Genoese dialect

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Wikipedia

Genoese
zeneize (Ligurian)
Literatures in the Genoese Dialect.
Pronunciation[zeˈnejze]
Native toItaly
RegionLiguria
Early forms
Language codes
ISO 639-3–
Glottologgeno1240
Linguasphere... -ojb 51-AAA-ohd ... -ojb
IETFlij-u-sd-itge
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Genoese, locally called zeneise or zeneize (Ligurian: [zeˈnejze]), is the prestige dialect of Ligurian, spoken in and around the Italian city of Genoa, the capital of Liguria.

A majority of remaining speakers of Genoese are elderly. Several associations are dedicated to keeping the dialect alive, examples of which are A Compagna in Genoa and O Castello in Chiavari.[1][2] Along with 55 more associations they are part of the Consulta Ligure[3], the main association for Genoese language, culture, art, and traditions.

Written literature has been produced in Genoese since the 13th century, and the orthography has evolved in-step with the language. There are currently two spelling systems in common use, with varying degrees of standardisation. One, proposed in 2008 by the cultural association A Compagna, attempts to closely match in writing the pronunciation of the now-extinct variant of Genoese which used to be spoken in the Portoria neighbourhood of Genoa.[4] Another spelling system was proposed by a group of writers, journalists and academics by standardising the traditional orthography of 19th- and 20th-century Genoese newspapers.[5] This is the spelling used, amongst others, by the academic world[6][7] as well as by Il Secolo XIX, the largest print newspaper in the region.[8]

Genoese has had an influence on the Llanito vernacular of Gibraltar.

Phonology

Genoese phonology includes a number of similarities with French, one being the heavily nasalized vowels before nasal consonants (in VN(C) sequences), also occurring when Genoese speakers speak standard Italian. There used to be an alveolar approximant (English-like) /ɹ/ opposed to an alveolar trill /r/ (using the 18th century spelling: caro [ˈkaːɹu] "dear" vs. carro [ˈkaːru] "cart"), but it is no longer heard in the city. It may still survive in some rural areas of Liguria, such as Calizzano and Sassello.[9] By far the most widespread type of /r/ today is the alveolar tap [ɾ] (very similar, or identical, to unstressed Standard Italian /r/). There are several distinctive local accents of Genoese: those of Nervi, Quinto and Quarto to the east of Genoa, Voltri, Pra', Pegli and Sestri to the west. There are also accents of the central Polcevera Valley and Bisagno.

Genoese has eight vowels, twenty consonants, and three semivowels.

Vowels
A man speaking Genoese (Zeneize), recorded in Italy

Orthography

  • ^ is a circumflex accent placed above a vowel and doubles its length.
  • ao is read as the Italian “au” or the genovese “ou” or a long Italian “o”.
  • è is read as a brief open e. The symbol æ, made up of vowels a ed e, is read as an open long "e"; in groups ænn-a and æn it is read as an open short “e”.
  • e and é are read as a closed short “e”; ê is read as a long closed “e”.
  • eu is read as if it were read in French: in eu and éu the sound is short in êu the sound is long.
  • j is used infrequently and indicates that i should be heard in words such as: gjêmo (giriamo), mangjâ (mangerà), cacjæ (getterei), lascjâ (lascerà), socjêtæ (società).
  • o, ó and ô are read as an Italian u like in the word muso; the length of ô is double the length of o and ó.
  • ò and ö are read as o in Italian like in the word cosa; the length of ö is double ò.
  • u is read as a French u with the exception in groups qu, òu and ou where the u is read as the u in the Italian word guida.
  • ç always has a voiceless sound ([s]) like s in the Italian word sacco.
  • Word-final n and groups nn- , n- (written with a hyphen) indicate a velar n ([ŋ], such as the n in the Italian word vengo) and are therefore pronounced nasally. The same goes for when n precedes a consonant (including b and p).
  • s followed by a vowel, s followed by a voiceless consonant, and s between vowels is always a voiceless [s], sound like the s in the Italian word sacco. s followed by a voiced consonant becomes voiced [z], as in Italian.
  • scc is pronounced [ʃtʃ], like sc of the Italian word scena followed sonorously by c of the Italian word cilindro.
  • x is read [ʒ] like the French j (e.g. jambon, jeton, joli).
  • z, even when it is doubled as zz, is always pronounced [z] as the s in the Italian word rosa.[10]

