Note: This post is making the assumption that Germany was reincarnated from Holy Rome. The rest is all canon material.

All right! In canon, we know that reincarnation is possible. The most obvious example would be Jeanne d’Arc and her American reincarnation, Lisa.

What people often forget is that Hima explicitly states that it’s possible for the nations to be reincarnated too.

In these panels, Hima makes it clear for us what a nation’s existence and lifespan is like. They can last for really short or really long periods of time and can be brought back by a sudden memory. More importantly, is that nations can change their titles and ultimately, their personalities.

Following this logic, this would explain why Holy Rome and Germany share some personality differences.

Where Germany is more clear-headed, rational, and organized, Holy Rome is emotional and sensitive, irrational, impulsive, and disorganized. I think Hima does this on purpose as a pun to contrast how at first, Holy Rome was a disorganized collection of nation-states and then became more organized after unification and the subsequent formation of Germany. 

Just to highlight this, I’ll go over some quick examples. We see some of Holy Rome’s impulsiveness not only with his obsession and compulsion in getting Chibitalia to live in his house, but also in his interactions with other countries.

What immediately comes to mind for me is how Holy Rome built an Italian home in England, without even considering how the architecture wasn’t designed to endure the harsher English climate.

It would be unprecedented for Germany to pull off something like that, as he’s always rationalizing and thinking things through enough times to drive anyone crazy.

You see the organization pun come to life with Germany’s love for schedules, manuals, and the scientific method. Overall, he’s a much deeper and rational thinker than Holy Rome.

Further, with unity, comes a stronger sense of national duty.

On the other hand, due to the fragmentation in his empire, Holy Rome doesn’t seem to care what happens to it and is more focused on chasing after Italy. He’s even scolded for neglecting his duties by Switzerland. Tell me, have you ever seen Germany slack off?

That said, there are more similarities between them than differences, and Hima sure loves to stress this all throughout the series. They both share a love for the Italian culture and climate, are flustered easily, love sweets, own dogs, have Prussia as on older brother, and…

there’s also the obvious fact that they look exactly alike.

The Rules:  

Before, I used to dismiss the idea of time travel in Hetalia. Looking back, I can see that this limited my understanding of several bizarre and inexplicable occurrences in the manga.

In a fictional series where the nations are immortal, being referred to as “strange” and “odd” beings, it’s honestly not that far-fetched to consider that they’re capable of time travel.

This is especially true given the facts that…

1)  Time is experienced differently by the nations.

Ex: Canada spends an entire weekend staring at Kumajiro’s eyelashes. It passes by without him realizing this [x].

Ex: If a human were to spend enough time around a nation, their perception of time would become so warped that they’d go mad.

Ex: Pets don’t go mad when they’re around their nation owners. Instead, their lifespans increase. Should they separate from the nation, however, they would become normal pets again and resume aging [x]. 

2)  Some nations are capable of magic, fortune-telling, clairvoyance and other supernatural abilities.

Ex: England’s and Romania’s ability to cast spells.

Ex: Japan’s powers of clairvoyance and mind-reading [x]– I’ll get back to this later.

Evidence of time travel in Hetalia is either extremely subtle or so right in your face that it’s easy to overlook.

Could it be that the pets don’t age because the nations are beings that are able to transcend space and time? In other words, what if time is bent around the nations, which, in turn, causes their pets not to age?

They’re timeless beings in that they’re immortal. While they do age, it’s very incremental. They still remain youthful, likely because time is slowed for them. In that case, the reason that the pets won’t go mad by being around a nation is that they don’t perceive time the same way that humans are able to.

Are the nations able to time travel then?

Evidence from the manga suggests that they’re indeed able to.

Let’s go over some of these examples.

Bizarre and Casual Anachronisms: 

If you factor in time travel, this would explain the sudden appearance of anachronisms when you least expect it. I used to think that these were silly comic gags. My opinion has since changed.

Ex: When America pulls out a computer to google where Germany is in 1942, England isn’t surprised. Instead, he’s able to pinpoint exactly how far into the future the model is and reprimands America for showing off.

