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Sicilian (lu sicilianu, Italian: lingua siciliana) is a Romance language. Its dialects comprise the Italiano meridionale-estremo language group, which are spoken on the island of Sicily, its satellite islands, and in southern and central Calabria ("southern Calabro") [1]; and in the southern parts of Apulia [1], the Salento (the language is "Salentino") [1]; and Campania ("Cilentano"), on the Italian mainland. Ethnologue (see section below) describes Sicilian as being "distinct enough from Standard Italian to be considered a separate language". Some assert that Sicilian represents the oldest Romance language derived from Vulgar Latin, but this is not a widely-held view amongst philologists. [2] It is currently spoken by the majority of the inhabitants of Sicily and by immigrant populations around the world. The latter are to be found in the countries which attracted large numbers of Sicilian immigrants during the course of the past century or so, especially the USA, Canada, Australia and Argentina. In the past two or three decades, large numbers of Sicilians were also attracted to the industrial zones of northern Italy and indeed the rest of the EU, in particular, Germany.
Ethnologue report on SicilianOther namesThe alternate names of Sicilian are: Calabro-Sicilian, Sicilianu, Siculu. The term "Calabro-Sicilian" refers to the fact that a form of Sicilian, or a dialect closely related to Sicilian, is spoken in central and southern Calabria. Sicilianu is the name of the language in Sicilian. The term "Siculu" describes one of the larger prehistoric groups living in Sicily (the Sicels or Siculi) before the arrival of Greeks in the 8th century BC (see below). It can also be used as an adjective to qualify, or further elaborate on, the origins of a person, for example: Siculo-American (siculu-miricanu) or Siculo-Australian. Dialects of SicilianAs a language, Sicilian has its own dialects. Ethnologue lists the following main groupings:
Other observations
Early influencesThe fact that Sicily is the largest island in the middle of the Mediterranean and that virtually all the peoples of the Mediterranean (and beyond) have passed through her, be that as friend or foe, over the millennia, ensures that the Sicilian language is both rich and varied in its influences. The language has inherited vocabulary and/or grammatical forms from all of the following: Greek, Latin, Arabic, French, Lombard, Provençal, German, Catalan, Spanish and of course Italian, not to mention prehistoric influences from the earliest settlers on the island. The very earliest influences, visible in Sicilian to this day, exhibit both prehistoric Mediterranean elements and prehistoric Indo-European elements, and occasionally a cross-over of both. Before the Roman conquest, Sicily was occupied by remnants of the autochthonic populations (Sicani, Elymi, Siculi, (the latter arriving between the second and first millennium BC), as well as by Phoenicians (from between the 10th and 8th century BC) and Greeks (from the 8th century BC). The Greek influence remains strongly visible, however, the influences from the other groups are less obvious. What can be stated with certainty is that there remain pre-Indo-European words in Sicilian of an ancient Mediterranean origin, but one cannot be more precise than that. Of the three main prehistoric groups, only the Siculi were Indo-European, and their speech is likely to have been closely related to that of the Romans. [3] The following table provides the perfect illustration of the difficulty philologists face in tackling the various sub-strata of the Sicilian language. The examples are for the English word "twins" [3].
A similar qualifier can be applied to many of the words that appear in this article. Sometimes we may know that a particular word has a prehistoric derivation, but we do not know whether the Sicilians have inherited it directly from the autochtonic populations, or whether it has come to them via another route. Similarly, we might know that a particular word has a Greek origin, but we do not know from which Greek period the Sicilians first used it (pre-Roman occupation or during its Byzantine period), or once again, whether the particular word may even have come to Sicily via another route. For instance, by the time the Romans had occupied Sicily during the 3rd century BC, the Latin language had made its own borrowings from the Greek language. Pre-classical periodThe words with a prehistoric Mediterranean derivation often refer to plants native to the Mediterranean region or to other natural features. Bearing in mind the qualifiers mentioned above (alternative sources are provided where known), examples of such words include:
There are also Sicilian words with an ancient Indo-European origin that do not appear to have come to the language via any of the major language groups normally associated with Sicilian, i.e. they have been independently derived from a very early Indo-European source. The Siculi are a possible source of such words, but there is also the possibility of a cross-over between ancient Mediterranean words and introduced Indo-European forms. Some examples of Sicilian words with an ancient Indo-European origin:
Greek influencesThe following Sicilian words are of a Greek origin (including some examples where it is unclear whether the word is derived directly from Greek, or via Latin):