Grammar

Article

PronounDefiniteIndefinite
singularmasculineo/l’un [iŋ]
femininea/l’unna [ˈinˑa]
pluralmasculinei-
femininee-

Although the spelling is the same for the article un, the numeral adjective and the pronoun, the pronunciation differs: the article is pronounced [iŋ], while the numeral pronoun and adjective are pronounced [ˈyŋ]. Meanwhile, the feminine indefinite article is unna [(ˈ)inˑa] and the pronoun and numeral adjective uña [ˈyŋˑa].

Orthographic rules

ArticleBefore consonantBefore vowel
definitemasculineo nemigo, o panl’amigo, l’ase
femininea figgetta, a persoñal’amiga, l’ægua
indefinitemasculineun giorno, un fræun euvo, un anno
feminineunna poexia, unna lettiaunn’atra, unn’oa
pluralmasculinei cavaggëi, i amixi
femininee settemañe, e amighe

Partitive

The plural of the articles un, unna, does not exist. Instead, the partitive is used, consisting of the articulated forms of the preposition de, or the adjective doî/doe (alcuni/alcune) “some”:

GenoeseItalian
MasculineFeminineMasculineFeminine
di òmmide euvedei uominidelle uova
doî òmmidoe euvealcuni uominialcune uova

Example:

  • accattâ di pesci = comprare dei pesci
  • se n’é sentio de belle = se ne sono sentite delle belle
  • inte di paixi gh’é ancon a monarchia = in certi paesi c’è ancora la monarchia
  • son anæto a-o mercou pe accattâ doe cöse = sono andato al mercato a comprare alcune cose

Preposition

Combination with articles

Prepositionoal'ie
dedo[du]da[da]de l’[de l]di[di]de[de]
àa-o[aw] ~ [ɔw]a-a[aː]à l’[a l]a-i[aj]a-e[ae] ~ [ɛː] ~ [aj]
dada-o[dɔw]da-a[daː]da l’[da l]da-i[daj]da-e[dae]
pepe-o[pɔw]pe-a[pjaː]pe l’[pe l]pe-i[pej]pe-e[peː]
conco-o[kuː]co-a[kwaː]con l’[kuŋ l]co-i[kwiː]co-e[kweː]
ininto[ˈiŋtu]inta[ˈiŋta]inte l’[ˈiŋte l]inti[ˈiŋti]inte[ˈiŋte]
tratra o[tra u]tra a[tra a]tra l’[tra l]tra i[tra i]tra e[tra e]
in scein sciô[iŋ ʃuː]in sciâ[iŋ ʃaː]in sce l’[iŋ ʃe l]in scî[iŋ ʃiː]in scê[iŋ ʃeː]

The preposition in becomes inte before definite articles, partitive de, demonstrative adjectives, cardinal numerals, indefinites, and interrogatives. For example:

  • semmo anæte into bòsco. = siamo andate nel bosco.
  • son cheito inte l’ægua. = sono caduto nell’acqua.
  • inte di paixi gh’é ancon a monarchia. = in certi paesi c’è ancora la monarchia.
  • inte sti caxi, l’é megio no fâ ninte. = in questi casi, è meglio non fare nulla.
  • ghe ô conto inte doe poule. = glielo racconto in due parole.
  • no stâ à parlâ inte nisciun caxo. = no parlare in nessun caso.
  • inte che borsa ti l’æ misso? = in che borsa l’hai messo?

