{"id":10604,"date":"2015-02-20T07:00:47","date_gmt":"2015-02-20T06:00:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.arttrav.com\/?p=10604"},"modified":"2015-12-01T14:05:50","modified_gmt":"2015-12-01T13:05:50","slug":"italian-translations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.arttrav.com\/expat-life\/italian-translations\/","title":{"rendered":"The alphabet of impossible Italian translations"},"content":{"rendered":"

I work at The Florentine, where we do a lot of translations from Italian to English. Over the years, we\u2019ve become quite the specialists in translations for the tourism industry, including texts about food, wine, places to visit, spas and the like. Personally, I\u2019m not a born translator, and try to avoid this job whenever possible. On the other hand, our editor, Helen Farrell, is a court-registered translator who lives and breathes words and their conversions. She actually has big dictionaries on her desk, and not only does she use them, she has been involved in editing one of the most important dictionaries in Italy!<\/p>\n

This month at the Italy Blogging Roundtable we\u2019re talking about impossible translations<\/strong>, or untranslatable words. In our office, we frequently laugh about the language of tourism descriptions and press releases, with its funny phrases that are almost impossible to translate. There is a whole alphabet of frequently used words and sentences in Italian, the correct interpretation of which are the mark of the truly professional translator. I\u2019ve asked my colleagues to help me collate this alphabet.<\/p>\n

\"Impossibletranslations\"<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

A: Addetto<\/h3>\n

Probably the epitome of political correctness in Italy, an addetto alla pulizia <\/em>is a glorified term for your cleaning lady (see also responsabile<\/em>, below). You can also be a non addetto<\/em>, i.e. unauthorized person. N.B. Never translate addetto<\/em> as addict.<\/p>\n

B: Bando<\/h3>\n

Plural, bandi. Correctly translated as \u201cpublic tender\u201d, this exquisitely Italian concept of competition for the assignment of a contract involves writing an extended proposal or even completing a job on spec, hoping to win the money associated with it. Not to be confused with concorso<\/em>, which is when you personally apply for a job in the public sector.<\/p>\n

C: Complemento\/i d\u2019arredo<\/h3>\n

If you\u2019ve ever flipped through an IKEA catalogue, looked for the sections in a furniture store, or browsed home design online, you\u2019ve found this category of objects that falls outside that of furniture: the complemento d\u2019arredo<\/em>. How to translate it? Try \u201chome accessories\u201d.<\/p>\n

D: Doccia emozionale<\/h3>\n

Commonly found in descriptions of spa facilities, this one cracks us up. The \u201cemotional shower\u201d is truly impossible to translate. Renditions of Whitney Houston\u2019s So Emotional<\/em> spring (excuse the aqueous pun) to mind.<\/p>\n

E: Emozione<\/h3>\n

Speaking of emotions, everything from a shower to an art exhibit is liable to involve the word emozione<\/em> in Italian. Most of the time, we Anglos can simply remove the emotion, both from text and experience itself. If faced with translating \u201cun emozionante esperienza tra natura e storia<\/em>\u201d you might replace emotion with any of the above: fascinating, amazing, beautiful, interesting. Or just delete the sentence.<\/p>\n

F: Furbo<\/h3>\n

\u201cMa quella ragazza \u00e8 proprio furba!\u201d is half compliment, half criticism. She\u2019s devious, she\u2019s sneaky, but you have to hand it to her, buy, that girl knows how to obtain results.<\/p>\n

G: orario Garantito<\/h3>\n

A two-word phrase that any self-respecting Italian commuter is familiar with. It\u2019s a Friday, there\u2019s a nationwide transport strike, but \u2013 do not worry! \u2013 because some trains will always be running at certain times and it\u2019s guaranteed that you\u2019ll be able to find a train home. The literal translation is \u201cguaranteed hours\u201d so to correctly translate this, we need to explain the concept the long way.<\/p>\n

H: Herpes<\/h3>\n

It\u2019s quite common for people to gesture to their mouths and not kiss you twice while apologizing that they have herpes, especially in the wintertime. If it\u2019s on your lip, it\u2019s a cold sore, not a venereal disease.<\/p>\n

I: Immerso nel verde<\/h3>\n

This is a long-running joke about the style of tourism writing in Italian. Almost every hotel or bed and breakfast outside of a city center will be defined as immerso nel verde<\/em>, literally immersed in green. To translate this, you\u2019ll have to find out what green we\u2019re talking about: a park, a forest\u2026 Then we can say that the hotel is located at the center of a large park, or at the edge of an enchanted forest, or simply that it has a garden.<\/p>\n

\"Immerso
Immerso nel verde – illustration by Leo Cardini for The Florentine<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

J: Jolly<\/h3>\n

The letter J barely exists in the Italian alphabet, so when you have to phonetically spell a word with a J in it, you say Jolly (not Jello, with which Italians are not familiar!). The Jolly is a card in a deck (the Joker) but also is used in sentences referring to the usually exchangeable role of a person. Happiness has nothing to do with it.<\/p>\n

K: Kermesse<\/h3>\n

A favourite of press offices, the kermesse refers to a calendar or line-up of events. Often these extend over a long period of time, with not entirely clear start and end dates.<\/p>\n

L: Luminoso<\/h3>\n

Preferred lingo in apartment rental ads, in English, rooms are not luminous; they are well-lit, airy or spacious.<\/p>\n

M: Musealizzazione<\/h3>\n

This Italian word is not even in the dictionary (we checked). Musealizzazione, <\/em>whose literal meaning is \u201cto make into a museum space,\u201d calls for creative translation. Think outside the museum.<\/p>\n

