Progenita Recognized by MIMIT: Italy's First Association of Professional GenealogistNow Official
With the official communication of October 20, 2026, I became an attested professional genealogist under Italian Law No. 4 of 14 January 2013, registration no. SF-526126. A personal milestone tied to an even bigger achievement, one I am just as proud of: Progenita, the association I co-founded and now serve as Vice President of, has been registered by Italy's Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy (MIMIT) in Section II of the official list of professional associations, also under Law 4/2013. It is the first and, to date, the only Italian association dedicated specifically to genealogy to receive this official recognition — a milestone we can fairly call historic for the entire field.
- Italian Law No. 4 of 14 January 2013: "Provisions on professions not organized into professional orders or colleges", the law governing unregulated professions and the official lists of their representative associations kept by the relevant Ministry.
- MIMIT List – Section II, Professional Associations: Progenita's official entry, available on the MIMIT Data Portal.
- Official MIMIT communication (Prot. AOO_MT.REGISTRO UFFICIALE.2026.0038383, October 20, 2026): read the PDF document.
1. What Progenita Is and What It Stands For
Progenita was founded to finally give Italian genealogy what it had long been missing: a recognized professional body capable of representing those who practice this profession with seriousness and competence. The association's mission is to promote shared quality and ethical standards, support genealogists' continuing education, protect the people who turn to a professional in the field, and give institutional visibility to a discipline that, in Italy, has never had a professional order or register of its own.
2. What Registration in MIMIT's Section II Actually Means
Law 4/2013 does not create a traditional professional order; instead, it regulates so-called "unorganized professions", giving the associations that represent them the option to register on a public list kept by the Ministry, provided they demonstrate transparency, sound internal organization, and consumer protection. Progenita's registration in Section II means the Italian State formally recognizes the association as representative of the genealogist profession, and that anyone relying on a professional genealogist attested through Progenita can verify, through an official MIMIT database, that the association certifying them is registered and recognized.
The Recognition at a Glance
| Element | Detail |
|---|---|
| Association | Progenita – Italian Association of Genealogists |
| Legal reference | Italian Law No. 4 of 14 January 2013 |
| MIMIT list section | Section II – Professional Associations |
| Date of official communication | October 20, 2026 |
| Significance | First and only Italian genealogists' association registered on the list |
| Diego Luciano's role | Co-founder and Vice President of the association; attested professional genealogist no. SF-526126 |
3. A Journey That Was Anything But Easy
Behind this result lies a long and far from straightforward journey, made up of paperwork, dialogue with institutions and, in all honesty, resistance from within the field itself. Not everyone believed in this project from the start: some — often people who call themselves "educators" or even "teachers" of genealogy — chose to work against it rather than support a process of professionalization we see as unstoppable at this point. That's unfortunate, because Italian genealogy needs more collaboration and less self-interest. As co-founder of Progenita and its Vice President, this is a commitment I intend to carry forward personally: working to make that spirit of collaboration, still far too rare today, the norm in our field.
Diego Luciano is co-founder and Vice President of the Progenita Association, as well as an attested professional genealogist under Italian Law 4/2013.
4. What This Means for Anyone Looking for a Professional Genealogistin Italy
For anyone — especially abroad — searching for a professional to trace their Italian roots or pursue a jure sanguinis citizenship case, choosing a Professional Genealogistattested through an association registered with MIMIT under Law 4/2013 offers an extra layer of assurance: the ability to verify, through an official Italian government source, that the association certifying the professional's competence is genuinely recognized. It is not an academic degree or a mandatory professional register, but a transparency tool designed specifically to protect those who turn to a profession that remains, by law, unregulated.