Preposition Usage

A. Motion from a place

ConditionPrepositionExampleTranslation
regular(de) dason vegnui (de) da Zenasono venuti da Genova
from inside to outside(de) d’insciortimmo (de) d’in casausciamo di casa
from top to bottom(de) d’in sceson cheita (de) d’in sciô teitosono caduta dal tetto
locative adverbs(de) deanemmosene (de) de chìandiamocene da qui

B. Motion through/ by a place

ConditionPrepositionExampleTranslation
regularda (pe)passemmo da (pe) Spezzapassiamo da La Spezia
(de) pepassemmo (de) pe Spezza
high up places(de) d’in scepassemmo (de) d’in sciô passo da Bocchettapassiamo dal passo della Bocchetta
through bounded spaces(de) d’insemmo passæ (de) d’inta cantiñasiamo passati dalla cantina

C. State in place

ConditionPrepositionExampleTranslation
regularinson arrestou in scagnosono restato in ufficio
inteson arrestou into scuosono restato al buio
cities and place namesàstaggo à Sañasto a Savona
staggo à l’Æguasantasto all’Acquasanta
instaggo in Arbâsto a Albaro
on surfacesin sceëse in sciô ballouessere sul ballatoio
ëse in sciâ töaessere sul tavolo
above somethingde d’ato àti â veddi a casa in çimma a-o monte?la vedi la casa sul monte?
in çimma àmetto l’aradio de d’ato a-a töametto la radio sul tavolo

For the complement of state in place with the names of cities, towns and localities, à is generally used, but there are some specific toponyms that require in, in an unpredictable way.

D. Motion towards place

ConditionPrepositionExampleTranslation
regularàanâ à scheuaandare a scuola
anâ à l’estranxeoandare all’estero
cities and place namesàanâ à Votriandare a Voltri
inanâ in San Pê d’Æñaandare a Sampierdarena
persondavaggo da-a Texovado da Teresa
vaggo da mæ moævado da mia madre
regions, areas, streets, etc.inanemmo in montagnaandiamo in montagna
anemmo in ciazzaandiamo alla spiaggia
anemmo in Spagnaandiamo in Spagna
anemmo in ciassâ Kennedyandiamo a piazzale Kennedy

As with the complement of state in place, for the complement of motion in place with names of cities, towns and localities mainly à is used, but there are some specific toponyms that require in, in an unpredictable way.

E. Action through/ between something

ConditionPrepositionExampleTranslation
regulartramezo ào vento o sciuscia tramezo a-e canne do canniouil vento soffia tra le canne del canneto
tramezo a-e quattro miage de unna stançiatra le quattro mura d’una stanza
tra / fraa stava in sciâ carrega, co-a testa tra e moenstava sulla sedia, con la testa tra le mani
for a distancede chì àde chì à 500 metri, gia in sciâ manciñatra 500 metri, svolta a sinistra
intermittence between a recurring seriesdada unna poula à l’atra a meistra a stranuava pe caxon de l’allergiatra una parola e l’altra la maestra starnutiva per via dell’allergia

F. Matter of time

ConditionPrepositionExampleTranslation
at a timeàdozze franchi a-o meisedodici franchi al mese
a-e 5 da mattinalle 5 del mattino
for some timepeò dormio pe doî giorniho dormito per due giorni
i mæ figgi vëgnan pe Dënâi miei figli verranno per Natale
from a timedao ve conosce da ch’o l’ea figgeuvi conosce da quando era bambino
month and season of a yearina l’é nasciua into zenâ do 2000?è nata nel gennaio del 2000
month and season with uncertain yearded’ötunno cazze e feuggein autunno cadono le foglie
yearo libbro o l’é stæto pubricou do 1971il libro è stato pubblicato nel 1971

G. Object Relation

ConditionPrepositionExampleTranslation
indirect objectàò domandou à mæ poæho chiesto a mio padre
purposeàcöse t’ê bon à fâ?cosa sei capace a fare?
recipient/ beneficiaryàbeseugna pensâ a-a salutebisogna pensare alla salute
peunna lettia pe mi e l’amô pe-a muxicauna lettera per me e l’amore per la musica
object of a searchà peson anæta à pe fonzi con mæ barba e i seu amixisono andata per funghi con mio zio e i suoi amici
accompanying object, quality, method, or mannerconmettise à töa con de amighemettersi a tavola con delle amiche
a dònna co-o cappello neigrola donna dal cappello nero
basta co-a raggia! o se â mangia co-i euggibasta con la rabbia! se la mangia con gli occhi
connection or comparisontra / frano savieiva cöse çerne tra Zena e Sañanon saprei cosa scegliere tra Genova e Savona
familiarity or intimacyde tra / de fraa l’à mogognou quarcösa tra de lêha borbottato qualcosa tra sé e sé

