Rop Saltberg
Italians are no longer surprised. More and more English words are appearing in their language, which Italian can easily absorb. And often it is the government that comes up with the new concepts. curvy, stepchild adoption, spending reviews en speed date are now commonplace.
The words are in the latest edition of the Zingarelli, the Van Dale for Italy. More than 250 words that have settled in Italian in recent years are included. Many new concepts such as concession wireless, access point mainly related to the internet. But also curvy (a woman of lavish build) and Foreign fighter are in the Italian dictionary.
In addition, quite a few words used by the government are now commonplace, the compilers of the dictionary conclude. Stepchild adoption (gay couples adopting their partner's child), spending reviews (government budget overview) are the best-known examples.
Less trouble with English concepts
'It's not about what we think are nice words. It's about what the Italians use in their language, what they hear,' says one of the composers of the Zingarelli. He acknowledges that the Italians have less difficulty incorporating English concepts into their language than, for example, the Spaniards or French. 'In those countries their own words arose to name things like a computer.'
He also calls it striking that the newly included words contain a lot of terms that start with 'anti' or 'multi'. Anti-Euro (against the euro) is doing well in Italy, but also antievasion (against tax evasion), multibrand (shop that sells different brands) and multi-religious (presence of multiple religions) became normal.
The compilers are concerned about a few thousand Italian words that are used less and less and are at risk of disappearing. below it diatribe (fierce attack), obsolete (obsolete) and the beautiful titbit (delicacy).
Collage Rop Zoutberg: five minutes of cutting, English in Italian newspapers
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