GIOJA, MELCIIIORRE, a famous Italian statistician, was b. at Piacenza, Sept. 20, 1767. He was educated for the priesthood, and for sometime discharged the duties of tutor in a noble family, but through the liberality of his brother, was enabled to resign this post, and to follow his own bent, which was towards social and economic science. When the invading forces of France descended into Italy, Gioja had already attracted much notice by his political writings; and in 1797, he quitted Piacenza for Milan, and was there appointed state historiographer, a post he was deprived of in 1803, iu consequence f his work on divorce giving great dissatisfaction. In 1806, he was appointed director of the statistical department, and in 1809, the minister Vaccari intrusted to him the preparation of a grand statistical report of all Italy. This great labor was still in progress when a change of government interrupted it. Gioja died at Milan, Jan. 2, 1829.
His laborious habits and immense knowledge of the subjects he wrote upon, enabled him to accomplish an incredible amount of labor, but he is justly blamed for the bitter strain of personal invective with which he resented the least unfavorable criticism of his works. Some of his chief works are: Sul Commereio de' Cemmestibili e taro prezzo del vitto (Milan, 1802, 2 vols. in 12mo); Tepria civile e penale del divorzio ossia necessitd, cause nuova maniera di organizzarla (Milan, 1803, in 8vo); Nuova, prospetto Belle scienze economiche, ossia somma totale deice idea teoriche e pratiche in ogni ramo d'ammintstrazione privata e pubblica (Milan, 6 vols. in 4to); Filosofza della Statistica (Milan, 1826, 2 void. in 4to); Dell' ingiuria, Bet danni, del soddisfaci mento e relative basi di stima (Milan, 1802, 2 vols. in 8vo).