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Firenze, antica repubblica, aveva ottime leggi.

Firenze, antica repubblica, aveva ottime leggi.
Florence, an ancient republic, had excellent laws.
From Lesson 465:Dropping articles in appositives (Roma, capitale...)·Italian

Questions & Answers about Firenze, antica repubblica, aveva ottime leggi.

Why is there no article before antica repubblica?
In Italian, when a noun phrase is used as an apposition (a descriptive phrase set off by commas that defines a proper noun), the article is usually omitted. While in English we say 'an ancient republic', Italian simply drops the article and says antica repubblica right after Firenze.
Why is ottime placed before leggi instead of after?
Ottime is the absolute superlative of buone (excellent / very good). Placing adjectives before the noun in Italian often gives them a more elevated, literary feel or emphasizes the subjective, inherent greatness of the noun. Placing it after (leggi ottime) is also grammatically correct but sounds more factual and less poetic.
Why use the imperfect tense aveva instead of the passato prossimo?
The imperfect tense is used here because having excellent laws was an ongoing characteristic or continuous state of being for the Republic of Florence over a long, undefined period in the past, rather than a single, completed event.
Since leggi ends in -i, is it a masculine plural noun?
No, leggi is feminine plural. It is the plural of la legge (the law). Nouns ending in -e in the singular, whether masculine or feminine, generally change their ending to -i in the plural. You can easily spot that it is feminine here because the adjective ottime takes the feminine plural ending -e.

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