Pronoun

Personal Pronoun

NumberNominativeVerbal PronounAccusativeDativeReflexivePossessive
singular1mi-memæ
2tititeteu / tò
3lêo (l’) / a (l’)ô / â / l’gheseseu / sò
plural1n(o)iatri-nenòstro, nòstra, nòstri, nòstre
2v(o)iatri-vevòstro, vòstra, vòstri, vòstre
3l(o)iatri / lôi (l’) *î / êgheseseu / sò

General rules:

  • Genoese dialect, similar to Italian is a pro-drop language.
  • Genoese dialect has no tonic forms (forma tonica), therefore the nominative is used instead.
  • The gender of 3rd person singular pronouns are solely distinguished by the verbal pronoun (o/a).
  • If the verb succeeding the 3SG verbal pronoun (o/a) starts with a vowel, an extra l’ is added.
  • The verbal pronoun ti and all accusative-dative pronouns with the exception of ô/â/î/ê can elide before words starting with a vowel.

Rules regarding 3rd person accusative pronouns:

For the singular, l’ is used before a verb starting with a vowel:

  • ghe ô pòrto mi = glielo porto io.
  • ghe l’accatto mi = glielo compro io.

If placed after an imperative, gerund, or infinitive verb, the form -lo, -la, -li, -le are used.

  • cantilo torna, pe piaxei! = cantalo di nuovo, per favore!
  • ti veu accattâtela tutta? = vuoi comprartela tutta?

In some varieties spoken along the Riviera and the Hinterland, the invariable 3PL clitic pronoun i can be found:

  • i mæ amixi i l’en za anæti. = i miei amici sono già andati.

Comparison with Italian

ItalianGenoeseExplanation
PronounExamplePronounExample
cici ha parlato dei suoi problemineo n’à parlou di seu problemiIndirect object
non ci si capisce nullagheno se gh’accapisce ninteDemonstrative
abbiamo sbagliato a non andarci!emmo fæto mâ à no anâghe!Locative adverb
arrivederciseà reveddiseReciprocal
ci siamo comprati una televisione nuovase semmo accattæ unna neuva televixonEnclitic
ci vediamo stasera?se veddemmo staseia?Pleonastic

Formal Pronoun

Formal pronouns are used to replace 2nd person pronoun to indicate politeness or courtesy. In Genoese there are two forms of polite address, voscià and voî. Both can be used regardless of gender.

Of the two, voscià expresses greater deference and is traditionally used towards people of high social standing. The form voscià is therefore used between people of the same social status, or by people of a lower social status towards people of higher status.

Voî is used between people of medium-low social standing, or by a person of higher social standing towards someone of lower social standing. The form voî, once typical of rural areas, can be seen today as distant or even offensive. It can also be used to deliberately mark a hierarchical distance, revealing a belief of superiority towards the target, denying the use of the more respectful voscià.

  • ou, voî, no poei miga intrâ into tiatro vestio à sta mainea! = ehi, lei, non può mica entrare a teatro vestito in questo modo!
  • a prescidente a m’à dito ch’a ghe saià… e voscià? = la presidente mi ha detto che ci sarà… e Lei?
  • scià l’intre voscià pe-o primmo, sciô Reboa! = entri prima Lei, signor Rebora!
  • voscià sci che scià l’é un amigo! = lei sì che è un amico!

