Inglese
Settembre 19, 2023Italiano
WHY LEARN ITALIAN?
There are many reasons why Italian is a wonderful language to learn, and below I will give you excellent reasons to convince you to undertake this journey of knowledge.
- If you are a tourist and a beauty lover
Italy is one of the most fascinating and rich in history countries in the world, it is one of the countries with the largest number of UNESCO sites declared world heritage!
Everyone dreams of traveling to cities like Florence, Rome and Venice, and their fame is certainly well deserved. From North to South, from seaside resorts to extraordinary mountain landscapes, you can find incredible wonders just a few kilometers away from each other.
The best way to truly immerse yourself in the atmosphere of these incredible cities and towns is to speak even a minimum of the local language and be able to communicate with the local people. The advice of the locals will help you make your holiday in Italy much more interesting, and will allow you to enrich your itineraries with new points of interest, outside the usual tourist itinerary.
- Ammirare – Assaggiare – Ascoltare (Admire, Taste, Listen): the 3 A's of Italian cultural heritage
Italian is probably the language most connected to the world of art and culture. You can find the Italian influence in painting, architecture, literature, music, design, gastronomy, wine, and so on.
AMMIRARE is connected to all the beauties you can find here in Italy: the historical and artistic cities, from Rome to Florence, without forgetting Milan, Venice, Siena, Naples, etc. Not only the cities are worth of an admired glance, but also the peculiarities of the different landscapes you can find at the seaside, in the mountains and at the lakes.
ASSAGGIARE is related to Italian food, of course. Knowing the language is essential to understand the many aspects of the passionate lifestyle of the Italians. Only by learning the language can you understand the "character" of food: you may even be surprised to discover the true meaning of some terms. Farfalle, for example, is a type of pasta that has the shape of a butterfly, or spaghetti all'arrabbiata (angry spaghetti), characterized by the presence of chili peppers, so called because of the redness that appears on your face because of the spicy taste, that is the same when you get angry.
In the same way, all the names of the classic pizzas and all the words related to the preparation of coffee are expressed in Italian all over the world.
ASCOLTARE refers to the Italian music. Do you know that all the technical terms of classical music (“soprano”, “cello”, “adagio”, “concerto” …) are Italian words?
In all these fields, Italian has been the language with which words have been shaped.
- The beauty of the language
Italian itself is characterized by an innate musicality that makes this language wonderfully pleasant to listen to. All over the world, Italian is recognized as one of the most loved languages.
Many authors have celebrated this language throughout history:
Italian is “the best composed language in terms of fluency and smoothness” —James Howell, historian.
“I'm really in love with this language, the most beautiful in the world. I only need to open my mouth to involuntarily become the source of all the harmony of this heavenly idolatry. Yes, my dear sir, for me there is no doubt that angels speak Italian. It is impossible to imagine that all these blessed creatures use a less musical language.” — “Confessions of the industrial knight Felix Krull”, by Thomas Mann, writer.
“We all want to speak Italian because we love the sensations it makes us feel (...) A Russian lady tells us that she is taking Italian lessons because "I think I deserve something beautiful". (...) No European language has such noble origins (...) No language has ever been more perfectly ordered to express human emotions.” — Taken from “Eat, Pray, Love” by Elizabeth Gilbert, writer, who studied Italian here in Italy.
- A way to get out of your comfort zone
Learning Italian is a powerful way to push yourself outside your comfort zone, learning to communicate with a new group of people, and sharing a new culture together. It will be easy to spot a particular personal interest while learning, whether it is simply watching famous Italian films, reading Italian newspapers, or listening to Italian music.
Once you learn the subjunctive, imperfect and perfect tense, you might even understand a little more about how the language works or even see an improvement in your vocabulary! Italian is the language most closely linked to Latin, a language from which many others have taken their cue for words and expressions. This means that by building up your vocabulary, you may find yourself learning words in your own language as well, or discover an easier language learning process.
