Page 597 - The Rough Guide of Sicily

ITALIAN

The ability to speak English confers enormous prestige in Sicily, and plenty of
locals – particularly returned emigrati – are willing to show off their knowledge.
Few outside the tourist resorts, however, actually know more than a few simple

words and phrases, more often than not culled from pop songs or films. To get the
most from your visit, therefore, you’d do well to master at least a little Italian.

THE SICILIAN LANGUAGE

For political reasons, all regional languages in Italy are considered dialects of
Italian. In reality, however, each has its own history and influences, and the majority
of them are, linguistically speaking, separate languages. During the 600-year-long
Roman occupation of Sicily, Vulgar Latin became the lingua franca for the entire
island, though it was highly influenced by close contacts with Arabic, Norman and

Spanish languages. The grammar, lexicon and phonology of Sicilian thus differs
immensely from modern standard Italian – so much so that during the American
Mafia trials of the 1980s, the FBI had to enlist special agents fluent in Sicilian to
translate the conversations of mafiosi based in New York. The Sicilian language
even has its own regional dialects (parrati), though in general these are understood

by all Sicilians.

Today nearly all Sicilians speak and understand standard Italian, though, unlike
numerous other dialects spoken throughout Europe, the language is in no danger of
extinction: in most towns, the younger generation prefers Sicilian to Italian, and
almost everyone speaks Sicilian at home. While Sicilians are well known for using
their hands and arms as much as their vocal cords to communicate, their language is
rich in idioms and sayings. Here are some favourite

SICILIAN PROVERBS
Si vo’ passari la vita cuntenti, statti luntanu di li parenti.

If you want a quiet life, stay away from relatives.
Sciarri di maritu e mugghieri duranu finu a lu lettu.
Quarrels between wives and husbands always end in the bed.

Cu’arrobba pri manciari nun fa piccatu.
He who steals to eat is no sinner.
Cu’asini caccia e fimmini cridi, faccia di paradisu nun ni vidi.

He who seeks girls and asses will never reach heaven.
Camina chi pantofuli finnu a quannu non hai i scarpi.
Walk with your slippers until you find your shoes (ie make the best of a bad situation).