You may know that today's word means "thirteenth" in Italian. But if you're wondering why you hear it used so often around mid-December, we're here to explain. La tredicesima is the name of a festive bonus paid in mid-December, just in time for gift shopping. It amounts to an extra - or thirteenth - monthly salary.

It's often seen as a perk for state employees, but actually arrives in the December pay packets of all employees with permanent or fixed-term contracts in Italy. It's not linked to performance, either. It's legally mandated extra take-home pay, and it was first introduced under Benito Mussolini's Fascist regime to reward factory workers before being extended to all employees.