Vulgar Latin was spoken by the Roman occupation troops who garrisoned Sicily after Rome annexed the island (after the end of the First Punic War, c 261 BC). An historical feature shared by Sicily, the far south of Calabria, and the province of Lecce, is that during the Roman period, these areas were never completely latinised. Greek remained the main language for the majority of the population. This helps explain the linguistic differences in these areas and those immediately to the north (which were, more or less, latinised). It is also why Sicilian is often referred to as a neo-Latin language - it did not descend directly from Latin (although some linguists disagree with that view, see below). From 493 to 535 and 550 tp 552, the Ostrogothic kingdom ruled Sicily,[4] although their presence did not impact the Sicilian language. The few Germanic influences to be found in Sicilian do not appear to originate from this period. One exception might be abbanniari or vanniari (to hawk goods, proclaim publicly) from Gothic bandujan - to give a signal. Also possible is schimmenti (diagonal) from Gothic slimbs (slanting). Other sources of Germanic influences include the Hohenstaufen reign of the 13th century, words of Nordic and Germanic origin contained within the speeches of Norman and Lombard settlers and the short period of Austrian rule in the 18th century. Arab periodIn 535, Emperor Justinian I made Sicily a Byzantine province, and for the second time in Sicilian history, the Greek language became a familiar sound across the island. As the power of the Byzantine Empire waned, Sicily was progressively conquered by Saracens from North Africa, from the mid 9th century to the mid 10th century. The Arab Emirs who ruled Sicily were progressive monarchs and Sicily enjoyed a sustained period of economic prosperity and intellectual enlightenment. The Arab influence is noticeable in around 300 Sicilian words, most of which relate to agriculture and related activities. This is understandable since the Saracens introduced to Sicily the most (then) modern irrigation and farming techniques and a new range of crops - nearly all of which remain endemic to the island to this day. Some words of Arabic origin:
Before we move on to the next phase of the language's development, being its most significant, it should be borne in mind that throughout the Arab epoch of Sicilian history, a large Greek population remained on the island and continued to use the Greek language, or most certainly, a variant of Greek heavily influenced by Arabic. What is less clear is the extent to which a Latin speaking population survived on the island. While a form of Vulgar Latin clearly survived in isolated communities during the Arab epoch, there is much debate as to the influence it had (if any) on the development of the Sicilian language, following the relatinisation of Sicily (discussed in the next section). The best one can do is to conclude that if there was an influence, it is likely to have been minor. This view is supported by the fact that there are few Sicilian words reflecting an archaic Latin form (as may be found, for example, in Sard). However, some forms do exist, so the tantalising prospect of a Sicilian form of a Vulgar Latin surviving the Arab period and influencing the modern development of Sicilian remains open. These are some words of Latin origin that may have survived the Arab epoch:
Linguistic development from the middle agesIn 1000 AD the whole of modern day southern Italy, including Sicily, was a complex mix of small states and principalities, languages, religions and ethnicities. The whole of Sicily was dominated by Muslim Saracens, except for the north-eastern corner, which was predominantly Greek speaking and Christian. The far south of the Italian peninsula was part of the Byzantine empire and predominantly Greek speaking, although many communities were reasonably independent of Constantinople. The principality of Salerno was Lombard. The Lombards (or Langobards) had also started to make some incursions into Byzantine territory and had managed to establish some isolated independent city-states. It was into this mix that Normans thrust themselves in ever increasing numbers during the first half of the 11th century. Norman French influenceWhen the two most famous of southern Italy's Norman adventurers, Roger of Hauteville and his brother, Robert Guiscard, began their conquest of Sicily in 1061, they already controlled the far south of Italy (Apulia and Calabria). It took Roger 30 years to complete the conquest of Sicily (Robert died in 1085). In the process, the relatinisation and christianisation of Sicily had begun a second time. A long list of Norman words were to become absorbed by the new language during this period, for example:
The following factors that emerged during or immediately after the conquest were to prove critical in the formation of the Sicilian language:
We can see above the main factors that go into framing the Sicilian language as we know it today. The Vulgar Latin base (predominantly from Campania) was similar to the Vulgar Latin in central Italy (and therefore, by implication, reasonably similar to the Vulgar Latin in Tuscany that would eventually form the base for the national language). This base from Campania was influenced by the many Gallic influences present in Sicily at the time, namely Norman, French and Langobardic. Underneath that were remnants of the Arabic and Greek idioms that the new language eventually replaced, but hundreds of words remained in the vocabulary of the new Romance language. Other Gallic influencesThe Lombard influence is of particular interest. Even to the present day, a Gallo-siculo dialect exists in the areas where the Lombard colonies were the strongest, namely Novara, Nicosia, Sperlinga, Aidone and Piazza Armerina. The Siculo-Gallic dialect did not survive in other major Lombard colonies, such as Randazzo, Bronte and Paternò (although they did influence the local Sicilian vernacular). The Padanian influence was also felt on the Sicilian language itself, as follows:
The origins of another Gallic influence, that of Old Provençal, had three possible sources.
