L’immagine del Friuli Venezia Giulia nelle guide turistiche in lingua tedesca

The article is located in the research on intercultural tourism discourse and deals with the image that German and Austrian travel guides create of the northern Italian Friuli Venezia Giulia region. After an overview of the creation of images in tourism communication, of the linguistic and textual structures used in the tourism discourse and of travel guides as a type of text, the contribution analyses the Orientierungstexte(Fandrych & Thurmair 2011) from seven German and Austrian travel guides about the region, from which all attributes characterising FVG have been extracted. FVG is presented as a small region of scenic contrasts between the mountains and the sea and as a multicultural region. The individual landscapes are partly stylised as worlds in their owns, while less spectacular features are enhanced by the attributes of authenticity or by what they offer to holidaymakers. The guides use suggestive images and typical stereotypes of Italy. A number of specific labels are attributed to the individual cities. The inhabitants are portrayed as people who enjoy a glass of wine and as different from the “typical Italian”. All mechanisms of the tourism discourse can be identified in the texts.