Morterone, a municipality in the Province of Lecco in the Italian region Lombardy, is the smallest village in Italy. The place so far had a population of 28, but it rose after eight years recently, when a baby boy was born, bringing its population to 29. It is a celebratory moment for Morterone, as they welcome a new inhabitant, named Denis. According to reports, the little boy was born in Alessandro Manzoni Hospital in Lecco, weighing 2.6 kg. Amid the pandemic, the news of a baby born after eight years has brought joy to the residents of the village. Denis’ parents, Matteo and Sara, followed the Italian tradition to announce the birth by placing a ribbon on the door of their home, the picture of which was also shared on Facebook.

Morterone is classified as Italy’s smallest municipality owing to the size of its population. The number decreased to 28 recently, after the death of Antonella Invernizzi’s father. Antonella Invernizzi is the Mayor of Morterone. The coronavirus pandemic has severely affected the Lombardy region, but spared Morterone. “It wasn’t easy to be pregnant during a pandemic. You were unable to go out or go and see loved ones,” Denis’ mother Sara was quoted saying in The Guardian. She further added that there would be a party once the family returns their home from the hospital. Coronavirus Outbreak in Italy: Doctors Seek Help From Robots to Check Pulse of Highly Infectious COVID-19 Patients. 

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When a baby is born, parents to announce the news place ribbon—blue for a boy and pink for a girl, on the door of their home. As per reports, this was the first time such a ribbon was seen in the village since 2012, when a baby girl was born. “There are no other pregnancies in sight, at least that I know of … but certainly a newborn is always a joy for all of us,” Mayor Invernizzi was quoted in reports. The baby boy’s birth comes a few weeks after data revealed Italy’s declining birth rate hit a record low in 2019—with 420,170 babies born, the lowest since records began in 1861.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 22, 2020 02:14 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).