that Italy and HRE would have a happy ending eventually, and the thought that Germany is the same personification of HRE is a very popular fan speculation and that the "happy ending" will be their getting together, and although the hints that he is can be heavy, it is not outright confirmed.

Some Italian stereotypes he portrays include: his physical and mental weakness, his all-around enthusiasm, his love for Italian food and all girls, the verbal tic of "Ve~" (or “Be~” in the Japanese text) he uses when happy or dispirited, the prominent erogenous zone (curl) he has, etc.

America
Italy has appeared with America quite a few times, and both of them are commonly associated with being the most childish member of their respective alliances (Italy for the Axis, America for the Allies) and not being appropriately sensitive in certain scenarios. They even tried to go on a search for the "Legendary Ability to Read the Atmosphere" together, but otherwise, they do not communicate often.

They are a very rare pairing in the fandom, without an official couple name.

Ancient Rome
Italy spent a good amount of time under the care of his grandfather Ancient Rome, up until his dissolution and inevitable death.. Italy seems to have picked up many traits from his grandfather, such as his love of art, good food and women (though in a less sexual manner) and possibly his curl, as Rome had multiple all over his head. Unfortunately, Italy did not inherit his military power nor his ability or affinity for brawling or even fighting in any way. His easygoing personality is also somewhat similar, and a notable similarity between the two would be their relationship with their seeming "main Germanic friend" (Germania for Rome, and Germany for Italy).

However, as Rome steadily grew weaker, Italy watched as he returned with more scars every time, weaker and dying, up until the day when he did not return and Italy was taken away by Austria. This led Italy to supposedly not want his loved ones to grow dangerously in power, as he feared they would end up like Grandpa Rome. His said so nearly outright to the Holy Roman Empire upon refusing to join him in recreating his grandfather's empire, as well as that he liked HRE the way he was then and didn't want him to change.

Rome somehow manages to come back from the dead on a few occasions to visit or protect his grandson, such as when he appeared in the ocean near an island he was on to sing "Heaven and Hell on Earth" to distract and effectively scare away Italy's enemies (the Allied Forces twice, the Pictonians in Hetalia: Axis Powers: Paint it, White once). He also came to check up on him in the middle of the night but only managed to speak to Germany (as Italy was sleeping in Germany's bed, as usual) and spent quite some time educating him on ancient Roman culture while Italy stayed sound asleep. He claimed that he's had a "wonderful dream about Grandpa Rome" the next morning as well, probably due to hearing his voice.

Austria
Soon after Rome died, Italy taken into Austria's custody and spent the majority of his childhood there as a maid. He was raised mostly by Hungary from that point on, and lived there as a part of the Holy Roman Empire. Austria's rules were very strict, and he regulated from how Italy cleaned to what he ate, and would step on Italy or lock him in a dark room after he disobeyed. Due to the fact that Italy appeared and sounded very feminine at that time and was given only maid's dresses to wear (as well as the fact that Hungary would sometimes dress him up in her old dresses as a joke), both the Holy Roman Empire himself and Austria believed him to be a girl. He was proven wrong when Italy's voice eventually broke sometime during his early preteen years, with Austria thinking he "had a feeling this would happen for some reason" and bemusedly going out to buy him appropriate clothing.

At the time of the Spanish-Austrian war, Italy was given the opportunity to reunite with his brother Italy Romano and live under Spain's care instead of Austria's, but he refused this option and ran back to Austria right after being untied, despite apparently not liking being under his rule. Although, that was supposedly because Spain scared Italy with his leering and strange dreams of living with both Italy brothers 24/7. Italy was also strongly against Austria's annexation by Germany's hand, along with Hungary. It's apparent that although he may have once complained, Italy does not harbour a grudge against Austria for mistreating him as a child and is normally very enthusiastic and affectionate toward him.

France
As a small child, Italy grew up alongside France, who he referred to as "Big Brother". He was evidently displeased when Italy was taken away from him to go live with his grandfather, Rome, but upon Italy's return, he had become a bit of a bully. However, he was shown to go as far as to draw a sword on the other young nations who threatened or chased around Italy (such as the Holy Roman Empire), but it was made apparent that he just wanted Italy for himself. He was the one who started the trend of invading Italy, which started his history of being pushed around. Nowadays, they are on relatively good terms. Italy still refers to France as "Big Brother" and is shown to visit him multiple times. Despite them being enemies during the WWII era, France still refused to harm or spread rumours about Italy to the point where he would be reduced to tears and wail about how he wasn't really a bad guy.