N: A Norma<\/h3>\n

If you\u2019re buying a house, you may be comforted reading that the wiring is a norma<\/em>. That is, it is \u201cup to code,\u201d not just that it\u2019s normal.<\/p>\n

O: Ospite d\u2019eccezione<\/h3>\n

Every kermesse<\/em> (see above) we translate seems to host an ospite d\u2019eccezione<\/em>, usually someone you\u2019ve never heard of. The best way to translate this is not an \u201cexceptional guest\u201d but a \u201cspecial guest\u201d.<\/p>\n

P: Prodotto Tipico<\/h3>\n

The \u201ctypical product\u201d is the bane of all tourism translation, and all regions have so many of them! The best way to translate this is \u201clocal product\u201d or \u201clocal specialty\u201d.<\/p>\n

Q: Questione<\/h3>\n

Possible translations: question, matter, issue, problem, point, argument, dispute, quarrel. Context is everything: the linguist lives in eternal hope of receiving reference material.<\/p>\n

R: Responsabile<\/h3>\n

In job titles, everyone seems to be \u201cresponsible\u201d for something. Responsabile della sicurezza, responsabile ufficio tecnico, io sono responsabile del social media di The Florentine<\/em>\u2026 While in English it\u2019s nice to know that you\u2019re a responsible person, the correct translation of the job title will vary depending on what we\u2019re dealing with. When in doubt, \u201chead of\u201d or \u201cin charge of\u201d usually does the trick, but it\u2019s a descriptive rather than literal solution.<\/p>\n

S: Sprezzatura<\/h3>\n

Thankfully not in common use any more, the word sprezzatura<\/em> was used by Castiglione in his book The Courtier<\/em> and is often cited as an untranslatable word (you didn\u2019t think I could write a whole article without mentioning the Renaissance, right?). This refers to a man (a courtier) who does everything with calculated ease. Nowadays we would just say that he is \u201cso cool\u201d.<\/p>\n

T: Tradizione e Innovazione<\/h3>\n

If you\u2019ve ever read a description, in Italian, of any restaurant worth its salt, it will define itself as being \u201cfra tradizione e innovazione<\/em>,\u201d meaning literally \u201cbetween tradition and innovation,\u201d i.e. we have updated our recipes to encounter modern tastes, but don\u2019t worry, it\u2019s still the same Italian food you expect. It\u2019s a cautious phrase that embodies so much more than just language (see my review of John Hooper\u2019s book, in which he talks about the fear of innovation in food). How should we translate this sentence? It\u2019s not terrible to do so literally, but you might shake it up by extending it, something like \u201cmixes traditional recipes with modern concepts\u201d or \u201cfollows tradition while developing new methods and flavours.\u201d<\/p>\n

U: Urban Trekking<\/h3>\n

At least once a year, most regions hold an urban trekking festival. Italians don\u2019t go hiking, they go trekking, and sometimes they do this in city centers, hence urban trekking, which they think is already translated into English. We are at a loss and have opted not to tell them this is not actually English.<\/p>\n

\"Urban
Urban Trekking. Illustration by Leo Cardini for The Florentine.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

V: Valorizzazione<\/h3>\n

Often incorrectly translated as \u201cvalorization\u201d, this word is used frequently in descriptions of improvement or restoration of monuments, parts of cities, parks, etc. You also find it in the title of bandi<\/em> (see above). In most cases, we can use the words improvement or enhancement, and sometimes promotion, though the translator must evaluate if the word is necessary at all in the sentence at hand.<\/p>\n

W: Water<\/h3>\n

Potentially ripe with embarrassment. In Italian, \u201cil vater\u201d<\/em> is short for water closet. If an Italian walks into a bar in desperate need of a water, here\u2019s a tip: do not hand him\/her a glass.<\/p>\n

X: giorno X<\/h3>\n

Referring to the most important day for whatever (giving birth, going online…), we translate that as D-day, not X-day.<\/p>\n

\"Giorno
Giorno X. Illustration by Leo Cardini for The Florentine.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Y: \u201cY come yacht\u201d<\/h3>\n

Like J, there are not many Y\u2019s in Italian. Basically, just yogurt and yacht, making spelling my last name (Korey) out on the phone a real challenge. That\u2019s why we at The Florentine made a video about learning the phonetic alphabet in Italian<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Z: Zapping<\/h3>\n

At the end of a long day translating, is there anything more annoying than your other half sitting on the sofa and indulging in zapping<\/em>? By which, we mean \u201cchannel hopping.\u201d Oh, the joy of false Anglicisms\u2026<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

This article in The Florentine<\/h2>\n

A version of this article was subsequently published in The Florentine 208, March 2015, in paper only. Subscribe to TF at http:\/\/theflr.net\/pdfsub<\/a><\/p>\n

\"TF208\"
TF208<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

What are the funniest sentences you\u2019ve come across in Italian? Can you suggest better translations for any of these? Let us know in the comments. <\/em><\/p>\n

If you require truly professional translation services, contact Helen at The Florentine: redazione (@) theflorentine.net<\/em><\/p>\n

Italy Blogging Roundtable<\/h2>\n

The Italy Blogging Roundtable is back this year after a long haitus, and February’s topic is “untranslatable words”. Your familiar crew of female knights is also happy to welcome a seasoned knight to the group, Michelle from Bleeding Espresso. So take a look at the other blog posts on this inspiring topic, I’m sure you’ll have a good laugh.<\/p>\n