Some examples of Sicilian words derived from Provençal:
Sicilian School of PoetryIt was during the reign of Frederick II (or Frederick I of Sicily) between 1198 and 1250, with his patronage of the Sicilian School of poetry, that Sicilian became the first of the Italic idioms to be used as a literary language. The influence of the school, and the use of Sicilian itself as a poetic language, was acknowledged by the two great Tuscan writers of the early Renaissance period Dante and Petrarch. The influence of the Sicilian language cannot be understated in the eventual formulation of a lingua franca that was to become modern Italian. The victory of the Angevin army over the Sicilians at Benevento in 1266 not only marked the end of the 136 year Norman-Swabian reign in Sicily, it effectively ensured that the centre of literary influence would eventually move from Sicily to Tuscany. While Sicilian, as both an official and literary language would continue to exist for another two centuries, the language would soon follow the fortunes of the kingdom itself in terms of prestige and influence. As a side note, there are some Germanic influences in the Sicilian language, and many of these date back to the time of the Swabian kings (amongst which Frederick enjoyed the longest reign). Words that probably originate from this era include:
Catalan influenceFollowing the Sicilian Vespers of 1282, the kingdom was to come under the influence of the Aragonese, and as a result, the Catalan language would add a new layer of vocabulary in the succeeding century. For the whole of the 14th century, both Catalan and Sicilian were the official languages of the royal court. Sicilian was also used to record the proceedings of parliament (one of the oldest parliaments in Europe) and for other official purposes. While it is often difficult to determine whether a word has come to us directly from Catalan (as opposed to Provençal or Spanish), the following are likely to be such examples:
Spanish period to the modern ageBy the time the Aragonese crown was joined with the Spanish realm in the late 15th century, the tuscanisation of written Sicilian in the parliamentary and court records had commenced. By 1543 this process was virtually complete, the new lingua franca of the Italian peninsula had supplanted written Sicilian – for good. Spanish rule had hastened this process in two important ways:
Spanish rule lasted over three centuries (not counting the Aragonese and Bourbon periods on either side) and had a significant influence on the Sicilian vocabulary. The following words are of Spanish derivation:
Since the Risorgimento (1860-1861) the Sicilian language has been significantly influenced by Italian. This process has quickened since World War II due to improved educational standards and the impact of mass media, such that increasingly, even within the family home, Sicilian is not necessarily the first language of choice. The Sicilian Regional Parliament recently voted in legislation to make the teaching of Sicilian a part of the school curriculum at primary school level, but at this moment only a small fraction of schools teach Sicilian. There is also virtually no form of mass media offered in Sicilian. The combination of these factors means that the Sicilian language continues to adopt Italian vocabulary and grammatical forms to such an extent that many Sicilians themselves cannot distinguish between correct and incorrect Sicilian language usage. Distinguishing features of SicilianGender and the formation of pluralsGenerally speaking, Sicilian has the same ending for feminine nouns (and their adjectives) as does Italian, that being the [a], for example: casa (house), porta (door), carta (paper), but there are exceptions to this rule, for example, soru (sister), ficu (fig). Whereas Italian uses [o] as the ending for masculine nouns, Sicilian generally uses [u], for example: omu (man), libbru (book), nomu (name). The ending i can be either masculine or feminine (whereas in Italian the ending "e" can be either gender). Unlike Italian, Sicilian uses one letter, "i", to denote the plural for both masculine and feminine nouns, for example: casi (houses), porti (doors), tauli (tables). There are also many exceptions to this rule which are not always shared by Italian, for example: òmini (men), libbra (books), jorna (days), jòcura (games), manu (hand/hands), vrazza (arms), jardina (gardens), scrittura (writers), signa (signs). Omission of initial Latin "i"In the vast majority of instances where the originating Latin word has had an initial "i", the Sicilian has dropped it completely. This can also happen occasionally where there was once an initial "e", and to a lesser extent "a" and "o". Examples: mpurtanti (important), gnuranti (ignorant), nimicu (enemy), ntirissanti (interesting), llustrari (to illustrate), mmàggini (image), cona (icon), miricanu (American). Verb "to have"Unlike Italian, Sicilian only has one auxiliary verb, aviri, to have. This is a characteristic that it shares with Catalan and Romanian. Sicilian also uses the verb "to