Which came first, the chicken or the egg? The verb or the noun? Does it matter? No, it doesn't really matter in speaking Italian, but knowing the verb a noun comes from, or the noun a verb comes from can sometimes help us figure out a word we don't know. Or, it can help us remember a new word. In the case of the words discussed in this lesson, we start with a noun.
Il poggio the noun is likely less well-known than the verbs that stem from it. A little research on the etymology tells us that poggio comes from the Latin noun "podium" — a raised platform. Hey! We know the word "podium" in English! Poggio is synonymous with colle or collina (hill), but often refers to a rather small, rounded hill — perhaps a podium-shaped hill, like a bluff...
Sorge isolata su di un poggio la chiesa di Santa Maria a Mevale,
Emerging on a bluff is the remote church of Santa Maria in Mevale
costruita nell'undicesimo secolo in stile romanico,
built in the eleventh century in the Romanesque style,
in cui spicca un portale rinascimentale e il portico a cinque arcate.
in which a Renaissance portal and a five-arch portico stand out.
Captions 1-3, Itinerari Della Bellezza - Umbria
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An expression Tuscans like to use is: poggio e buca fan pari (hill and hole come out even).
Fan is short for fanno (they make).
poggio=salita (hill = climb)
buca=discesa (hole = descent)
salita + discesa = pianura (uphill + downhill = flatland)
There are places that take their name from the noun poggio. They are usually on a hill.
A very famous town (with a famous villa) near Florence is called Poggio a Caiano and one of our Yabla videos takes place in a town called Poggiofiorito (flowering hills):
Scusami, ma c'ho avuto il trasloco da Poggiofiorito e ho fatto male i calcoli.
I'm sorry, but I've moved to Poggiofiorito and didn't gauge it well.
Caption 27, Un medico in famiglia - S1 EP1 - Casa nuova
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You can go a long time in Italy without hearing the noun poggio, but the verbs that come from this noun are much more common. Sometimes verbs are made from nouns by simply adding a verb ending such as -are, -ire, or -ere.
Poggiare certainly exists as a verb. It means "to place."
Marika uses this verb when describing how she stays safe as she looks out from her balcony.
Per affacciarmi al balcone, io poggio le mani sulla ringhiera.
To look out from the balcony, I place my hands on the railing.
Caption 13, Marika spiega - Il balcone
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But appoggiare also exists. In this case the prefix a has been added, with the conventional doubling of the first consonant in the original noun. Appoggiare is a more complex verb and has several literal and figurative meanings. Appoggiare is more about support, about leaning, propping. Think of a ladder you prop against a wall. In the following example, Manara uses it reflexively.
E le impronte sul furgone come le spieghi?
And the fingerprints on the truck, how can you explain them?
Mi ci sono appoggiato così, per caso.
I leaned on it, just like that, by chance.
È reato?
Is that a crime?
Captions 57-59, Il Commissario Manara - S1EP7 - Sogni di Vetro
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And here, Anna, who is talking about her new baby, uses the verb appoggiare three times in the same sentence!
Un altro regalo molto utile che ho avuto dal papà è questo.
Another very useful gift that I had from dad [the baby's dad], is this.
È il cuscino da allattamento,
It's a nursing cushion.
ed è utile perché lo utilizzi sia quando allatti,
And it's useful because you use it both when you nurse,
te lo appoggi qui e non fai fatica con le braccia mentre allatti,
you rest it here, and your arms don't get tired while you nurse,
che per appoggiare il bambino,
and for laying the baby on,
che si appoggia qui come un principino e sta molto comodo.
who leans back here like a little prince and is very comfortable.
Captions 42-47, Anna presenta - La gravidanza
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Rather than using the more general mettere (to put) appoggiare is used to mean "to put down" or "to set down." We could also say "lay something down," implying a certain gentleness.
Posso entrare?
May I come in?
Sì, ecco, ecco.
Yes, here we go, here we go.
Uè, Ada... grazie. Appoggialo pure là, va. -Luca!
Hey Ada... thanks. Go ahead and set it down over there, go ahead. -Luca!
Captions 4-6, Il Commissario Manara - S2EP3 - Delitto tra le lenzuola
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If you play music, you might have heard of the term "appoggiatura": a note of embellishment preceding another note and taking a portion of its time. Now you know where it comes from!