Ex: Why is it that during the 18^th century, Japan appears to be listening to music…with earbuds? [x].

Ex: The Roman Emperor Nero is once depicted to be playing an acoustic guitar.

They’re aware that it’s an anachronism. Perhaps either Rome or Quintillus – another Roman Emperor who’s canonically able to time travel – brought that there. I’ll get back to Quintillus in a moment.

Japan’s Powers of Clairvoyance: 

As mentioned above, Japan has been shown to be able to read minds, see into the future, and establish contact with others without having ever met them in person before.

Ex: Japan demonstrates his clairvoyant powers during the Meiji Era. The fourth wall is broken as the scene pans in on Himaruya scrambling to finish a comic.

Ex: When Japan first becomes acquainted with the Italy brothers, they’re put off by how silent and reserved he is. Japan later admits that he’s not used to speaking out loud with those whom he’s read the minds of [x].

If anything, this alludes to the fact that Italy and Japan have technically met before.

Notice the title of the strip too. “A melody that transcends history and reaches you…”

Japan’s ESP Contact with Italy + Dream Sequences:

After falling into bed with Holy Rome, Chibitalia has a strange dream where he encounters a presumably divine being that leads him to – yes, Japan. This confirms what Japan claims in World Stars. He did, in fact, read the mind of Italy and communicated with him far before they formed their alliance in WW2 [x].

That’s not it, either.

Italy in adulthood has a ‘unpleasant dream’ of a child that looks exactly like him pressing to be acknowledged [x] [x].

How I’ve interpreted this before is that it symbolically represents Italy’s unconscious mind repressing memories from his childhood. Put another way, he’s refusing to remember – acknowledge – bits of his past.

Taken literally, this could also mean that Italy’s child self is transcending time and space to get him to remember his past.

Or, what about this scene? Italy encounters his child self, recognizes this, and feels ashamed for lying about how [not] strong he’s become [x]. 

Germany also appears to have these strange encounters with chibis.

Ex: In the same strip, a child that looks exactly like Germany/ Holy Rome presses to be acknowledged as well [x].

Ex: Germany’s once shown to be holding up Chibitalia.

“It’s me!”

What if this is Chibitalia traveling into the future to get Germany to remember about his past as Holy Rome? At the same time, it could symbolically represent childhood memory repression. Of course, this is all making the assumption that Germany is, in fact, Holy Rome.

Quintillus:

Most obvious of all is that there’s a real character in the series who’s physically able to time travel.

The play on Quintillus’ time-traveling abilities is that because historical records about him are shifty, his timeline leaps back and forth. Himaruya took this, made it literal, and gave Quintillus time-traveling powers [x].

Ex: We see Quintillus visit Germany in modern times making sure that the latter’s research and re-writing of Roman history are accurate [x].

With all the evidence I presented, I truly do believe that the nations are able to time travel. It’s not just limited to their ability to slow time for those around them. They seem to be able to manipulate it too, being able to disappear on a whim…

 Q: If there are two Italies, how come Veneziano is referred to as Italy and Romano isn’t?

A: There’s no real reason given. It’s just how it is. 

The other nations generically refer to Veneziano as Italy, and Romano as “Italy’s older brother” – Romano gets pissed off at this since he resents being stuck in Veneziano’s shadow.

Nonetheless, BOTH are Italy.

Q: What did Chibitalia represent? Did anything change?

A: Nothing’s changed in what he represents. Veneziano has always represented the north of the country, and Romano, the south. 

The only difference then is that Italy was fragmented into several small city-states after the Roman Empire fell. The country wasn’t as consolidated.

By this, I mean that each city-state was diverse and different enough to be considered as a nation in its own right. Veneziano and Romano were the collective personifications of these states. Similarly, their names are each likely references to Venice and Rome, city-states that were thriving with culture at the time.

Veneziano refers to his half of the country as his house, meaning that when city-states under his jurisdiction were conquered, he would also be conquered.

