Umberto Eco OMRI (; born 5 January 1932) is an Italian
semiotician,
essayist,
philosopher,
literary critic, and
novelist. He is best known for his groundbreaking 1980
historical mystery novel
Il nome della rosa (
The Name of the Rose), an intellectual mystery combining
semiotics in fiction,
biblical analysis, medieval studies and
literary theory. He has since written other novels, including
Il pendolo di Foucault (
Foucault's Pendulum) and
L'isola del giorno prima (
The Island of the Day Before). His novel
Il cimitero di Praga (
The Prague Cemetery), released in 2010, was a
best-seller.