Proverbial Images

Photographs of Italy

Ogni bambino viene al mondo col suo cestino.

Every baby comes to the world with his basket.

(Every child arrives with skills to make his way in the world.)

Palermo, Sicilia

Il falso amico è come l'ombra che ci segue finché dura il sole.
The false friend is like the shadow that follows us only when the sun shines.
Sundial / Perpetual Calendar. Piacenza, Emilia-Romagna.

I Santi non mangiano. 
The Saints don't eat. (One can't live on religion.) 

Cefalu, Sicilia

We've paired several of our favorite photos with Italian proverbs and a well-known song lyric. You can click on the photos to see them larger.

Val piu avere amici in piazza, che danari nella cassa.

Friends on the piazza are worth more than money in the strongbox.    Noto, Sicilia.

Quando piove e luce il sole, tutte le vecchie vanno in amore.

When it rains and the sun shines, all the old ladies look for love. Firenze, Toscana.

Dormi sepolto in un campo di grano, non e' la rosa, non e' il tulipano che ti fan veglia dall'ombra dei fossi ma sono mille papaveri rossi.                                                                                   

Sleep buried in a field of grain - it's not the rose, it's not the tulip that keeps vigil over you from the shadow of the trenches, but a thousand red poppies.

Fabrizio De Andre, La Guerra di Piero (Piero's War), 1966.

We are not linguists, your comments on the translations are welcome.

Thanks. Several of these proverbs are from the Italian Site: Aforismi.dossier.net/proverbi-italiani

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Written by Martha