{"id":6800,"date":"2014-08-08T09:54:32","date_gmt":"2014-08-08T09:54:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/italian\/?p=6800"},"modified":"2014-08-08T15:23:24","modified_gmt":"2014-08-08T15:23:24","slug":"di-dove-sei","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/italian\/di-dove-sei\/","title":{"rendered":"Di Dove Sei?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Di dove sei?<\/strong> (where are you from? informal<\/font><\/em>) or di dov\u2019\u00e8?<\/strong> (where are you from? formal<\/font><\/em>, <\/em>or where is he\/she from?) is a question that you\u2019ll often be asked, or want to ask when you visit Italy. For Italians provenienza<\/strong> (provenance\/origin) is very important, and is certainly much higher up the list of things that people want to know about you than the tedious question che lavoro fai?<\/strong> (what job do you do?) that tends to be so important in England, and many other northern European cultures.<\/p>\n

So, how do we answer this question in Italy? Well, we have two choices: in my case I would answer either \u2018sono inglese\u2019<\/strong> (I\u2019m English n.b. it\u2019s not necessary to use a capital letter at the beginning of nationalities<\/font><\/em>) or \u2018vengo dall\u2019Inghliterra\u2019<\/strong> (I come from England). If I wanted to be more precise I could say \u2018sono di Bury St. Edmunds\u2019<\/strong> (I\u2019m from Bury St. Edmunds). Notice that for towns and cities, we use either sono di<\/font><\/u><\/strong>, e.g. sono di<\/u><\/font> Bury St. Edmunds<\/strong> (literally: I\u2019m of<\/u><\/font> Bury St. Edmunds<\/strong>), sono di<\/font><\/u> Firenze<\/strong> (literally: I\u2019m of<\/u><\/font> Florence), or vengo da<\/font><\/u><\/strong>, e.g. vengo da<\/u><\/font> Firenze<\/strong> (I come from<\/u><\/font> Florence) etc. For countries and regions, on the other hand, we only use vengo da<\/font><\/u><\/strong> plus the article, e.g. vengo dagli <\/u><\/font>Stati Uniti<\/strong> (I come from<\/font> the<\/font><\/u> United States), vengo dalla<\/font><\/u> Toscana<\/strong> (I come from<\/u><\/font> Tuscany)<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
\"Pozzuoli\"<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Puteoli (Little Wells) was the ancient name for Pozzuoli near Napoli. The inhabitants of Pozzuoli are still known as Puteolani.<\/strong><\/font><\/em> <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

If I ask the same question of Serena she will reply vengo dall\u2019Italia<\/strong> (I come from Italy), or sono italiana<\/strong> (I\u2019m Italian feminine<\/font><\/em>). To be more precise she could say sono di Lucca<\/strong> (I\u2019m from Lucca), or sono lucchese<\/u><\/strong> (I\u2019m a person from Lucca<\/u><\/em>). In fact in Italy, for every region, city, town and even village there is a way of saying \u2018I’m a person from \u2026\u2019. Let\u2019s have a look at some examples of how we express our provenienza<\/strong> in Italian:<\/p>\n

Regular Forms<\/strong><\/font><\/p>\n

someone from Milano<\/strong> is called milanese<\/strong>
someone from Lucca<\/strong> is called lucchese<\/strong>
someone from Roma<\/strong> is called romano<\/strong>
someone from Perugia<\/strong> is called perugino<\/strong>
someone from Venezia<\/strong> is called veneziano<\/strong>
someone from Firenze<\/strong> is called fiorentino<\/strong>
someone from Palermo<\/strong> is called palermitano<\/strong>
someone from Cagliari<\/strong> is called cagliaritano<\/strong>
someone from Reggio Calabria<\/strong> is called reggino<\/strong>
someone from Parma<\/strong> is called parmigiano<\/strong> (less common parmense<\/strong>)
someone from Reggio Emilia<\/strong> is called reggiano<\/strong><\/p>\n

N.B. words ending in \u2013ese<\/strong>, such as milanese<\/strong> change their ending in the plural, e.g. lui \u00e8 milanese<\/strong> (he is from Milan), loro sono milanesi<\/strong> (they are from Milan). However, words ending in \u2013ano<\/strong> or \u2013ino<\/strong>, such as perugino<\/strong>, change ending depending on both number and gender, e.g.: Roberta \u00e8 perugina<\/strong> (Roberta is from Perugia feminine<\/font><\/em>), Michele \u00e8 perugino<\/strong> (Michele is from Perugia masculine<\/font><\/em>), Roberta e Michele sono perugini<\/strong> (Roberta and Michele are from Perugia masculine plural<\/em><\/font>).<\/p>\n

Irregular Forms<\/strong><\/font> – some of the most well known examples<\/font><\/p>\n

someone from Rieti<\/strong> is called reatino<\/strong>
someone from Gubbio<\/strong> is called eugubino<\/strong>
someone from Caltanisetta<\/strong> is called nisseno<\/strong>
someone from Ivrea<\/strong> is called eporediese<\/strong>
someone from Gubbio <\/strong>is called eugubino<\/strong><\/p>\n

Products – <\/strong>a few well know products that take their name from the town or region of origin<\/font><\/font><\/p>\n

Parmigiano Reggiano fatto nella zona fra Parma e Reggio Emilia, lato sud del fiume Po<\/strong> (Parmesan cheese is made in the zone between the towns of Parma end Reggio Emilia, on the southern side of the river Po)
Grana Padano fatto nella Pianura Padana, lato nord del fiume Po<\/strong> (Grana Padano, similar to Parmesan cheese, is made in the Padana plain, on the northern side of the river Po)
Baci Perugina<\/strong> These famous chocolates come from Perugia. The name of the manufacturer is Perugina, and the name of the chocolates translates as Perugia Kisses
La fiorentina <\/strong>is a T-bone steak that weights between 1 and 1.5 kg. It\u2019s probably the most famous dish from Firenze<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
\"Tropea\"<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Marina \u00e8 d\u2019origine calabrese \u2026 viene dalla Calabria. Photo of Tropea (CC) by <\/font><\/strong>simo0082<\/strong><\/font><\/a><\/font><\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Example Sentences<\/strong><\/font><\/p>\n

Marina \u00e8 d\u2019origine calabrese, ma ora abita in Toscana<\/strong> (Marina is originally calabrese<\/strong> = a person from Calabria<\/font><\/em>, but she now lives in Tuscany)
Paolo \u00e8 italiano, ma abita da tanti anni in Germania e ha molti amici tedeschi<\/strong> (Paolo is Italian, but he\u2019s lived in Germany for many years and has a lot of German friends)
La madre di zio Luciano era romana e il padre era di Vernazza in Liguria<\/strong> (uncle Luciano\u2019s mother was from Rome and his father was from Vernazza in Liguria)
Luca, che abita qua in Lunigiana, \u00e8 d\u2019origine napoletana<\/strong> (Luca, who lives here in Lunigiana, is originally from Napoli)<\/p>\n

You can find more places with the names of their inhabitants HERE<\/font><\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\"\"

Di dove sei? (where are you from? informal) or di dov\u2019\u00e8? (where are you from? formal, or where is he\/she from?) is a question that you\u2019ll often be asked, or want to ask when you visit Italy. For Italians provenienza (provenance\/origin) is very important, and is certainly much higher up the list of things that…<\/p>\n

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