Monthly Archives: August 2003

Italians Fight Flood of English Words

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Students of Italian may have an easier time using Italian newspapers to improve their understanding of the language thanks to the latest flood of neologisms from English. Italian journalists have coined 5,000 new words over the last five years, many of them come from English, according to a new book from the National Research Center (CNR).

Should an Italian casually offer, “Andiamo a drinkare una cosa al bar?” Chances are an English speaker with a minimal grasp of Italian will understand that a few cocktails are in the offing. And a pompous acquaintance going on about “glocalismo” or how he just bought shares in a “public utility” will be relatively easy to follow, as perhaps a friend who mentions a favorite “quizzone” or game show.

There is, however, a flip side to this trend — some of the new terms not based on English are incomprehensible to those outside Italy. A few examples? Describing that new coworker as a “cococo” isn’t a put-down, but just shorthand for the much-debated continuous collaboration contract. And what about celebrity labeled” attapirato?” Nothing tragic — they’ve been given the golden tapir award for some kind of dubious behavior from the country’s most-watched satirical show “Strip the News” (Striscia la notizia).

Not all Italians are enthusiastic about this hybrid language. Protests over the mix of Ital-English don’t come from the Accademia della Crusca, Europe’s oldest linguistic watchdog which has been notably silent about the growing number of foreign words in everyday Italian, but a group of Italian politicians and, yes, notable journalists who don’t like the way things are going. In a petition sent to Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi and President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi, signers take umbrage with the transformation of the labor ministry (“ministero del lavoro”) now known as “ministero del Welfare” and the names of state TV Rai’s channels (Rai Educational, Rai News, etc.)

This is the first sign of resistance in an Anglophile country just getting around to protecting its national identity. According to statistics, Italian is one of the most studied languages on the planet, but for the first time this spring Italians inaugurated a national exhibit on their native tongue.
The exhibit at the Uffizi Gallery’s Reali Poste in Florence — which explores the roots of modern Italian as well as its intersections with foreign languages — is precisely the kind of horn-tooting celebration Italians strenuously avoid. It took 10 years to find enough interest and funds to put it together and may form the cornerstone of the first museum on the history of the Italian language. Slated to close in the end of September, the unexpected success of the exhibit prompted organizers to hold it over until Dec. 31 2003. Tutto OK, then. ?1999-2004 zoomata.com

Italians Protest ‘Beastly’ Traditions

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by Nicole Martinelli
posted Tue 25 Aug 9:07 am

The death of two horses in Siena’s famous Palio race has reopened debate about Italy’s celebrations involving animals. While the bareback race in Tuscany, dating back nearly 350 years, is arguably the best-known tradition centering around animals it is by no means the only one celebrated each year by Italians.

The palio incident is the latest clash between Italian traditions and modern sensibilities. Towns throughout the Bel Paese use animals for an estimated 1,000 traditional rites yearly — including donkeys, oxen, turkeys, doves, snakes, pigs, geese, cows, frogs — and animal rights’ groups are trying to put a stop to it.

Florence, for example, has already responded to pressure by replacing live animals in both the Cricket Festival and the Scoppio del Carro, where a dove used to be sent speeding into the cathedral tied to a lit rocket. A similar ritual takes place every year in the Umbrian town of Orvieto, where protests have become an integral part of the Palombella Festival for Pentecost.

"It’s not a celebration any more but a battlefield," said journalist Daniele Di Loreto. "I have the suspicion that more people show up for the fighting than the Palombella — like car races, it’s much more exciting if there’s an accident."

The bone of contention: a live dove, symbolizing the holy spirit, is tied to the center of a wheel of fireworks and placed on a steel cable. The short, albeit not very peaceful trip for the dove involves gliding down 300 meters with fireworks exploding all around. End of the line is the sacristy of the 13th-century cathedral — if fallout from the fireworks lights flames on the heads of the Virgin and Apostles it’s a good omen for the coming year. The dove, shaken but usually still alive and unharmed, is then removed from the contraption.

Local bishop Lucio Decio Grandoni, main opponent of the animal rights groups, maintains the dove doesn’t suffer. Following tradition, after the wild ride, the bird is given to a bride and groom to keep — and at least doesn’t risk ending up dinner. As a concession, the dove won’t be tied to the wheel anymore but placed in a glass box. For now, it looks like the Palombella Festival will continue as usual: the local court archived a formal complaint by protesters after last year’s celebrations.

For Italy’s Antivivisection League, these traditions may date back centuries but their treatment of animals has no place in modern society.

"These are sacred-profane rituals, usually in honor of some local saint or Madonna, linked to primitive fears of famine, epidemics," said Mauro Bottigelli of LAV. "But no holy spirit or expression of sincere devotion gives people the right to crucify a dove in Orvieto or sacrifice an ox in Roccavaldina or slit the throat of goats in San Luca."

For religious rites, groups advocate substituting the animal with a stand-in papier-mâché version. Animal rights groups lobby hard to ban altogether various races and contests involving animals. Given the number of these horse-and-pony shows, it may take some time — protests didn’t stop the recent turkey race in the province of Palermo but the geese contest in Como, part of medieval celebrations featuring jousting contests and boat races, won’t take place this year in September. ?1999-2004 zoomata.com

Zoomata is the brainchild of a bilingualjournalist based in Italy who thinks out of the box. This brain is for hire.

Related resources:
Celebrating Italy — Food & Traditions
Recipes and folklore from the Bel Paese

Italy’s Snake Procession
www.zoomata.com

Italians Battle over ”Dead” Holidays
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Italian Director’s ”Shindler’s List” Heroics Come to the Screen

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Italian film director Vittorio De Sica, best known for “The Bicycle Thief,” hid 300 Jews and refugees on the set of a film to keep them from deportation. Now the dramatic story of what went on behind the scenes will be made into a film starring De Sica’s son.