This is seen when Milan gets thrown into a war between France and Prussia. When Milan gets taken over by Spain, it’s Veneziano who’s captured. Again, he represents the collective of these northern city-states.

“This is how the War of Austrian succession looked like. Basically, everybody just bullying Austria. At one point, Northern Italy (Milan) got caught in a war between between France and Prussia, not noticing Spain surrounding him from the South until he got kidnapped.” [x]

The same thing goes for Romano.

He was once conquered as Naples by France [parts of Veneziano were also conquered here].

Q: Would APH Genoa still be alive today?

A: It’s difficult to say since we don’t see him in the present, so I can only speculate.

However, I would guess that it’s possible for a variety of reasons.

1) Personifications are personality-based. These personalities are based on how strong the culture(s) of a collective organization of people are [x]. Since Italians are so diverse and tend to identify themselves regionally, it’s possible that while Genoa is no longer a city-state, he can still be a personification of Genoan culture.

2) It’s stated that when the culture dies and the personification loses their nationhood, they either die or become a representative of the region. In other words, he could be active in politics. [x]

3) This one is more unclear and open-ended, but it’s still substantiated in canon. We’ve seen personifications that technically should be dead still existing well past their date of dissolution.

Ex: Holy Rome.

If that’s the case, then Genoa could still exist, either because his culture is still there, or for no explicit reason. Nationhood is often very flimsy and loosely defined in the series.

You also have to factor in the existence of the micronations, where even Hima states that the reasons that founded their existence are “amazing” – as in no concrete rules apply to them. It also has to do with the bizarre reasons regarding how they formed in real life. [x]

It’s likewise important to mention that real nations are often just as perplexed by the existence of micronations.

In sum, it’s possible for Genoa to still be alive if you use the canon rules I provided; however, it’s not canon.

Q: Is State-talia real or OC?

State-talia is real. You can find notes on states and provinces if you search the tag in the English translation of Hima’s blog (Bamboo Thicket)

Tag: states and provinces

Ex: China’s provinces are personified.

Ex: Japan’s prefectures [blog only] and feudal clans/territories are personified [make appearances in the manga]

Interestingly, these feudal clans/territories still exist during Japan’s Westernization phase. Again, the rules of nationhood are loose, and personifications don’t always die and fade out right away. 

Sometimes it takes a while before they die, and other times they won’t die at all.

Osaka, a previous feudal domain, later evolved to become a prefecture from the Meiji era – present.

Ex: America’s states are not personified, but Hima does provide a hypothetical description of what they would be like in their relation to America [x]. There’s also a brief dialogue between some states.

Notice how America refers to his country as his house in the case that his states were personified. It’s the same exact situation with North Italy. Point is, there’s a consistent rule here.

Given that Genoa is personified, it would be possible for the city-states in each Italies’ house to be personified as well.

Misconception: The nations are a secret kept from the public.

Canon: The nations are well-known to the public. Their existence isn’t a secret.

Misconception: The nations can speak all languages and inherently understand each other.

Canon: There is a general meta language that they all understand but will still sometimes need translators during first meetings [x].

Thank you to @jammerlea for bringing the former point to my attention [x].

Misconception: “Flying Mint Bunny” and “Gilbird(s).”

Reality: These are fanon names. Both pets haven’t been given an official name.

Misconception: Holy Rome died immediately after his dissolution.

Reality: He didn’t die right away and instead sought refuge in Prussia’s home. To this day, his death has never been seen or confirmed [x].

Even in the deleted strip—not to be taken as canon—where France informs Italy that Holy Rome is “no more” leaves things vague and open-ended.

Before I start, it’s important to go over and situate a few things. The nations’ immortality is more of a curse than it is a blessing. They’ve experienced countless wars, plagues, political strife, and have even died, only to be regenerated.

Now, unlike humans who have been blindsided with the rough backhand of fate, the nations are forced to relive these pains over and over again. It would be enough to drive a normal person mad.

In other words, their immortality was a prison that kept them locked into a systemic cycle of bloodshed. What adds to this prison imagery is that they’re obligated to listen to their bosses and fight in wars that they don’t necessarily want to participate in.

