Steve Smulders
By Dutch standards, Italians are often quite concerned about things that we tend to shrug our shoulders at (in turn, they will be surprised by typically Dutch obsessions, such as money). These include the Italian obsession with health, family, food, wine, the weather, justice and deceit.
As a result, proverbs have developed over time on these subjects (the mouth runs over with what the heart is full of, as the Dutch proverb goes), proverbs that we do not know in the Netherlands.
Here we present 7 of them, one for each of the obsessions mentioned.
1. Health
Meglio un asino vivo che un dottore morto
'Better a live donkey than a dead doctor'
This Neapolitan proverb can be interpreted in different ways. First of all as an encouragement to act instead of hesitating or in other words: think less and do more. Don't talk but polish.
More specifically, you can also see it as a warning against excessive studying: better to be less educated but healthy and happy than unhappy with a burnout.
Yet another slightly different interpretation suggests that practical wisdom is worth more than theoretical knowledge. Sometimes an illiterate person can be better prepared for life than an academic with little experience.
There is a more or less similar Dutch folk wisdom: 'Better a bird in the hand than two in the bush'. The Italian version of this is 'Meglio unovo oggi che una gallina domani'I'd rather have an egg today than a chicken tomorrow.
2. Family
Una donna è am sposata se non ha suocera e cognata
'A woman is well married if she has no mother-in-law or sister-in-law'
This old folk wisdom offers an ironic view of family relations after marriage. It suggests that marriage is easiest without the interference of in-laws.
In practice, it is known that there are often tensions between a woman and her mother-in-law and her sister-in-law. This mainly concerns the protective attitude of (Italian) mothers towards their sons and the possible rivalry between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law.
3. Legal proceedings
L'inferno ei tribunali son semper aperti
'Hell and the courts are always open'
This proverb emphasizes that the world is full of sinners, so that hell and courts always have work and must therefore remain open. To put it more moralistically: there is always a place for people who commit sins or crimes.
4. Deception
Matta è quella pecora che si confessa al lupo
'Crazy is the sheep that confesses to the wolf'
This is an old Tuscan proverb that warns against naivety and misjudging people with evil intentions. This is depicted with the classic opposition between wolf (predator/evil) and sheep (prey/naive).
The meaning can be expressed in different ways, such as: it is foolish to share your weaknesses or secrets with someone who can harm you, or: not everyone who seems friendly has good intentions, or: you must be able to distinguish between a true friend and a false friend.
5. Food
Piuttosto crepa panza che roba avanza
'Better a burst belly than leftover food'
The proverb reflects a mentality that was common in poorer times, when wasting food was seen as a great sin.
Nowadays it is used precisely to criticize, literally, excessive consumption or, figuratively, any form of greed.
6. The weather
I'll eat it on the bun
'It always rains on what is already wet'
This Italian proverb can be interpreted negatively or positively. In a negative sense, it expresses that misfortune always seems to target the same people, or that when something goes wrong, more misfortunes follow.
The positive meaning is a bit more far-fetched, because rain is generally not seen as something positive. But if you want to explain it positively, the proverb says that those who are already lucky, often continue to be lucky - prosperity attracts more prosperity.
In Italy there is also the envious variant 'The roba goes all the roba' (possession attracts possessions), which has the same meaning but refers more specifically to material wealth. The Dutch version of this is: 'The devil always shits on the big pile'.
7. Wine
Il riso nasce nell'acqua ma deve morire nel vino
'Rice is born in water but must die in wine'
This is an old Italian proverb that originates from rice cultivation. This saying also has both a literal and a figurative meaning.
The literal meaning refers to the fact that rice grows in flooded fields (rice paddies), but a good risotto is finished with wine.
The rice pickers (mundane) used this expression figuratively to express that after working hard you deserve a reward. In Dutch we say 'loon naar werken' krijgen.
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