have" to denote obligation (as is used both in English and in Spanish, which uses the respective verb "tener". For example: havi a jiri (pronounced \avi agghiri\ — English: he/she has to go; Spanish: él/ella tiene que ir). As also occurs in English and Spanish, a preposition is required before the verb in this specific construction. Unique soundsSicilian has a number of consonant sounds which, if not unique to Sicilian, certainly set it apart from the other major romance languages. The most unique sounds are the retroflex sounds or cacuminals. The "-LL-" sound (in words of Latin origin, for example) manifests itself in Sicilian as a voiced retroflex plosive with the tip of the tongue curled up and back, a sound which is not part of Standard Italian. In Sicilian, this sound is written simply as "-dd-" although the sound itself is not [d] but rather [ɖ]. For example, the Italian word bello is beddu in Sicilian. The trigraph <str> in Sicilian is quite different to the Italian form of the trigraph. The "t" is not pronounced at all and there is a faint whistle between the "s" and the "r", the latter not being trilled as would be the case in Italian. The other unique Sicilian sound is found in those words that have been derived from Latin words containing "FL". This has generally become "FI" in Italian, for example, fiume from Latin flumen (river). In Sicilian, the sound is rendered as "CI" (representing the sound [ç]), e.g. ciumi or /hjumi/, (but can also be found in written form as "SCI", "X" or "ÇI"). The sound approximates to an allophone of English /h/ in words like huge. One obvious difference from Italian is that unstressed o in Italian becomes unstressed u in Sicilian. One upshot of this is that u is far more common than o in Sicilian, whereas the opposite is true in Italian. Also, unstressed e in Italian becomes unstressed i in Sicilian, and i is more common than e in Sicilian. Gemination and contractionsRarely indicated in writing, spoken Sicilian exhibits what is called raddoppiamento (Borelli, 2002), which means that the first consonant of a word is lengthened when it is preceded by a vowel in the preceding word, e.g. è bonu /ebbonu/. This process of lengthening is also called gemination, which is a general term used for the lengthening of any sound. Alternatively, the letter "j" at the start of a word can have three separate sounds, depending on what precedes the word. For instance, in jornu (day), the "j" is pronounced [j] as in English "y", however, un jornu is pronounced /unnjornu/. Tri jorna (three days) is pronounced /triggjorna/, the "j" effectively becoming [g], like English "g" in "again." Another difference between the written and spoken languages is the extent to which contractions will occur in everyday speech. Thus a common expression such as avemu a accattari (we have to go and buy...) will generally be reduced to amâ ccattari when talking to family and friends. The circumflex is commonly used in denoting a wide range of contractions in the written language, in particular, the joining of simple prepositions and the definite article. Examples: di lu = dû (of the), a lu = ô (to the), pi lu = pû (for the), nta lu = ntô (in the), etc. Examples of the written languageA range of extracts are offered below to illustrate the written form of Sicilian over the last few centuries, starting with a translation of the Lord's Prayer, through to extracts from three of Sicily's more celebrated poets: Antonio Veneziano, Giovanni Meli and Nino Martoglio. The Lord's Prayer is written with three variations: a standard literary form from the island of Sicily, a southern Calabrian literary form and a southern Apulian literary form. Lu Patri Nostru
Extract from Antonio VenezianoCelia, Lib. 2
Extract from Giovanni MeliDon Chisciotti e Sanciu Panza (Cantu quintu)(~1790)
Extract from Nino MartoglioBriscula 'n Cumpagni(~1900; trans: A game of Briscula amongst friends)
Influences on the Italian languageAs one of the most-spoken languages of Italy, Sicilian has notably influenced the Italian lexicon. In fact, there are several Sicilian words that are nowadays part of the Italian language; they usually refer to things closely associated to Sicilian culture, with some notable exceptions.
Language situation todaySicilian is estimated to have millions of speakers. However, it remains very much a home language spoken among peers and close associates. The regional Italian dialect has encroached on Sicilian, most evidently in the speech of the young generations. Poets in Sicily sometimes write in Sicilian. However, most speakers (especially the youngest ones) are literate just in Italian, not Sicilian; this implies a poor knowledge of the written language in all its grammar and spelling rules, in contrast to a still wide diffusion of spoken Sicilian in the island. The education system does not support the language. Local universities do not carry courses in Sicilian, or where they do it is described as dialettologia, that is, the study of dialects. See also
Footnotes
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