Ugo Antonio Amico

Ugo Antonio Amico (6 September 1831 – 24 April 1917) was a poet, humanist and educator from Erice, Sicily.

Works

He is best known for three books about his hometown and Sicilian culture:

• Elegie ericine (Firenze: G. Barbera, 1892), a cycle of poems about Erice.
• Cronistoria ericina dal 1848 al 1860 (Palermo: Boccone del povero, 1910), a straightforward local chronicle of the Risorgimento years.
• Leggende popolari ericine (Palermo: Boccone del povero, 2nd ed., 1914), a collection of traditional stories and beliefs.

Life

Amico was born in Monte San Giuliano (now Erice) on 6 September 1831. He first studied at the Seminary of Mazara, then studied literature in Palermo. He taught in secondary schools in Pisa, Florence and Palermo, and served as a libero docente (free lecturer) in Italian literature at the University of Palermo from 1893 to 1898.

He is commemorated with a bronze bust in the Balio Gardens at Erice. His daughter Maria was the mother of the novelist Antonio Pizzuto.

References