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THURSDAY, APRIL 17, 2025 www.italoamericano.org 22 L'Italo-Americano T h e I t a l i a n w o r d dunque (doon- k u a i ) i s a c o m - mon conjunction a n d d i s c o u r s e marker, used to indicate con- sequence, inference, or to draw attention in conversa- tion. Its etymology traces b a c k t o t h e L a t i n t u n c ("then," "at that time") which, over time, evolved into the forms dunc or donque in Vul- gar Latin and early Italian, e v e n t u a l l y b e c o m i n g " d u n q u e , " a s n o t e d i n the Tesoro della Lingua Italiana delle Origini and the Grande Dizionario della Lingua Italiana. In contemporary Italian, dunque can function logically — similar to "therefore" or "so" in English — but also pragmatically, to manage dis- course or draw attention, m u c h l i k e " w e l l " o r " n o w then." For example, in a sen- tence like Non c'era nessuno i n c a s a , d u n q u e s i a m o andati via ("There was no o n e a t h o m e , s o w e left"), dunque clearly signals a conclusion. However, it can also appear at the beginning of a sentence to invite reflec- tion or signal a change in topic, as in Dunque, da dove cominciamo? ("So, where shall we start?"). Historically, dunque appea rs frequently in philosophi- 1 (I) have 2 on; up 5 the (feminine) 7 (you/tu) rise 8 island 14 storm 16 chair 19 pipes (for smoking) 20 the (before certain conso- nants); him 21 I 22 me Using the provided meanings as clues, search for the appropriate Italian word in the grid 1 (you/tu) have 3 (he/she) uses 4 (a plural form of) the 6 (I) know 9 seeds 10 lion 11 age 12 oasis 13 (plural of) of the 15 more 16 six 17 (I) give 18 wings cal, rhetorical, and literary texts, especially in contexts requiring structured argu- mentation. Dante and Boc- caccio used it often, and it later became a staple in Ital- ian formal writing. Over the centuries, its tone has soft- ened; while it can still sound bookish or deliberate in writ- ing, it is entirely natural in spoken Italian, particularly i n c e n t r a l a n d n o r t h e r n regions. In the South, people m a y p r e f e r a l l o r a or quindi in informal con- texts. I n t e r m s o f r e g i s t e r , dunque is neutral but leans toward formal or structured speech when used to express logical consequence; in spo- ken Italian, especially among educated speakers, it often adds fluency and cohesion. I t s v e r s a t i l i t y m a k e s i t a favourite among teachers, presenters, and writers. Dunque, hai deciso cosa fare? So, have you decided what to do? H a s t u d i a t o m o l t o , dunque ha meritato il voto. He studied a lot, therefore he deserved the mark. Dunque, come dicevamo prima, il problema resta aperto. So, as we were saying ear- lier, the problem remains unresolved. LA VITA ITALIANA TRADITIONS HISTORY CULTURE Dunque, a small word with a long history © Sebastiangauert | Dreamstime.com 1 shirt 2 river 3 mother 4 man 5 boy 6 girl 7 to run 8 son 9 to hold 10 to talk 11 hand 12 to listen 13 one 14 friend A C R O S S D O W N ITALIAN WORD SEARCH The solution to these word games will be available on the next edition. Games courtesy of Lexis Rex