Germany
Germany is Italy's best friend, and vice versa. He is usually the one to protect Italy or to bail him out of tight situations caused by his foolish actions. Their relationship started when Germany discovered Italy cowering in an empty crate of tomatoes instead of fighting him and imprisoned him. While under his imprisonment, Italy attempted to express his affection towards Germany and his home through a rather blunt song and was sent home soon after. Then, he returned to pester Germany for a job and succeeded, as his economy was suffering. Later on, it was discovered that Germany was off fighting again and Italy offered to back him up as a "friend". Germany, at first reluctant and a bit uncertain and having next to no experience with friendship, eventually accepted, and thus their alliance began. Their relationship started many more hardships for Germany, but he still did not leave him. Italy's issues with thinking he could easily be replaced by Russia or Japan were eventually brought to light and led to the Pact of Steel in the form of a Japanese oath (or "pinky swear") that Germany would never abandon Italy.



Later on and after a misunderstanding leading Germany to believe Italy loved him, the Buon San Valentino storyline revealed that Germany might be more fond of Italy than he let on as "just a friend", and enjoyed having someone who liked and relied on him for a change. He started to feel the need to give Italy an answer to whether or not he returned Italy's feelings - it was "yes". Feeling responsible to, Germany asked him out on a date and read up on how to treat a lover. During the date, Italy could not understand his awkward romantic advances and became flustered at his "scary" behavior, implying that Germany's feelings might be one-sided. Their "date" ended when Germany seemed to shut down because of his new found feelings - love, nervousness, jealousy, etc. - and Italy panicking over his state. He also seems to recall a memory of giving flowers to a very young Italy, looking to be from around the time where Italy was under Austria's rule. Most fans have agreed that it must be from the point of view of the Holy Roman Empire. This scene does not seem to have affected their current relationship negatively or positively - it was simply left at a cliffhanger.

The possibility that Germany may be the same personification as the one who represented the Holy Roman Empire may be a big factor in their relationship, though neither of the characters seem to be fully aware of the possibility. However, the similarities between HRE and Germany can sometimes be strikingly apparent, and have many fans hoping that this will be revealed to be true and result in a happy ending for both Germany and Italy and the Holy Roman Empire and Italy.

Overall, their relationship is continuously positive on both ends, if not potentially romantic on at least one side. Because of the canon events such as the ones listed above, North Italy and Germany are frequently paired together as romantic interests in fandom. The pairing often goes by the name " GerIta" or "枢軸お花夫婦 (Suujiku Ohana Fuufu)".

Roman Empire


While Italy was still an infant, the Holy Roman Empire appeared to be on friendly terms with Italy. However, after Italy returned from his stay with his grandfather the Roman Empire, HRE became somewhat of a bully, constantly chasing Italy around and insisting he become part of the Holy Roman Empire. He was very persistent with it, refusing to quit after France would tell him off, until the time Austria gained control of Italy and thus successfully made him part of the Holy Roman Empire. Once this happened, HRE dropped the bullying act immediately and gave way to his excitement, and it was soon made evident that he had a crush on Italy (believing him to be a girl). Because of his feelings, he had a very hard time communicating with him and was extra careful (and failing, in his eyes) to respect "her" privacy and personal space. Because of his awkward actions around him, Italy stayed wary of the other.

After being turned down by Italy for them to rebuild the Roman Empire together it was revealed that Italy didn't want him to end up like Italy's grandfather - the original Roman Empire - did (being, the long years of war took a heavy toll on him. He'd return with battle scars and in pain until the day it was all too much and he suddenly died overnight). He admitted to liking HRE the way he was then. However, HRE was still heartbroken at this rejection, instead leaving for war alone as many other members of the Holy Roman Empire started to turn against him. As he tried to leave for the field, one of the only possessions he was carrying personally being a hand-painted picture of Italy, he ran into the one in question. Overwhelmed by emotion, HRE confesses his feeling and receives a parting gift from Italy. The two share a parting kiss and promises to be reunited, and HRE is waved off by a crying Italy, who promised to make sweets for when he would return. Some more strips show HRE waking up after dreaming of Italy with murmurs "Oh, it was just another dream..."