Some 60 years ago, in the summer of 1943, the director accepted an offer from the Vatican to shoot a film called “The Gate of Heaven” (La porta del cielo).

“The Gate of Heaven” was the story of a group of sick people on a pilgrimage to the Loreto Sanctuary in the province of Ancona, hoping for a miracle. The real miracle took place for a few hundred people, Italian Jews and other ‘irregulars,’ seeking refuge from the fascist regime — De Sica hired them as fake extras, hid them and did all he could to stall filming.

About 60 of the refugees were carted off by furious lieutenant Pietro Koch one night from their hiding place in the church of San Paolo, but the majority were ensconced on the set until the end of the German occupation of Rome thanks to a secret agreement with a young Vatican official.

Christian De Sica, 52, a star better known for slapstick comedies than serious drama, will play his father in the film-about-the-film slated to be made next year. His father decided to shoot “The Gate of Heaven” to avoid becoming part of the fascist filmworks being set up by Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels in Venice — even though he knew it wouldn’t be a winner at the box office.

“Unfortunately the film, of which there’s only one poor remaining copy, was released almost clandestinely,” said Christian De Sica. “It wasn’t a success and was heavily criticized. Dad used to say it would’ve taken an act of God to make it a success.” The story of the making of the film, produced by Miramax, will likely have a better draw.?1999-2004 zoomata.com

Zoomata is the brainchild of a bilingualjournalist based in Italy who thinks out of the box. This brain is for hire.

Related resources:
Vintage ‘Nazi-Porn’ Flicks Hit Newsstands
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Mafia Boss Gets Life Sentence, Thanks to Movie
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Lost Ending to Federico Fellini Film Found
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‘Under Tuscan Sun’ Gets Bizarre Hollywood Treatment
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Dan Gedacht (Arona)

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Each month we introduce you to someone who has made the dream of picking up and moving to the Bel Paese a reality. In their own words they share the good parts, the bad parts and the just plain absurd moments of day-to-day life in Italy.
Looking to move to Italy?Try the reader-recommended Survivor Package
If you live in Italy, we would love to hear your story–Contact form

ID Card:
My name is Dan Gedacht. I am a teacher and writer, and I have lived in Italy for 5 months (Dec. 2001 ndr) and counting. I am 31 years old, American, and married for 3 1/2 years with a dog. You can check out my (noncommercial) website at www.gedacht.com or email me at dang1313@yahoo.com. Please do so if you are looking for writers, either creative or technical!

Currently living in:
I currently live in Arona, Province di Novara, Piedmont, on Lake Maggiore.

By way of:
Before Italy, I lived in Washington, DC (almost 4 years). Before that Jerusalem, Israel (where my wife is from) for 6 months, and before that Seoul, Korea for 4 years. I met my wife and our dog there.

How (or why) did you get here from there?
After enjoying the dot-com ride in the US for a few years, I realized my heart really wasn’t in it and I wanted to pursue my longtime dream of writing. My wife was studying industrial design in Washington but wasn’t happy. She wanted to study in Italy, so I left my job and we came here. I have had one short book published and am writing more. She starts at Politecnico di Milano this autumn.

What role did language skills play in your experience?
I don’t really speak Italian well (I’ve never studied it), and that often makes life here difficult, especially when dealing with Italian bureaucrats. That would be what, daily? I speak fluent Korean, but even before learning that language I found Koreans more open to trying to speak English or at least understand your less-than-perfect speech. I can get by here, but many Italians have no patience for only semi-good Italian and seem to have a chip on their shoulders. It often feels like “If you don’t speak perfect Italian, get out!”

Your biggest challenge:
I am not sure if it is my biggest challenge, but a big one is finding movies in their original language. I don’t live in a big city so they don’t play in the cinema here. I just don’t like dubbed movies. I don’t want to see a Benigni film in English any more than I want to see E.T. in Italian.

Compare an aspect of your home town (or other place you’ve lived) to current town.
I have never lived in such a small (15,000 people) town as Arona. At first I had cabin fever, but have grown to appreciate living on a lake at the foot of the Alps. I like being able to walk everywhere. By contrast, Seoul had 12 million people and pollution so thick you could chew it. However, I don’t love it that everything in Italy closes at 8 or 9 o’clock (except discos, which I never go to). Also, the cost of housing is so cheap here! You can get a one bedroom for Euro 400 here, less than half of the price in Washington or Seoul.

Latest pursuits:
My latest pursuits are submitting my stories for publication. Other than that it is wrestling with the authorities. Italian bureaucracy is like an onion. Finally work your way through one layer, and there is another. A specific office can certify an official photocopy, but another place must certify that a translation is official. I think there may be another office to certify that the certifications are official. What a pain.

A preconceived notion about Italians/Italy that is true:
I had always heard the horrors of Italian bureaucracy, and in general they have been true. See above. (This is especially true of notaios, aka the
children of heaven).

Your response to the following question: “I really want to live here, but I don’t speak Italian or have a job. What do you think?”
Come on over, you’ll find something! Just be patient and open-minded.

How would you sum up your Italian experience in a word (and why)?
Confusing. Every time I was told I couldn’t do something, it has seemed to work out. On the other hand, often when I was told “no problem,” there has inevitably been a problem.

Italy’s best kept secret
hmmm. Not sure if this is a secret, but I have found out that in general if you don’t make waves your official needs will eventually get through. Even if they don’t follow the letter of the law, keeping your mouth shut goes a long way.