Why are the Italian proverbs of Naples so famous and widespread? Beautiful Naples has a history, a culture, a sense of irony and a tradition unique in the world and proverbs are the tool that keeps them alive and that has made them, over time, popular even outside the city.
Let’s give it a try, how many of you can pronounce and translate A dark heart, little head pepper? The solution is in the article.
The Neapolitan sayings and proverbs represent the popular wisdom expressed in a language with the taste of the past, at times almost incomprehensible, and are an excellent tool to learn more about the history and culture of the city of Naples and Campania in general.
Some have been made famous by cinema – just think of the screenplays of the unforgettable films Totò (Link:https://italian-traditions.com/it/toto-il-principe-delle-risate/) – others have been the protagonists of neomelodic songs.
In general, all the Italian proverbs of Naples have been handed down from generation to generation: let’s discover the meaning of some of the best known!
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The most famous Italian proverbs of Naples
The Neapolitan dialect, like many other regional dialects, is far from easy to understand for those who are not native to Campania.
It is likely, therefore, that you have already heard some of these Neapolitan proverbs without grasping their real meaning. Let’s find out together.
Aniello ‘ca nun se pava nun se stima
In this way of saying, the ring represents a value, a precious good that you receive as a gift, without making any effort.
What this saying wants to communicate is that when you receive something without any effort, you don’t have the ability to appreciate it. When, however, you reach a goal with difficulty, you appreciate more.
The friend is comme’ o ‘mbrello: quanno chiove nun o truove maje
Comparing the friend to the umbrella means that you can never find him when you need him: like when it starts to rain while we’re out of the house and we don’t have the umbrella with us.
So, he points out that finding a friend is as difficult as having an umbrella when it rains.
Every scarrapher is nice ‘to mama soja
This, perhaps, is one of the easiest to understand even for those who are not of Neapolitan origin and argues that anyone, even the least attractive person, is beautiful in the eyes of his mother.
The proverb was made famous by a song by the great singer-songwriter and composer Pino Daniele, entitled ‘O scarrafone. Song that had a great success and not only in Italy.
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A better word is chela ca not if it says
Silence is sometimes better than many words: this is what this Neapolitan proverb tells us because the best word is the one that is not said.
It is a proverb used especially with young people, to appease impulsiveness and invite them to reason before speaking.
‘To lira do ‘o rich, to crianza fa ‘o signore
“Money makes the rich, education makes the lord” that is: it is not enough to possess wealth to be a lord, on the contrary. The two are often unrelated.
Jacket put ‘to law and Giacchino Fuje ‘mpiso
Comparable to the saying that says: “Who is the cause of his ill cry himself”. The Joachim quoted by the proverb is Joachim Murat, killed in Pizzo Calabro for the implementation of a law that he himself had proposed.
Time and storm every time
“In stormy weather every hole is a port”, it means that when there are many difficulties, every slightest hold represents an anchor to cling to for your salvation.
Damn it, or suricillo and pezza ‘nfosa!
“Damn the mouse and the wet rag!”. What does that mean?
This is a saying more than a proverb, almost a curse: we could define it as a more creative version of the most common Mannaggia to poverty!
Who can’t listen to mom and pate goes to bed
“Who does not listen to his mother and father goes to die where he does not know”. An Italian proverb that emphasizes the importance of listening to their parents and following their advice to avoid trouble.
Crooked goes, laughs veins
This is one of the most optimistic sayings of Naples: something that started badly can end surprisingly well.
Dark heart, little head pepper
What is the heart? In Italian, it indicates the wrapper used by hawkers of fish.
The proverb means that those who are already full cannot fill up more. (In some ways similar to the Roman Hen nun becca has already caught!)
Among all those seen so far, this is undoubtedly the most difficult to pronounce and very reminiscent of a tongue twister.
It was Totò who used this way of saying in the movie “Who stops is lost”, simulating in a funny way the difficulty in pronunciation.
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When he loses his wisdom and his memory
“When the louse rises in glory, it loses reason and memory”. The proverb describes the situation in which a person easily becomes rich and forgets what his life was like before, flaunting his well-being in an annoying way.
‘O scarparo door’ and worse shoes
Known as Neapolitan but used in different regions of Italy: the scarparo indicates the shoemaker of the past, the one who made shoes by hand and who, often, had neither time nor money to treat his.
You guys are hanging…
Copertina: stylo24