And now we come back to a noun that comes from the verb that comes from the noun. Just like in English, "support" is both a noun and a verb.
In the following example, it's used in a physical way.
Mezzo passo avanti, sbilanci l'avversario
A half a step forward, get the opponent off balance,
e via la gamba d'appoggio.
and away with the supporting leg.
Captions 24-25, L'oro di Scampia - film
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But it can also be figurative.
Proprio perché uomini di sinistra,
Precisely because men of the left,
noi stiamo facendo una battaglia in Parlamento,
we're waging battle in Parliament,
abbiamo anche avuto l'appoggio del ministro Brambilla.
we've even had the support of minister Brambilla.
Captions 48-49, Animalisti Italiani - Walter Caporale
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We've gone from the Latin noun "podium" to the ups and downs of Tuscan hills, to propping up a baby, setting down a tray, to playing music, to judo, and to politics. Whew!
In a recent video, Marika shows us the balcony of her apartment in Rome, so let’s talk about a couple of details concerning Italian life that come to the fore as she takes us around.
Il bucato (the laundry):
In the United States, there are laundry rooms in the basement of a house or apartment building, but this is rare in Italy. People have their own washing machines, usually in the kitchen, bathroom, or on the balcony.
Quando ho finito di usare la lavatrice
When I've finished using my washing machine
e devo stendere i miei panni,
and I need to hang out my laundry,
userò lo stendibiancheria, che è questo.
I'll use the drying rack, which is this one.
Captions 41-42, Marika spiega - Il balcone
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Some people have dryers but most ordinary people don’t. That’s why Marika talks about the drying racks. You buy the one that suits the space you have. The weather is usually such that you can dry your clothes outside. Occasionally, you do need to put the drying racks inside because of inclement weather, or you can place a plastic tarp over the rack to keep the rain out. There are laundromats in town, so if the weather is too bad, you can dry your clothes at the laundromat. Laundry in Italy is something that takes a little thought and planning. Electricity costs less at night, on weekends, and on holidays, so people who want to save do their laundry on the weekend, or at night. Newer washing machines have timers so you can schedule the wash to start at an appropriate time. A load of wash takes a lot longer to finish than you may be used to. It’s not unusual for a cycle to take an hour and a half.
La raccolta differenziata (recycling):
We say “recycling” but actually, what raccolta differenziata (differentiated collection) actually means is separating our garbage into different types to be collected, thus the term “differentiated.” It’s a bit tricky for people who live in apartments.
Per fortuna anche qui, come in tanti posti del mondo,
Luckily, here too, as in many places in the world,
si fa la raccolta differenziata.
we do recycling.
Caption 17, Marika spiega - Il balcone
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All the wrappers for food and other materials, usually made of plastic, but also including Tetra Paks and cans, go in one bin. Paper and cardboard go in another, glass in another, and most importantly, the wet stuff, usually food waste, goes in a separate container. What cannot be recycled in any way goes into the general, mixed garbage, or indifferenziata. We are encouraged to keep this type of waste to a bare minimum. Separating the different kinds of waste makes it much easier for the sanitation department workers to go through it and sort it further. Appropriate material will then be actually recycled. People who live outside the city, and have enough space, can get a bio-composter (usually free of charge) so they can recycle their own food and gardening refuse.
The European Parliament has set goals for reducing waste as far as possible. The method that has had the most success is what is called porta a porta (door to door) collection. Every day, a different kind of waste is picked up. At the outset, it costs more, but as it takes hold, people can actually save money.
Zanzariere (mosquito screens):
In the United States, most houses have screen doors and screens on the windows, but in Italy, this is a relatively recent phenomenon. There are all kinds of solutions, from screen curtains with magnets or velcro, to mosquito nets, to proper screens fitted into the windows and doors. They are usually the type that can be easily raised and lowered so people can air their bedspreads and pillows, and shake out their rugs, rags and dust mops from the windows.
Questa alle mie spalle si chiama zanzariera
This, behind me, is called mosquito netting [screen],
e serve per proteggermi dagli insetti.
and serves to protect me from insects.
Captions 6-7, Marika spiega - Il balcone
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If you travel to Italy in the summer, it can be wise to make sure the hotel or Bed and Breakfast you are staying in has screens on the windows and French doors. It may not be a given.
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