Demonstrative Pronoun and Adjective

PronounProximalDistal
PronounAdjectivePronoun & Adjective
SingularMasculinesto chì(que)stoquello
Femininesta chì(que)staquella
PluralMasculinesti chì(que)stiquelli
Feminineste chì(que)stequelle

In Genoese, sto is the most widespread variant both in speech and writing as opposed to questo. It is not to be considered a truncated form of questo, therefore it must be written without an apostrophe.

The Genoese adjective and demonstrative pronoun questo can be emphasized by the adverb chì. Similarly, the form sto allows for such strengthening, and requires it when it performs a pronominal function. Likewise, in Genoese the adjective and demonstrative pronoun quello can be emphasized by the adverbs lì and là.

1. (chì) near the speaker

  • ma sta chì a l’é unn’atra stöia = ma questa qui è un’altra storia
  • a l’é sta chì, ciù che tutto, a vea raxon = è questa, soprattutto, la vera ragione

2. (lì) further away from the speaker, often near the listener

  • na, damme quello lie, vexin a-a bottiggia = no, dammi quello lì, vicino alla bottiglia

3. (là) even further away from the speaker and the listener

  • quello là o l’é delongo o primmo à lagnâse = quello là è sempre il primo a lamentarsi

Locative

ghe

  • gh’é stæto un ch’o m’à saluou pe-a stradda = c’è uno che mi ha salutato per strada
  • gh’é sciuscianta menuti inte unn’oa - ci sono sessanta minuti in un’ora
  • gh’ea tanta neive pe-e stradde da çittæ = c’era molta neve per le strade della città
  • no gh’é nisciun ch’o l’agge visto = non c’è persona che l’abbia visto
  • lì no ghe n’ea, ma chì ghe n’é ben ben = lì non ce n’era, ma qui ce n’è tanto
  • inte sta stöia gh’é unn’eröiña = in questa storia c’è un’eroina
  • inte doî euro gh’é duxento citti = in due euro ci sono duecento centesimi

Partitive

ne

  • me n’indubito = ne dubito
  • no ne sò ninte = non ne so nulla
  • cöse ne pensæ? = che ne pensate?
  • mi no ne veuggio manco = nemmeno io ne voglio
  • basta, oua me ne vaggo! = basta, ora me ne vado!
  • ò cattou de çexe, ti ne veu? = ho comprato delle ciliegie, ne vuoi?

Some Genoese verbs require the use of ne compared to Italian:

  • no ne veuggio ciù savei de ti! = non voglio più saperne di te!
  • de dond’o ne vëgne quello son? = da dove viene quel rumore?
  • sto formaggio o ne sa de moffa. = questo formaggio sa di muffa.
  • cöse ne pensæ viatre de sta deçixon? = cosa pensate voi di questa decisione?

Relative

ConditionPrepositionExampleTranslation
as a subjectchea casa ch’a l’é deruâ a l’ea ben ben antigala casa che è crollata era molto antica
as an object complemento scignoro che t’æ saluou o l’é seu barbail signore che hai salutato è suo zio
prepositionalquæa l’à visto l’amiga co-a quæ a s’ea confiâha visto l’amica con la quale si era confidata
"of which"de chequelli son i figgeu de che te divaquelli sono i ragazzi che ti dicevo
"to the extend which"quello chegh’ò dito quello che doveiva dîghegli ho detto quanto necessario
"colui il quale"chichi veu piggiâ parte ch’o tie sciù a man!chi vuole partecipare alzi la mano!
"anyone which"regallilo à chi ti veu, à mi o no m’interessaregalalo a chi vuoi, a me non interessa
"someone which"de quelli chegh’é de quelli che travaggian de sabbo ascìc’è chi lavora anche il sabato

The pronoun chi (for subject relative pronoun) as opposed to che, today relegated only to certain literary uses, is always followed by a singular verb without pronominal resumption: "o menestron chi bogge, i figgeu chi zeuga" but "o menestron ch’o bogge, i figgeu che zeugan"