- For professional purposes
For some professional sectors in which Italian companies are world leaders, the Italian language takes on a different utility and its study also becomes something useful for professional growth and career development.
For sectors such as fashion, design, haute cuisine, fine arts and culture, food and beverage manufacturing and distribution, football, luxury automotive sector and motoring in general or even for a career in Vatican, or become a foreign language teacher in Italy, Italian is the main language.
Brands and companies such as Fiat, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Armani, Dolce and Gabbana, Versace, often look abroad for employees who can speak Italian.
Finally, the knowledge of the Italian language is not only useful if you want to work for one of these famous branches, but also to get any other job. Nowadays, business takes place on a larger scale globally and internationally, companies from all over the world work together and communicate with each other in so many different languages. As a result, employers are now looking for prospective employees who speak and understand more than one language. Indeed, the best paid and satisfying jobs are occupied by people able to speak Italian and/or other foreign languages.
I PROVERBI ITALIANI – PRIMA PARTE
I proverbi rispecchiano la cultura, il modo di pensare e il modo di vivere del paese in cui nascono. Per questo è molto interessante conoscerli per conoscere meglio il popolo di cui si sta imparando la lingua.
Qui di seguito vi propongo alcuni proverbi italiani che vengono spesso usati in Italia. Seguiranno altri articoli su questo tema.
A buon intenditor poche parole.
Sai benissimo a che cosa voglio alludere; ci siamo già capiti, e perciò devi saperti regolare.
A mali estremi, estremi rimedi.
In certe situazioni di particolare gravità, è indispensabile cercare ogni mezzo, ogni rimedio, ogni soluzione utile a risolverla in positivo. Se il male è estremo, anche il rimedio dev'essere estremo.
Acqua cheta rompe i ponti.
Non sottovalutare le persone tranquille perché possono essere le più determinate nel raggiungimento di un obiettivo, così come una corrente d'acqua calma corrode ugualmente i sostegni di un ponte.
Aiutati che Dio ti aiuta. /Aiutati che il Ciel t'aiuta.
Iniziare ad impegnarsi per risolvere un problema con le proprie forze, è il primo passo per ottenere un ulteriore aiuto da parte di Dio.
Anno nuovo vita nuova.
L'inizio di un nuovo anno porta la voglia e la determinazione per cambiare le cose che non vanno. Spesso il primo gennaio, infatti, si è soliti individuare dei nuovi propositi da provare a rispettare nei mesi successivi.
Bacco, Tabacco e Venere riducono l'uomo in cenere.
I tre vizi principali: il bere, il fumo e il piacere del sesso, portano l'uomo alla rovina, alla distruzione di se stesso ...
Bisogna fare buon viso a cattivo gioco.
Bisogna rassegnarsi ad una situazione sfavorevole mascherando agli altri il proprio disappunto
Buon sangue non mente.
Determinate caratteristiche o modi di fare di una persona sono stati ereditate dai genitori
Cambiano i suonatori, ma la musica è sempre quella.
Si cambiano i protagonisti o i dirigenti, ma la sostanza dei fatti (umani, politici, …) resta sempre la stessa.
Campa cavallo che l'erba cresce.
Si prevede che si dovrà aspettare molto prima che si verifichi un certo evento.
Chi ha i denti non ha il pane e chi ha il pane non ha i denti.
La vita a volte è ingiusta, chi ha delle aspirazioni spesso non dispone dei mezzi per realizzarle, mentre chi ha i mezzi non ha alcuna aspirazione da realizzare.
Chi non ha testa, abbia buone gambe.
Chi non ragiona abbastanza deve compensare diversamente, faticando di più.
Chi troppo vuole nulla stringe.
Chi si pone obiettivi troppo ambizioni per le sue capacità finisce per non ottenere alcun risultato.
L’erba del vicino è sempre più verde.
Le cose degli altri ci sembrano sempre migliori.
Chi va via perde il posto all'osteria.