HRE's fate hasn't been directly covered yet, though a deleted comic shows France breaking the news that Holy Rome is 'no more', implying that he may have died. But since this strip was never really officially aired, HRE's fate has been left without confirmation. However, Himaruya has promised that HRE and Italy will eventually have a happy ending. Whether this "happy end" will be the revelation that Germany is actually the same personification as HRE is hoped by many fans, but it is still unconfirmed.

Hungary
While they were both part of the Holy Roman Empire and under Austria's rule, Hungary acted as a sort of motherly older sister figure to Italy. Due to her love for cute boys, she quickly embraced his presence and became his main caretaker, as well as being one of the only members of the Holy Roman Empire to know his true gender as a child due to the fact that she bathed him. Despite knowing this, she still enjoyed dressing Italy up in her old dresses and hats because of how cute he looked, and seemed to find it adorable how HRE would swoon over him. Italy and Hungary have a very high likelihood of still being close as well as in contact in modern times (as well as after the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire). Hungary is known to dress up as theKrampus, a legendary monster from the Alpine folklore, and scare Italy each December. Following this, she became so overwhelmed at how cute he was and hugged him. To Italy, this seemed as though the Krampus was capturing him, only causing him to be even more scared. Italy is said to fall for this trick every year.

Japan
Japan and Italy have a mutual respect for each other's history and artwork, though Italy still seems to make the latter rather uncomfortable at times. A seemingly iconic moment for the fandom would be when Italy attempted to greet Japan by hugging him, to which Japan at first stood still in shock and then violently shoved Italy off, yelling something about personal space. He then proceeded to try and marry Italy in order for him to take responsibly for what had just happened, insisting with "That was my first time!". Italy's reckless driving skills have also inspired Japan to design safer cars for drivers like him. Italy and Japan are also sometimes shown cooking Japanese cuisine for or with each other, such as when Japan taught Italy to make onigiri, which he then prepared for Germany. Despite their differences, Italy and Japan are still often shown to be good friends.

They can sometimes be paired together in fandom as Japan/North Italy, or  "枢軸お花組 ( Suujiku Ohanagumi)".

Poland
According to some "Extra Stories" and Comic Diaries, Italy and Poland were good friends since childhood, leading Poland to not be shy at all around him, much to the initial puzzlement of Lithuania when they ran into Italy while out shopping (this may imply that their relationship is not that widespread and commonly known even by Poland's other friends). Poland was also the one to give Italy the idea to modify Germany's Kübelwagen the same way he had previously designed an airplane. This ejectable seat modification backfired on both of them respectively.

Prussia
Prussia is shown to be very fond of Italy and often refers to him as "Ita-chan" in the original Japanese text. According to Himaruya, worrying about Italy is "a tradition from Prussia's time".

Upon being asked by a fan, Himaruya said that Prussia grew attached to him some time ago when they fought together. Prussia considers him 'cute' and is attracted to his and his brother's climate and topography and even asks him out on a date in the drama adaptation of his blog event, only for Italy to be oblivious to his question, being fixated on his bird. In the same CD, Germany says that Prussia is very good with Italy. In Osoji Prussia (Cleaning Prussia), if he chooses to go to Italy's house to clean, he states that he has clear ulterior motives to be praised by Italy. Upon arrival Prussia finds Italy asleep in his bed, and begins to stroke Italy's head. As he strokes Italy, he is reminded of the Risorgimento as he did so, and happily daydreams about him and Italy on a gondola in Venice.

Italy has also praised Prussia for his hard work and was eager to join him and India in dancing during America's Halloween party.

In an older series of drawings, Prussia was shown blushing and breathing harshly while approaching a teenaged Italy, before embracing him, to his distress.

