In 1919, at the time of its annexation, the middle part of the County of Tyrol which is today called South Tyrol (in Italian Alto Adige) was inhabited by almost 90% German speakers. Under the 1939 South Tyrol Option Agreement, Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini determined the status of the German and Ladin (Rhaeto-Romanic) ethnic groups living in the region. They could emigrate to Germany, or stay in Italy and accept their complete Italianization. As a consequence of this, the society of South Tyrol was deeply riven. Those who wanted to stay, the so-called Dableiber, were condemned as traitors while those who left (Optanten) were defamed as Nazis. Because of the outbreak of World War II, this agreement was never fully implemented. Illegal Katakombenschulen ("Catacomb schools") were set up to teach children the German language.
Italianization programme
Fascist period (1922–1945)
In 1923, three years after South Tyrol had been formally annexed, Italian place names, almost entirely based on the Prontuario dei nomi locali dell'Alto Adige, were made official by means of a decree. The German name "Tyrol" was banned, likewise its derivants and compound words such as "Tyrolean" and "South Tyrolean". German newspapers, publishing houses, organized clubs and associations, including the South Tyrolean Alpine Club had to be renamed, with the decree said to have been strictly enforced by Italian carabinieri on the ground. The basis for these actions was a manifesto published by Ettore Tolomei on 15 July 1923, called the Provvedimenti per l'Alto Adige ("Measures for the Alto Adige"), becoming the blueprint for the Italianization campaign. Its 32 measures were:
Association of Alto Adige and Trentino in a single province with the capital city of Trento. Appointment of Italian municipal secretaries. Revision of the (citizenship) options and closure of the Brenner border for all persons to whom the Italian citizenship was not granted. Entry and residence difficulties for Germans and Austrians. Prevention of German immigration. Revision of the census of 1921. Introduction of Italian as the official language. Dismissal of German officials or transfer to the old provinces (i.e. pre-war Italian provinces). Dissolution of the "Deutscher Verband" (German association). Dissolution of Alpine associations not under command of the Italian Alpine Club, transfer of all Alpine refuges to the Italian Alpine Club. Prohibition of the name "Südtirol" and "Deutsch-Südtirol”. Closure of the newspaper published in Bozen "Der Tiroler". Italianization of German local names. Italianization of public inscriptions. Italianization of road and pathnames. Italianization of the German surnames. Removal of the Walther von der Vogelweide monument from the Walther Square in Bozen. Increasing of Carabinieri troops (in the province) under the exclusion of Germans. Preferential treatment for land acquisition and immigration of Italians. Non-interference by foreign powers in South Tyrolean affairs. Elimination of German banks, establishment of an Italian mortgage Bank. Establishment of border customs offices in Sterzing and Toblach. Generous support of the Italian language and culture. Establishment of Italian nursery and primary schools. Establishment of Italian secondary schools. Strict control of foreign university diplomas. Expansion of the "Istituto di Storia per l'Alto Adige" (Institute for the history of Alto Adige). Realignment of the territory of the Diocese of Brixen and strict control of clergy activity. Using only Italian in trials and court. State control of the Chamber of Commerce and the agricultural authorities (Corporazioni). Extensive programs for new rail junctions to facilitate the Italianization of Alto Adige (rail projects Milan-Mals, Veltlin-Brenner, Agordo-Brixen). Increase military garrisons in Alto Adige.
In October 1923, the "use of the Italian language became mandatory on all levels of federal, provincial and local government". Regulations by the fascist authorities required that all kinds of signs and public notices had to be in Italian only, while maps, postcards and other graphic material had to show Italian place names. In September 1925, Italian became the sole permissible language in courts of law, meaning that, from then on, cases could be heard only in Italian. The fascist law regulations remained in effect after World War II, becoming a bone of contention for decades until they were eventually reconsidered in the 1990s.