Luigi Berlinguer (; 25 July 1932 – 1 November 2023) was an Italian jurist and politician. He was a professor at the University of Siena, and also served as the minister of university and research and the

minister of education An education minister (sometimes minister of education) is a position in the governments of some countries responsible for dealing with educational matters. Where known, the government department, ministry, or agency that develops policy and deli ...

Early life and education

Berlinguer was born in

Sassari Sassari ( ; ; ; ) is an Italian city and the second-largest of Sardinia in terms of population with 120,497 inhabitants as of 2025, and a functional urban area of about 260,000 inhabitants. One of the oldest cities on the island, it contains ...

, Sardinia, on 25 July 1932. His brother, Sergio Berlinguer, was a diplomat and politician. They were cousins of the

Italian Communist Party The Italian Communist Party (, PCI) was a communist and democratic socialist political party in Italy. It was established in Livorno as the Communist Party of Italy (, PCd'I) on 21 January 1921, when it seceded from the Italian Socialist Part ...

(PCI) leader

Enrico Berlinguer Enrico Berlinguer (; 25 May 1922 – 11 June 1984) was an Italian politician and statesman. Considered the most popular leader of the Italian Communist Party (PCI), he led the PCI as the national secretary from 1972 until his death during a te ...

, who died in 1984. He obtained a law degree from the

University of Sassari The University of Sassari (, UniSS) is a public university located in Sassari, Italy. It was founded in 1562 and is organized in 13 departments. The University of Sassari earned first place in the rankings for the best “medium-sized” Italian ...

in 1955.

Career

Berlinguer served as mayor of Sennori. He was the rector of the University of Siena from 1985 to 1993, when he was appointed to the Ciampi Cabinet as minister of universities, science, and technology. He was one of the three former PCI members in the cabinet. He served as the minister of education between 1996 and 2000 in the cabinets led first by

Romano Prodi Romano Prodi (; born 9 August 1939) is an Italian politician who served as President of the European Commission from 1999 to 2004 and twice as Prime Minister of Italy, from 1996 to 1998, and again from 2006 to 2008. Prodi is considered the fo ...

and then by

Massimo D'Alema Massimo D'Alema (; born 20 April 1949) is an Italian politician and journalist who was the 53rd prime minister of Italy from 1998 to 2000. He was Deputy Prime Minister of Italy and Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2006 to 2008. D'Alema ...

. He was also acting minister of universities, science, and technology from 1996 to October 1998. He was succeeded by Ortensio Zecchino as minister. In addition, he served in both the

Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourb ...

and the Senate of the Republic. As a member of the Democratic Party, Berlinguer was elected as a

member of the European Parliament A member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been Election, elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the European Coal and S ...

(MEP) in 2009, sitting as part of the

Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats The Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D) is the Political groups of the European Parliament, political group in the European Parliament of the Party of European Socialists (PES). The Progressive Alliance of Socialists and ...

. In the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the two legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it ...

, he served as first vice-chair of the committee on legal affairs and as a member of the committee on culture and education beginning in 2009.

Death

Berlinguer died on 1 November 2023, at the age of 91.

Electoral history

Source:

Awards and honours

In 2011, Berlinguer received by the European Parliament the MEP award in the field of culture and education. * Cordone di gran Croce OMRI BAR

Knight Grand Cross

Order of Merit of the Italian Republic The Order of Merit of the Italian Republic () is the most senior Italian order of merit. It was established in 1951 by the second President of Italy, President of the Italian Republic, Luigi Einaudi. The highest-ranking honour of the Republi ...

, 27 December 1992.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Berlinguer, Luigi 1932 births 2023 deaths Academic staff of the University of Siena Democratic Party of the Left politicians Democrats of the Left politicians Democratic Party (Italy) MEPs Deputies of Legislature IV of Italy Deputies of Legislature XII of Italy Deputies of Legislature XIII of Italy Education ministers of Italy Government ministers of Italy Members of the Regional Council of Tuscany Heads of universities in Italy Italian Communist Party politicians Italian people of Catalan descent Knights Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic Commanders of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic Mayors of places in Italy MEPs for Italy 2009–2014 People from Sassari Senators of Legislature XIV of Italy University of Sassari alumni