L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 31, 2024 www.italoamericano.org 26 L'Italo-Americano but, of course, without toma- toes, which reached the Old World only after 1492. A n o t h e r t r i c k y w o r d i s lasagna, with its "gn" sound proving difficult for foreign- ers. This famous pasta dish d a t e s b a c k t o t h e M i d d l e Ages and is believed to have e v o l v e d f r o m t h e a n c i e n t Greek word lasana, meaning "chamber pot" or "trivet." In Italy, the dish has many vari- ations, with Lasagne alla Bolognese being one of the most famous. Brioche, which is a Fren- c h , n o t I t a l i a n , w o r d , i s often mispronounced, too. O t h e r n o t a b l e e n t r i e s i n c l u d e s p a g h e t t i , p r o - sciutto, ciabatta, and tira- m i s ù , w h i c h a l s o d r a w a high number of pronuncia- tion searches. Tiramisù is particularly interesting for its literal meaning ("pick me p a i r e d w i t h s p a g h e t t i abroad, much to the dismay of Italians. Third place in the ranking i s h e l d b y p i z z a , w i t h 273,840 annual searches. D e s p i t e b e i n g o n e o f t h e most famous Italian dishes worldwide, it seems the dou- ble "z" causes some trouble f o r n o n - I t a l i a n s p e a k e r s . That said, I've personally never encountered an Eng- lish speaker who struggles with pronouncing "pizza," so I guess it's more of a pro- blem for other nationalities. Next on the list is bru- schetta, which is often mis- pronounced as "bruscetta." This is not only a frequent pronunciation mistake but also commonly misspelled o n m e n u s . T h e e a r l i e s t examples of this delicious street food (or light meal!) came from Ancient Rome up") as well as its popularity as the most googled Italian dessert. Fettuccine and taglia- t e l l e also feature promi- nently on the list: here, I am sorry, but anglophones are as guilty as sin… fettuccinee and tag-leeatellee are too common not to feel almost strangely familiar to Italian ears! Other iconic foods and drinks difficult to pronounce a c c o r d i n g t o t h e P r e p l y research are cappuccino, p a p p a r d e l l e , f a r f a l l e , orecchiette, minestrone, arancini and another Engli- sh language evergreen, cal- zone, more often than not p r o n o u n c e d c a l z - o o n , o r calz-on, mute "e" at the end in both cases, as if it were French. B u t h e y … I t a l i a n s a r e guilty, too. Notoriously bad at all foreign languages — no n e e d t o f e e l o f f e n d e d o n behalf of Italy and its people: I am Italian and I think we would really benefit a lot from knowing languages bet- ter — we, too, have a history of mispronouncing certain foreign dishes. Paella, the famous Spanish rice dish, is t h e m o s t c o m m o n l y searched non-Italian food word with 1,080 searches; most people I know just pro- nounce it as it is written, with the double "l," rather than saying it the Spanish way. Following closely are quinoa (360 searches), a superfood from the Incan diet, and quiche lorraine (120 searches), a dish with German origins despite its French name. At the end of the day, Ital- ian food may be considered a universal love language, but pronouncing the names of some dishes? Not so much! From gnocchi to calzone, even the most enthusiastic f o o d i e s c a n t r i p o v e r t h e words. But — let's not forget i t ! — I t a l i a n s t h e m s e l v e s aren't immune to mispro- nouncing dishes from other c u i s i n e s … B u t , y o u k n o w what? It doesn't really mat- ter: whether you say it right or wrong, what counts is that w e a l l g e t t o e n j o y t h e s e amazing dishes. That said, the next time you're ordering a bruschetta or fettuccine, give it your best shot — even i f i t ' s j u s t t o i m p r e s s t h e waiter! E n g l i s h - s p e a k i n g c o u n - tries—with 368,640 pronun- ciation searches per year. Strange, I thought, it looks pretty straight-forward, but perhaps that accented "u" makes people think it must p r o n o u n c e d i n s o m e q u i r k i e r w a y . P h o n e t i c s apart, it's curious to learn that ragù isn't really an Ita- lian dish, at least not origi- nally: its roots actually lie in the French ragôut, a meat stew that became popular in Italy around the year 1300, when the Pope moved from Avignon to the Vatican. The Italian version was adapted over time, eventually becom- ing the pasta sauce we know today. The original French name was Italianized during the Fascist era, becoming today's ragù. The sauce is t r a d i t i o n a l l y s e r v e d w i t h t a g l i a t e l l e , b u t i t ' s o f t e n E v e r y o n e l o v e s Italian food, but as it turns out, pronouncing the names of some of its most iconic dishes is not as easy as enjoying them. The topic piqued the inte- rest of the people at Preply, a popular online language learning platform designed to help users improve their language skills through per- s o n a l i z e d o n e - o n - o n e lessons with native speakers, and offers courses in a wide range of languages, includ- i n g I t a l i a n , S p a n i s h a n d French, catering to learners of all levels. Preply resear- c h e r s l o o k e d i n t o G o o g l e search data to reveal which Italian food names pose t h e g r e a t e s t c h a l l e n g e t o non-native speakers, and while dishes like pizza and spaghetti may seem straight- forward, others—like gnoc- chi and bruschetta—prove to be tricky. Their list isn't that surpri- sing, at least when looking at first position: topping the list a r e g n o c c h i , c e r t a i n l y a beloved dish but one whose name poses a challenge for n o n - I t a l i a n s , s o m u c h s o there are 544,800 searches annually to learn how to pro- nounce it correctly. I can vouch for how difficult this word can be for non-Italians: during my years abroad and travels, I've heard several variations of it, with "Ghnoc- chi" and "Ghnoshee" being the most common mispro- nunciations. The word "gnocchi" comes from nocca (meaning knuck- le), and the recipe dates back to the Roman Empire (sans potatoes, of course: those a r r i v e d a f t e r C o l u m b u s . Originally, they were made from a simple mixture of flour and water, evolving over the centuries to include ingredients like the already- mentioned potatoes, which ended up becoming a staple after they were introduced to Europe from the Americas. G n o c c h i a r e p o p u l a r t h r o u g h o u t I t a l y , w i t h regional variations like gnoc- chi alla Sorrentina (served with tomato sauce and moz- zarella) in Campania. In second place is ragù— k n o w n a s " B o l o g n e s e " i n Gnocchi: they are delicious but … hard to pronounce! (Photo: Barol16/Dreamstime) I know how to make it, but how do you say it? GIULIA FRANCESCHINI LIFESTYLE FASHION FOOD ARTS ADVICE

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