Tongue twisters

  • Mi sò assæ se a sâ a saa assæ pe saâ a säçissa. (Ligurian pronunciation: [ˈmi ˈsɔ aˈsɛː se a ˈsaː a saˈa aˈsɛː pe saˈaː a saːˈsisˑa]) = I don't have a clue whether the salt is going to be enough to salt the sausage (salsiccia).
  • Sciâ scîe scignôa, sciando Sciâ xêua in scî scî. = Ski, madam, skying you fly on skis.
  • A-o mêu nêuo gh'é nêue nâe nêue; a ciù nêua de nêue nâe nêue a n'êu anâ. = At the new pier there are nine new ships; the newest of the nine new ships doesn't want to go.
  • Gi'àngiai g'han gi'oggi gi'uegge gi'unge cume gi'atri? = Do angels have eyes, ears, and (finger)nails like everyone else? (variant of the Cogorno comune)

Expressions

  • Son zeneize, rîzo ræo, strénzo i dénti e parlo ciæo. = "I'm Genoese, I seldom laugh, I grind my teeth, and I say what I mean" (literally, "speak clearly").
  • The child complains: Ò famme. = I'm hungry. The mother answers: Gràttite e zenogge e fatte e lasagne. = Scratch your knees and make lasagna.
  • Chi vêu vîve da bon crestiàn, da-i begghìn o stagghe lontàn. = "If you want to live as a good Christian, stay away from those who pretend to be devout" (a traditional warning to beware of fanatics and hypocrites).
  • Sciusciâ e sciorbî no se peu. = You can't have or do two contradicting things at the same time (literally, "you can't inhale and exhale").
  • Belìn! = Wow! or Damn! (very informal) (literally the word means "penis", but it lost its obscene meaning and is currently used as an intensifier in a lot of different expressions, acting almost as an equivalent of the English "Fuck!" or "Fuck it!").

Songs

One of the most famous folk songs written in the Genoese dialect is called Ma se ghe penso (or Ma se ghe pensu) written by Mario Cappello.

Towards the end of the 20th century, artist Fabrizio De André wrote an entire album called Crêuza de mä in the Genoese dialect.

Currently, young singers and songwriters from Liguria compose and sing songs in Genoese like Buio Pesto and Max Turigìn.

References

  1. ↑ "Statuto del 2019 – VIGENTE". www.acompagna.org. Archived from the original on 2020-04-08. Retrieved 2020-11-14.
  2. ↑ "Home – Associazione Culturale O Castello". www.associazioneocastello.it. Archived from the original on 2020-12-02. Retrieved 2020-11-14.
  3. ↑ https://www.consultaligure.org
  4. ↑ "Grafia ofiçiâ" [Official orthography] (in Ligurian). Academia Ligustica do Brenno. Archived from the original on 4 October 2018. Retrieved 14 March 2019.
  5. ↑ Parlo Ciæo. La lingua della Liguria. Grammatica, letteratura, storia, tradizioni (in Italian). De Ferrari. 2015. ISBN 978-88-6405-908-2.
  6. ↑ "GEPHRAS: Genoese-Italian phraseological dictionary". University of Innsbruck. Archived from the original on 2020-08-14. Retrieved 2021-10-26.
  7. ↑ Autelli, Erica (2021). "La langue génoise, expression de la terre et de la mer, langue d'ici et langue d'ailleurs". In Passet, Claude (ed.). Le nouveau dictionnaire phraséologique génois-italien online. Actes du 16e colloque international de langues dialectales.
  8. ↑ Acquarone, Andrea (2015-12-13). "O sciòrte o libbro de Parlo Ciæo, pe chi gh'è cao a nòstra lengua". Il Secolo XIX (in Ligurian). Archived from the original on 2020-08-12. Retrieved 2021-10-26.
  9. ↑ Audio samples may be heard here Archived 2007-05-16 at the Wayback Machine.
  10. ↑ Marzari, Giuseppe. "La Grafîa ofiçiâ dell'Académia Ligùstica do Brénno. Guida alla lettura dei testi di Giuseppe Marzari (1900–1974) Come i genovesi di Genova-centro parlano in Genovese". La Grafîa ofiçiâ dell’Académia Ligùstica do Brénno. Archived from the original on 2019-01-17. Retrieved 2019-01-16.