My Thoughts — Be proud!

Be proud of your Italian heritage

 

By Rich Luongo

I'm second-generation Italian-American (my mother was born in Jersey City, my father in Italy) and I'm proud of my heritage and all that Italians have done for the world, especially for America. We are also the sixth largest ethnic group in the country but contribute an inordinate amount of culture and music and culinary diversions…among other wonderful things.

So I find it disheartening when I see names of Italian-Americans being mispronounced and bastardized by the people who belong to the names. Some are second-generation like me and others are third or fourth. Everything having to do with the correctness of the Italian language is brutalized.

Why are these people ashamed of their heritage? I say "ashamed" because that's the only word I can use to explain why they destroy their fine Italian names. And when I point out to some that their name is being mispronounced I'll be told everything from "that's the way we pronounce it" to "well, we're Americans" to "mind your own business."

Well, it is my business and I will continue to point out the error of their ways.

When you listen to an Hispanic pronounce his or her name, it is done precisely in correct grammatical terms.  When you hear them mouth a Spanish word, it is done correctly, according to Spanish grammar. They could be speaking the precise King's English but when they switch to a Spanish word or phrase, all of a sudden, they sound like they just landed on a boat from Latin America. Why is this? Apparently they have respect for their heritage. Apparently, many Italian-Americans do not or they want to divorce themselves from negative publicity associated with some Italians. So, they "Americanize" their names. (To really Americanize a name, try using one from the Apache language or Lenape or Seminole...they have true American names.)

I know people who have spelled their Italian names to mock English spelling and pronunciation. For instance, in Italian, the letters "ch" sound like "k." I know of people who changed the spelling of their last names by replacing the "ch" with "k" so people wouldn't be confused on how to pronounce the names. Wonderful. But by so doing you lose the essence of your heritage: your name.

Minor points, you might ask? I don't think so. Keeping your heritage and your language alive are important for everyone, not just Italians. Let's take a lesson from our Hispanic cousins: Keep your language alive, at least in your own heart.

By the way, do you know the original Latini were and are Italians? The Italian peninsula spoke Latin as the official language and was the language of the Roman Empire. How Hispanics were able to usurp the Latin phrase as meaning only those of Hispanic origin is a mystery to me. But I know better. As an Italian I am a Latino, precisely because my ancestors spoke Latin. They didn't come from a country called Latin, which the phrases "Latin community" and "Latin America" imply.

But I'll leave that for another time.

Why are these people ashamed of their heritage? I say "ashamed" because that's the only word I can use to explain why they destroy their fine Italian names. And when I point out to some that their name is being mispronounced I'll be told everything from "that's the way we pronounce it" to "well, we're Americans" to "mind your own business."

Well, it is my business and I will continue to point out the error of their ways.

When you listen to an Hispanic pronounce his or her name, it is done precisely in correct grammatical terms.  When you hear them mouth a Spanish word, it is done correctly, according to Spanish grammar. They could be speaking the precise King's English but when they switch to a Spanish word or phrase, all of a sudden, they sound like they just landed on a boat from Latin America. Why is this? Apparently they have respect for their heritage. Apparently, many Italian-Americans do not or they want to divorce themselves from negative publicity associated with some Italians. So, they "Americanize" their names. (To really Americanize a name, try using one from the Apache language or Lenape or Seminole...they have true American names.)

I know people who have spelled their Italian names to mock English spelling and pronunciation. For instance, in Italian, the letters "ch" sound like "k." I know of people who changed the spelling of their last names by replacing the "ch" with "k" so people wouldn't be confused on how to pronounce the names. Wonderful. But by so doing you lose the essence of your heritage: your name.

Minor points, you might ask? I don't think so. Keeping your heritage and your language alive are important for everyone, not just Italians. Let's take a lesson from our Hispanic cousins: Keep your language alive, at least in your own heart.

By the way, do you know the original Latini were and are Italians? The Italian peninsula spoke Latin as the official language and was the language of the Roman Empire. How Hispanics were able to usurp the Latin phrase as meaning only those of Hispanic origin is a mystery to me. But I know better. As an Italian I am a Latino, precisely because my ancestors spoke Latin. They didn't come from a country called Latin, which the phrases "Latin community" and "Latin America" imply.

But I'll leave that for another time.

Comments

[ALBERT LUONGO]

Hey Rich I had a customer from Wisconsin with the last name Signore.I had to call him at work and I asked for Mr. Signore, they said no one worked there by that name.Than I pronounced his name Signor they put me right through. When I asked him for the proper pronunciation of his name he gave me Signor.I asked if he was ITALIAN he thought he may be.AL LUONGO