Nowadays, this prison more has to do with loneliness. They still follow their bosses’ orders, but the restrictions on their freedom are not nearly as pervasive.

Ex: England’s sweet and alcohol intake is regulated by his boss.

Regardless, Germania and Ancient Rome best exemplify how their freedom was gained not by their immortality, but rather, the loss of it. They were “liberated” from their bosses and war upon dying.

France is another good example of this. He gives better insight into how heartless history can be in tossing peoples’ lives around. When he first sees Lisa, Jeanne d’Arc’s reincarnate, he believed that God was playing a cruel trick on him. On its own, this already proves how betrayed and hurt France felt after her death.

Nonetheless, France still keeps his faith and believes that humans who have had rough past lives will be reborn into happier ones. He doesn’t have this privilege.

The purpose of this post will be to illustrate how the nations’ immortality has historically caused them to live through many traumatic events. It would follow, then, that being reared in such unhealthy environments would cause some of them to develop PTSD.

In fact, there is a mounting pile of canon evidence that depicts the nations having discomforting flashbacks, severe anxiety, and nightmares. That said, let’s go over some examples.

America: 

When his settlers moved inland, America didn’t have many belongings to his name. England ponders why America produces things in mass and comes to the realization that America’s overconsumption of goods likely stems from this impoverished period of his life.

Note the use of the word traumatized.

Lithuania:

Lithuania has a flashback to when he and the other Baltic States declared their independence from the USSR. He then experiences another flashback, where Russia squeezes his shoulder – it’s used as a metaphor to represent political repression.  

Lithuania is so immersed in this second flashback that he begins squeezing Estonia’s and Latvia’s shoulders without realizing it.

One of his character notes also mentions that he’s been rebilitating after his time spent in the USSR. 

England: 

England doubts his capacity to care for young America. The stress of this new responsibility causes him to have a flashback of his older brothers sending him hexes.

It’s noted that England once suffered from 100 years of heartbreak, presumably a reference to the American Revolution.

This is a theory of mine, as it isn’t confirmed in canon, but given that England coughs up blood and gets ill on the fourth of July, I think that it is meant to symbolize how he still hasn’t recovered emotionally from America’s independence. In other words, each year, England’s heart is both literally and figuratively ripped open on the inside.

Japan: 

While this example is a more subtle depiction of trauma, it’s not surprising.

Although this isn’t covered in the strips, following WW2, Japan would have become America’s underling. As such, the atrocities committed by the atomic bombs would have made him visibly more compliant to America’s demands, regardless if he agreed or not.

This is seen in a world meeting where Japan unanimously agrees with America’s ridiculous global warming plan. Switzerland even calls out Japan for not voicing his true opinion.

Switzerland: 

Switzerland’s mercenary past still haunts him. Lichtenstein perceptively reads into this as she asks him why they’re working to boost her income through tourism.

Italy:

Italy’s perhaps one of the most anxiety-ridden characters in the series.

Ex: He worries that Germany hates him and has nightmares about this. His greatest fear is being left behind to fend for himself.

This insecurity leads him to make Germany reaffirm to him several times that he’s not actually hated.

Ex: Italy has nightmares where a childhood version of himself presses to be acknowledged.

The dream ends with Italy screaming and refusing to acknowledge the child. To me, and as I’ve theorized in the past, I read this as Italy repressing parts of his childhood to minimize and forget about the trauma that he experienced. The child is merely a representation of his unconscious mind.

Germany:

Germany also has a childhood version of himself pressing to be acknowledged. Of course, this is running on the assumption that he’s actually Holy Rome and has forgotten about his childhood.

Similarly, he’s once depicted to be holding Chibitalia, looking visibly confused.

“It’s me.”

Again, how I see this is that perhaps Germany is repressing aspects of his childhood. In that case, Chibitalia is an unconscious representation of these memories attempting to pierce through to his conscious mind.  

All in all, given how long the nations have lived, it’s not novel to assume that they’re still traumatized by things that have happened to them in the past.