South Italy/Romano


Italy Romano is Italy Veneziano's older brother and closest, living blood relative. The two share a long past together of being ruthlessly pushed around by other stronger Nations, and thus keep some sort of bond, though it may not seem immediately evident. They both share the landmass of Italy, but as children they hardly got to communicate much since Veneziano was raised by their Grandfather and then they were split up to work for different bosses (Veneziano went to Austria and Romano went to Spain). Their personalities are also very different, but Veneziano's easygoing ways manage to keep them together, despite Romano's reluctance towards being around him. Romano seems to have a huge problem with most of Italy's friends, Germany especially, though it's thought it's not for personal reasons as his seeming dislike towards nations like Japan come without any real reason.

However, Romano is constantly overshadowed by his lovable brother by most nations, resulting in an inferiority complex. Romano often expresses unnecessary hatred towards Veneziano because of it. Though he can go a bit overboard at times with his insults and Veneziano sometimes shrinks away from him, it's thought that don't really detest each other like it's let on, as shown in several cases.

Their relationship is not bad, and they are sometimes paired together as an incestuous couple in fandom, going by the name "Itacest".

Spain
Spain and Italy normally refer to each other affectionately as "Big Brother" and "Ita-chan" (in the original Japanese dialect) respectively, though Italy has been very frightened of Spain in the past. When faced with Spain's desire to marry and live with both of the Italy brothers, Italy ran away back to Austria in tears, despite having had the chance to reunite with his brother. In 2005, when Spain excitedly announced that it was legal for men to marry one another as of then on, Italy merely awkwardly congratulated him as he went on to apparently informally propose to his brother Romano. However, Spain has always been very fond of Italy, at one point even wanting to trade Romano for him since he was a better worker, more obedient, and generally cuter, though he could not follow through with his wishes and kept Romano instead, still visiting Italy at Austria's house from time to time and bringing him tomatoes

AU (Alternate Universe) Versions
'NOTE: A great deal of the information surrounding the AU versions of this character are purely fanon ideas - headcanons, if you will. Little official information has been given on the alternate universes; please do not believe any of the details not stated to be confirmed as canon to be official.'

Read more on the alternative versions of North Italy, listed or not listed below, at: Memes in fandom

Nyotalia/Genderswapped (Nyo!)


Voiced by: Rena Maeda (seiyū)

The female counterpart of North Italy was one of the first official female designs to be made public, making her official debut in the strips (and extra episode) I Was Overwhelmed with Heroines. Her human name has not yet been confirmed by Himaruya, but fans in the Japanese fandom commonly give her the name Daisy or Margherita Vargas, while Himaruya himself has admitted to liking the name Alice Vargas when given a list of suggestions (with the Vargas surname coming from the regular Italy's confirmed name, which she also shares with nyo! South Italy/Romano). Nyo! Italy has similar eye, skin and hair colors as her male counterpart, if not all of them being a touch lighter, as well as the curl on the left side of her head. Her hair is considerably wavier than her male counterpart's, and seems to be possibly just past shoulder-length and is normally depicted pulled back into a ponytail. Her eyes are shown open more often (though not always), and her outfit is normally shown as a more feminine version of one of the Italian uniforms (the beige/tan one male Romano is shown in, possibly), featuring sorter sleeves and a skirt, as well as gloves. As a contrast to how her male version if normally shown with pasta, nyo! Italy is classically seen holding a full pizza.

Her personality is noticeably different than the regular Italy's, as are all the other Nyos'; she is said to be a loving, emotional young woman who can portray an alarming amount of strength when provoked (likely an attribute that comes hand-in-hand with her apparent sentiment), and is braver and more willing to fight or argue with others. In fan works, she's not shown to flirt as much or with just any cute guy she'll see, despite wanting to be loved more than anything. Her relationships with the others seem to be about the same, if not with her being less doted, on as she appears to be stronger. She's also usually portrayed as being more outgoing and lively.

Second Player/Another Color (2p!)


The "Another Color Italy" is one of the characters who were given an official 2p! design as well as a fem! 2p! design, the others being the rest of the Axis Powers. 2p! Italy's coloring is much darker than their original designs, with the male 2p! Italy appearing almost coppery-red in overall appearance and with purple eyes, and the 2p! nyo! Italy's a shade of bronze. Their uniforms are a darker shade of their first players' (a dark bronze or almost purplish-brown with added gloves, and with the male's featuring a black Bustina cap with dark feathers and tassels coming off his pants), but the female version features red heels instead of boots. 2p! Italy is shown holding what appears to be a butter knife of sorts, but may potentially be a form of weapon. Himaruya stated that he looks like somewhat of a "Bad Boy", something he liked in the design.

