Words on the street: graffiti campaign aims to save endangered Italian vocabulary
Editors at a publishing house have launched an unusual street graffiti campaign to save lesser-used Italian words from extinction.
The Italian language is in danger of losing its beauty and complexity, language experts have warned, as writing becomes increasingly simplistic and people rely on an ever-smaller range of vocabulary with which to express themselves.
Italian, as its students know, is a complex language with many fascinating words.
But many of these words are now falling out of use, and apparently our brief communications in the digital age are at least partly to blame.
Editors at the Zanichelli publishing house have drawn up a list of lesser-used words in serious danger of disappearing from the written language altogether, and launched an unusual campaign to save them.
La cultura si fa strada e lascia il segno anche lungo le vie di #Napoli, la città dove la parola #insigne si distingue e ha un significato illustre. #laculturasifastrada #LorenzoInsigne pic.twitter.com/5sCbeYWYGF
— Zanichelli Editore (@Zanichelli_ed) October 24, 2018
Using the words in graffiti on the pavements, editors say, gives “opportunities for reflection on our capacity for expression.”
It’s “not by chance” that the words have been painted in the streets “where we walk with our eyes down, answering messages or looking at the latest social media post,” they added.
From the grand total of 3125 entries, Zanichelli has somehow narrowed the list down to just five words for the campaign using graffiti on Italian city streets.
The five chosen words (and their English translations) are:
-
Bòria (noun): haughtiness, conceit
-
Denigràre (verb): denigrate, disparage
-
Insìgne (adjective): distinguished, eminent
-
Solèrte (adjective): diligent, zealous
-
Corroborare (verb): corroborate, strengthen
The complete list includes words like ondivago (wavering) and taccagno (miser).
The campaign also features other Italian words that describe literary devices and terms, such as 'onomatopea', as well as false friends in foreign languages.
Quando ti fermi per strada a riflettere sul significato delle #parole...
Le parole sono importanti#laculturasifastrada pic.twitter.com/8s6FScCGJ9
— mauro8100 ? (@mauro8100) October 21, 2018
READ ALSO: 12 signs you've cracked the Italian language
The graffiti can now be seen in the streets of Turin, Milan, Padua and Naples. There are 50 pieces of graffiti in each city, each one marked with the hashtag #laculturasifastrada.
The eco-friendly paint used for the graffiti, apparently made with yogurt, will be removed using ‘nothing but water’ after two weeks.
Fuori dalle pagine dei dizionari, abbiamo portato la cultura per le vie di #Torino, #Milano, #Padova e #Napoli.
Cerca parole intraducibili e da salvare, figure retoriche e falsi amici lungo le strade che percorri ogni giorno.
? #laculturasifastrada ?️ pic.twitter.com/ybiLCMjGAQ
— Zanichelli Editore (@Zanichelli_ed) October 19, 2018
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The Italian language is in danger of losing its beauty and complexity, language experts have warned, as writing becomes increasingly simplistic and people rely on an ever-smaller range of vocabulary with which to express themselves.
Italian, as its students know, is a complex language with many fascinating words.
But many of these words are now falling out of use, and apparently our brief communications in the digital age are at least partly to blame.
Editors at the Zanichelli publishing house have drawn up a list of lesser-used words in serious danger of disappearing from the written language altogether, and launched an unusual campaign to save them.
La cultura si fa strada e lascia il segno anche lungo le vie di #Napoli, la città dove la parola #insigne si distingue e ha un significato illustre. #laculturasifastrada #LorenzoInsigne pic.twitter.com/5sCbeYWYGF
— Zanichelli Editore (@Zanichelli_ed) October 24, 2018
Using the words in graffiti on the pavements, editors say, gives “opportunities for reflection on our capacity for expression.”
It’s “not by chance” that the words have been painted in the streets “where we walk with our eyes down, answering messages or looking at the latest social media post,” they added.
From the grand total of 3125 entries, Zanichelli has somehow narrowed the list down to just five words for the campaign using graffiti on Italian city streets.
The five chosen words (and their English translations) are:
- Bòria (noun): haughtiness, conceit
- Denigràre (verb): denigrate, disparage
- Insìgne (adjective): distinguished, eminent
- Solèrte (adjective): diligent, zealous
- Corroborare (verb): corroborate, strengthen
The complete list includes words like ondivago (wavering) and taccagno (miser).
The campaign also features other Italian words that describe literary devices and terms, such as 'onomatopea', as well as false friends in foreign languages.
Quando ti fermi per strada a riflettere sul significato delle #parole...
— mauro8100 ? (@mauro8100) October 21, 2018
Le parole sono importanti#laculturasifastrada pic.twitter.com/8s6FScCGJ9
READ ALSO: 12 signs you've cracked the Italian language
The graffiti can now be seen in the streets of Turin, Milan, Padua and Naples. There are 50 pieces of graffiti in each city, each one marked with the hashtag #laculturasifastrada.
The eco-friendly paint used for the graffiti, apparently made with yogurt, will be removed using ‘nothing but water’ after two weeks.
Fuori dalle pagine dei dizionari, abbiamo portato la cultura per le vie di #Torino, #Milano, #Padova e #Napoli.
— Zanichelli Editore (@Zanichelli_ed) October 19, 2018
Cerca parole intraducibili e da salvare, figure retoriche e falsi amici lungo le strade che percorri ogni giorno.
? #laculturasifastrada ?️ pic.twitter.com/ybiLCMjGAQ
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