L'emigrazione irregolare italiana verso la Tunisia nel periodo preunitario (1800-1860)

In the first half of the 19th century, several thousand Europeans were living and working in Tunisia. At this time already, Italians constituted one of the most numerous groups in this ensemble. Also for reasons of geographical proximity, Tunisia then became the destination not only of authorised but also of irregular migratory flows. These presences were received rather negatively by various observers, who emphasised the economic and social problems caused by this irregular immigration. This paper will therefore provide some information on Italian irregular emigration to Tunisia in the pre-unitarian age. Through the analysis of documents preserved in Italian and French archives, the most significant groups from this point of view – Sicilians, Neapolitans, Sardinians and Ligurians – will be considered, with the characteristics of their arrivals in Tunisia and the comments of observers such as monks and consuls on their presence in the North African country.