The language of food and intercultural exchanges and relationships

The article discusses the role of food as an instrument of identity and a channel of contact through cultures. This is discussed drawing from three cases of Italian food culture hybridization spanning from the early 20th century to the first decade of the 2000s: the role of Italian food in Italian-American identity as depicted in Leonardo Coviello‟s work, the meeting of Southern and Northern food cultures following the Italian internal migrations in the 50s and 60s, the food practices of international migrants in the context of the global flows of people and commodities in present day Italy. In this regard, food plays an essential role in the rebuilding of a familiar context in which migrants can feel temporarily “at home”. At the same time, food is an important form of communication and contact between different cultures and social contexts. In this process of exchange both migrants‟ and hosts‟ food habits and diets are modified as they incorporate elements and ingredients from each other, making boundaries more porous.