Se una persona seduta all’osteria, si alza per andare a bere, perde il posto che occupava.
Quindi stiamo attenti a lasciare qualcosa, perché poi quel qualcosa l’avrà preso qualcun altro e non potremo più richiederla indietro.
Cosa fatta capo ha.
Una cosa che è stata fatta ormai non può essere disfatta
Da cosa nasce cosa.
É iniziando a fare qualcosa, anche piccola, che si può arrivare a fare altre cose, anche molto più grandi.
Donna pelosa, donna virtuosa.
Dato che questa donna non cura una bellezza esteriore, per occuparsi soprattutto di quella interiore, sarà più desiderata dagli uomini.
Donne e buoi dei paesi tuoi.
È meglio scegliere il proprio partner e commerciare all'interno del nostro paese, perché si ha un “background” simile.
Donne e motori gioie e dolori.
Le donne e i veicoli a motore sono in grado di regalare grandi soddisfazioni e sono fonte di eccitazione e felicità, ma possono anche rappresentare delle insidie e provocare grattacapi e veri e propri problemi.
ITALIAN PROVERBS – FIRST PART
Proverbs reflect the culture, the way of thinking and the way of life of the country where they are born. This is why it is very interesting to get to know them to better understand the people whose language you are learning.
Below you can find some Italian proverbs that are often used in Italy. More articles on this topic will follow.
Few words to the wise.
You know very well what I mean, and therefore you must know how to behave.
Desperate times call for desperate measures.
In certain particularly serious situations, it is essential to use every means, every remedy, every useful solution to resolve it positively.
If the evil is extreme, the remedy must also be extreme.
Still water breaks bridges.
Don't underestimate calm people because they can be the most determined in achieving a goal, just as a current of calm water equally corrodes the supports of a bridge.
Help yourself that God helps you. /Help yourself that Heaven helps you.
Starting to work to solve a problem on your own is the first step to getting more help from God.
New year new life.
The beginning of a new year brings the desire and determination to change the things that are wrong. Often on January 1, in fact, we usually impose to ourselves new resolutions to respect in the following months, to change our lives.
Bacchus, Tobacco, and Venus reduce man to ashes.
The three main vices: drinking, smoking and the pleasure of sex lead man to ruin, to the destruction of himself ...
You have to make the best of a bad situation.
You have to resign yourself to an unfavourable situation by masking your disappointment from others.
Good blood doesn't lie.
Certain characteristics or mannerisms of a person have been inherited from their parents.
The players change, but the music is always the same.
The protagonists or managers change, but the substance of the facts (human, political, ...) always remains the same.
Live horse until the grass has grown!
It is expected that you will have to wait a long time before a certain event occurs.
Whoever has teeth doesn't have bread and whoever has bread doesn't have teeth.
Life is sometimes unfair, those who have aspirations often don't have the means to achieve them, while those who have the means have no aspirations to achieve.
Who has no head, has good legs.
Those who do not think enough must compensate otherwise, by working harder.
Who wants too much nothing gets.
Those who set goals that are too ambitious for their abilities end up not achieving any results.
The grass is always greener on the other side.
Other people's things always seem better to us.
Those who leave, lose their place at the tavern.
If a person sitting in the tavern gets up to go to drink, he loses the seat he occupied.
So, let's be careful about leaving something, because that “something” may have been taken by someone else who will never give it back to you.
What is done is done.
A thing that has been done can no longer be undone.
From one thing another thing can arise.
It's by starting to do something, even a small one, that you can get to do other things, even much bigger ones.
Hairy woman, virtuous woman.
Since this woman does not care about an external beauty, to take care of the spiritual one, she will be more desired by men.
Women and oxen from your countries.
It is best to choose your partner in your country, and your trade among people who are from your place, because you have a similar background.
Women and cars joys and sorrows.
Women and motor vehicles can give great satisfaction and are a source of excitement and happiness, but they can also be pitfalls and cause real headaches and problems.