Women in Astronomy - Italy

Extract

Let me start with a short historical excursion, taking the Bologna University as an example. The Bologna University was founded in 1088, but only at the beginning of 1700, when a deep transformation in the tradition and female behaviour model occurred, women started to approach the academic life mostly in humanities. There were also examples of scientist women, often without a real academic title working side by side with men (generally fathers or husbands).

During the 19^th century the female presence in the italian universities slowly increased, becoming a reality at the beginning of the 20^th century. In the time interval from 1884 to 1900, 224 degrees were assigned to women in Italy (less than 10% of the total): 68.9% in Literature and Philosophy,7.8% in Mathematics, 11.7% in Natural Science, 9.3% in Medicine, and 2.3% in Law. Women were mostly involved in fields related to educational activities, however six out of 224 got a chair at the Universities, five of which in scientific fields.