Either versions of 2p! Italy's expressions seem slightly calmer and their eyes are next to always depicted as open, and their personality is usually interpreted as being sneaky and rather serious in fan works (although they can be sometimes portrayed as seemingly calm yet mentally unstable or fatuous). Fans rumor that 2p! was the one to have given 2p! Germany all their scars, giving them a new one every time he/she pisses them off, although an official description on 2p! Italy's personality or tendencies has yet to be given. Since the 2p!'s do not have official names, 2p! Italy's name, as given by fans, is often said to be Luciano, Fiorello or Adamo, and usually Alice Vargas for the female version. Sometimes just their first players' names are used to avoid confusion in fanfiction or art.

Character Songs
Maru Kaite Chikyuu

Hatafutte Parade

Mawaru Chikyuu Rondo

Let's Boil Hot Water

Let's Look Over the Rainbow

Gakuen Fiesta (featured)

Wa! Wa!! World Ondo (featured)

Mawaru Chikyuu Rondo (South Italy) (featured)

Ren-Ren-Renaissance (featured)

Santa Claus Is Coming To Town (featured)

Trivia

 * The birthdate given in his profile, March 17th, corresponds with the date of the formation of the "Kingdom Of Italy" (Regno d'Italia) in 1861. As Italy is shown in the strips to have existed for centuries before as parts of the Roman Empire, Holy Roman Empire and such, it is likely that the Italy brothers use the date of the Italian Unification to celebrate their birthdays with, as a unified Italy. The formation date of the Italian Republic (Repubblica Italiana) is actually June 2nd. South Italy is confirmed to be the elder of the two; despite this, some fans continue to mistake them for twins due to having similar hairstyles.
 * Though Italy was represented with the flag for the Kingdom Of Italy in the original webcomic, the published manga and later media use the modern Italian flag.
 * His full nation name, Italy Veneziano (or just "Veneziano") is derived from Venezia, the Italian name for Venice, a city in Northern Italy. In the strips, he is simply referred to by the others as Italy, with his brother and his grandfather only referring to him as Veneziano. The name North Italy is also used to differentiate him from his brother. In Italian, the word Veneziano has the meaning of "venetian", "native of Venice", but, unlike his brother's second forename, it is no existent male first name. Veneziano can also be seen as a sort of pun for the similar-sounding Japanese phrase "Venezia no", which would mean "of Venice".
 * Though his name is derived after Venice, he only seems to represent the Republic itself in the strip where he fights the Ottoman troops. In footnotes to strips such as The War of Austrian Succession, it is shown that he has also been used to represent other northern areas of Italy such as in the strip Let's Assist The French Economy!, his right nipple is revealed to represent Corsica and winds up claimed by France. His right pectoral area is also said to represent both Savoy and Nice.
 * In Contrary To The Italian Image, it is revealed in a footnote that Italy suffers from the medical condition phimosis (which makes it difficult for the foreskin of the penis to be retracted), due to Italy ranking #2 in frequent cases of it.
 * In the webcomic strip Italy's Big Brother, Germany reveals that Italy happens to share Germanic blood with him (presumably due to the German conquests of Italy after the fall of the Roman Empire). This noticeably angers South Italy, who was later said to be of Arabic blood by Himaruya.
 * In a note, Himaruya stated that Italy was not entirely weak, but due to him being cowardly and scared, he does not use his strength. However, as a child, he was shown at one point to be strong enough to defeat Ottoman forces that were invading the Adriatic Sea (referencing how Italian naval troops were thought to be stronger than the ones on land). In another illustration, the female version of Italy is shown to display an incredible bout of strength when angered, much to the surprise of her male counterpart.
 * In the special booklet included with the third volume of the published manga, it was revealed that Italy's curl was a last-minute addition to the design to make him look cuter. Himaruya calls the curl "important" now.