L'Italo-Americano

www.italoamericano.org 8 THURSDAY, JUNE 27, 2024 L'Italo-Americano with global standards. T h e a d o p t i o n o f t h e s e English terms in Italian can be attributed to several fac- tors. Globalization has made c u l t u r a l , e c o n o m i c , a n d social trends cross borders more easily, with English often serving as the medium through which these trends a r e c o m m u n i c a t e d . T h e dominance of English on the i n t e r n e t , s o c i a l m e d i a , movies, and music means that it is frequently encoun- tered and adopted by non- n a t i v e s p e a k e r s . F a s h i o n blogs, online shopping plat- f o r m s , a n d i n t e r n a t i o n a l brands all contribute to the d i s s e m i n a t i o n o f E n g l i s h vocabulary. M o r e o v e r , E n g l i s h i s o f t e n a s s o c i a t e d w i t h modernity, innovation, and prestige: it is, in the end, not only the language of politics and economics but also that of science, medicine, acade- m i a , a n d t h e a r t s . U s i n g E n g l i s h t e r m s c a n m a k e products, services, and even concepts seem more cutting- edge and desirable, which is particularly relevant in fash- ion and beauty, industries enced by the global sports- wear market, dominated by brands from English-speak- i n g c o u n t r i e s . T h e t e r m s "trainers," widely used in t h e U K , a n d " s n e a k e r s , " w h i c h w e u s e i n t h e U S , h a v e b e e n p o p u l a r i z e d through international mar- keting campaigns, and Italy just aligned its vocabulary to i n t e r n a t i o n a l t r e n d s t o appeal to a younger, more globalized audience. In professional settings, riunione was the standard Italian word for a meeting or gathering. Yet, "meeting" has become more commonly used, particularly in busi- ness contexts. This shift is p a r t o f a b r o a d e r t r e n d where business jargon has become heavily Anglicized. T h e w i d e s p r e a d u s e o f "meeting" reflects the glob- alization of business prac- tices and the role of English a s t h e l i n g u a f r a n c a i n i n t e r n a t i o n a l c o m m e r c e ; using "meeting" instead of riunione can also suggest a more modern or profession- al setting, matching a corpo- rate culture that frequently uses English terms to fit in t h a t t h r i v e o n t h e l a t e s t trends and a sense of exclu- sivity. Some English terms a r e a l s o s h o r t e r o r m o r e straightforward than their Italian equivalents, making them easier to use in conver- sation and writing. I n t e r n a t i o n a l b u s i n e s s p r a c t i c e s f r e q u e n t l y u s e English as the standard lan- guage, resulting in the adop- tion of many business-relat- ed terms in Italian. While some may view this influx of English terms as a dilution of the Italian lan- guage, others see it as a nat- ural adaptation to a more interconnected and dynamic world: the phenomenon of Anglicisms in Italian high- lights the dynamic nature of language, which continually evolves in response to exter- nal influences. But this lin- g u i s t i c e v o l u t i o n i s m o r e t h a n m e r e b o r r o w i n g o f words; it's also about inte- grating cultural and social elements from the dominant global language. So, as Ital- ian society becomes increas- ingly interconnected with the rest of the world, our language will continue to adapt, incorporating new terms and concepts to reflect these changes. Some people are scared by these changes, as they see them as a sign of cultural d e c l i n e . I a m n o t h e r e t o deny that yes, our beloved country, like many others, h a s b e e n s e t t i n g c u l t u r a l standards lower than ever for its people these days, but t h i s i s n ' t a n I t a l i a n - o n l y problem and not the topic of this piece. Language evolu- tion, though, shouldn't be seen as a threat to linguistic purity, nor as a sign of "cul- tural death:" rather, it is the result of the nature itself of a l l l a n g u a g e s , o r t h e i r resilience and adaptability. The integration of English terms into Italian is a natur- al part of this process, which reflects the way our world has been changing and has made us all closer to one another, in a way we could not even imagine 30 or 40 years ago. aligns Italian fashion vocab- u l a r y w i t h i n t e r n a t i o n a l trends, which are often dic- tated by English-speaking countries and disseminated through global media. N o w , l e t ' s t a l k a b o u t beauty and cosmetics: f a r d w a s t h e t r a d i t i o n a l t e r m u s e d i n I t a l i a n t o describe the product applied to cheeks to enhance their c o l o r . I t c o m e s f r o m O l d French, meaning "paint" or " m a k e u p . " H o w e v e r , t h e English term "blush" has become more prevalent in recent years, showing the influence of the English lan- guage on another key field, the global beauty industry, which frequently uses it to market products. There is something to add, though: it's also a matter of percep- tion. Fard, just like fuseau, s o u n d s o l d - f a s h i o n e d , dowdy even, while the hip- per English term is consid- e r e d m o r e m o d e r n a n d s o p h i s t i c a t e d . S i m i l a r l y , s c a r p e d a g i n n a s t i c a , m e a n i n g g y m s h o e s , a r e often referred to as "train- ers" or "sneakers" today. This change is heavily influ- T h e I t a l i a n l a n - g u a g e , l i k e a l l living languages, c o n s t a n t l y e v o l v e s a n d a d a p t s t o c u l t u r a l s h i f t s , technological advancements, and global interactions. One of the most notable changes i n r e c e n t d e c a d e s i s t h e increasing incorporation of English words, especially in the fields of fashion and leisure. This phenomenon reflects linguistic adaptation and deep cultural and soci- etal influences. English is the language of the world, and all others are adapting to its hegemony. Italian and French, which h a v e m a n y s p e a k e r s , a r e unlikely to suffer an identity crisis because of it anytime soon—loans and calques are a natural way for any lan- guage to evolve and adapt. However, language change trends should be watched closely. In Italy, for instance, the oversimplification of our national language, especially among the younger genera- tions, the quasi-substitution of essential language modes like the subjunctive by sim- pler forms (the imperfect), and the flattening out of our vocabulary are all dangerous markers. Not a topic to dis- cuss in this article today, but let's keep it in mind. No, today, we are talking a b o u t t h e w a y E n g l i s h loans have taken the place of some common words in our language in very recent years, especially in the last two decades. Personally, it was a bit of reverse culture shock because it was one of t h e f i r s t t h i n g s I n o t i c e d after coming back to live in Italy after almost 20 years abroad. I'll give you some exam- p l e s . L e t ' s t a k e t h e o n c e - common term fuseau, bor- rowed from French, which historically referred to tight- fitting pants used primarily f o r p h y s i c a l a c t i v i t i e s o r fashion: in modern usage, "leggings" has almost entire- ly replaced fuseau in Italian, a shift that illustrates the global dominance of English i n f a s h i o n t e r m i n o l o g y , where "leggings" is univer- s a l l y r e c o g n i z e d a n d p r e - ferred. The change, basically, CHIARA D'ALESSIO Anglicization of Italian: is it really a danger for La Dolce Lingua? Remember when you were this small? Some common things may have had another name in Italy back then… (Photo: Orangeline/Dreamstime) CULTURE LANGUAGE IDENTITY TRENDS ROOTS

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