{"id":584,"date":"2011-01-12T15:51:17","date_gmt":"2011-01-12T15:51:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/italian\/?p=584"},"modified":"2011-01-12T15:51:17","modified_gmt":"2011-01-12T15:51:17","slug":"gli-spauracchi","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/italian\/gli-spauracchi\/","title":{"rendered":"Gli Spauracchi"},"content":{"rendered":"

Most of us, when we were children, had our own spauracchi<\/strong>. Often they lived under the bed or down in the cellar. Mine used to hang out in a dark corner of the landing that I had to pass whenever I needed to go to the bathroom during the night.<\/font><\/p>\n

Every culture has its spauracchi <\/strong>(scary monsters), some are fairly ubiquitous, and others less common. Here are a few that inhabit the Italian peninsular. Let’s begin with those that are known all over the country:<\/font><\/p>\n

Il Babau \u00e8 probabilmente lo spauracchio per eccellenza <\/strong>(the ‘Babau’ is probably the number one scary monster). It hasn’t got a defined form or characteristic, but its name recalls the barking of a dog: "bau bau". "Se non smetti di piangere chiamo il Babau" <\/strong>(If you don’t stop crying I’ll call the Babau) it’s a typical sentence that a parent might say to a child.<\/font><\/p>\n

L’Uomo Nero<\/strong> is a black ghost or a dark hooded menacing figure which takes away naughty disobedient children, especially those who don’t want to go to bed: "Se entro cinque minuti non sei a letto, arriva l’Uomo Nero e ti porta via!" <\/strong>(If you are not in bed in five minutes, l’Uomo Nero will come and take you away!)<\/font><\/p>\n

Il Lupo Cattivo <\/strong>(the Big Bad Wolf) and l’Orco <\/strong>(the Ogre) both like to eat children. They hide behind doors and in places where children are not meant to go: "Stai attento che l\u00ec dentro c’\u00e8 il Lupo Cattivo!" <\/strong>(Be careful because the Big Bad Wolf is in there!)<\/font><\/p>\n

There are many regional variations on spauracchi<\/strong>, some of which are used to scare children away from specific dangers such as forests, deep wells, and excessive heat. Here are some of them:<\/font><\/p>\n

Mazarol<\/strong>, from Belluno (Veneto), is dressed in red, has a long beard, and lives in forests. He kidnaps naughty children by hiding them underneath his long cape.<\/font><\/p>\n

La Scabodda<\/strong>, from Viareggio (Tuscany), is a sort of witch that takes away Christmas presents from naughty children.<\/font><\/p>\n

Lu Lauru<\/strong>, from Puglia, is un folletto dispettoso <\/strong>(a mischievous elf) who sits on the chests of sleeping children.<\/font><\/p>\n

La Manu Longa<\/strong>, also from Puglia, is a clawed hand that grabs children and drags them down into wells.<\/font><\/p>\n

Sa Mamma ‘e Funtana<\/strong>, from Sardinia, lives in wells and marshes, and kidnaps children that get too close to such dangerous places.<\/font><\/p>\n

Sa Mamma ‘e su Sole<\/strong>, also from Sardinia, is an old woman who takes away children that stay outside the house in the hottest hours of the day.<\/font><\/p>\n

If anyone would like to tell us about their own personal, or local spauracchi<\/strong>, please leave a comment below.<\/font><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Most of us, when we were children, had our own spauracchi. Often they lived under the bed or down in the cellar. Mine used to hang out in a dark corner of the landing that I had to pass whenever I needed to go to the bathroom during the night. Every culture has its spauracchi…<\/p>\n

Continue Reading<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":19,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[13324,13322,13325,13323,13321],"class_list":["post-584","post","type-post","status-publish","hentry","category-culture","tag-il-babau","tag-il-lupo-cattivo","tag-italian-scary-monsters","tag-luomo-nero","tag-spauracchi"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t