Trentino–Alto Adige is a region in northern Italy, right on the border with Austria and Switzerland. It has two main provinces:

Trentino, with the capital city Trento (Trent), where almost everyone speaks Italian.

Alto Adige, also called South Tyrol (German: Südtirol), with the capital city Bolzano (German: Bozen), where most people speak German as their first language.

Because of its history, the region is officially bilingual (in fact, trilingual, since Ladin, a local Romance language, is also recognized in some valleys).

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Many towns and cities in South Tyrol have both German and Italian names:

Bolzano / Bozen

Merano / Meran

Bressanone / Brixen

 

This is because South Tyrol was part of Austria-Hungary until 1919, when it became part of Italy after World War I. The local population was mostly German-speaking, but the Italian government wanted to strengthen Italian identity in the new territory.

During the Fascist period (1920s–1940s), Mussolini ordered the Italianization of South Tyrol. German was banned in schools and public life, and all German place names were replaced with Italian ones. These Italian versions were often invented or adapted by the Italian nationalist Ettore Tolomei.

Ostilità verso i dialetti, repressione delle minoranze linguistiche. [Bozen, Bolzano. Trento]

Hostility towards dialects, repression of minority languages.

Captions 4-5, Me Ne Frego Il Fascismo e la lingua italiana - Part 2

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Unless you go there or look at a map, you might only see or hear one version of the place name, the one in the language being spoken at the moment. Can it be confusing? Yes.

Qui, nell'Abbazia di Novacella a Varna in Val d'Isarco, a pochi chilometri da Bressanone, in tanti hanno sostato e trovato ricovero.

Here in the Abbey of Novacella in Varna in the Valley of Isarco, at only a few kilometers from Bressanone [Brixen], many have stopped and found refuge.

Captions 20-23, Itinerari Della Bellezza Trentino Alto Adige - Part 3

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Today, both languages are recognized. Street signs and official documents are in Italian and German. For example, you’ll see “Bolzano/Bozen” on road signs or maps.

💡 Did you know?

Besides Italian and German, a third language is spoken in some valleys of South Tyrol: Ladin.

In Italian, it’s called ladino.

In German, it’s called Ladinisch.

Ladin is not the same as the modern language Ladino (or Judeo-Spanish), which is spoken by Sephardic Jews. The two are unrelated.

Ladin is a very old Romance language, directly descended from Latin, and is still spoken in a few Alpine valleys (for example, the Val Gardena / Gröden and Val Badia / Gadertal). Because of this, South Tyrol is sometimes described as a trilingual province: Italian, German, and Ladin.

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If you hang out in Italy for even just a visit, you are likely to see the word presso written somewhere, and you may or may not hear it. It's not all that easy to figure out, so let's take a look.

These days most folks use email to communicate, rather than mailing letters. This avoids, in many cases, needing to write your address anywhere, except possibly on an immigration form at the airport. But if you do have to write down where you are staying, for example, then you might need presso. One of its very basic meanings is "at" or "in." But that isn't very helpful since we use these prepositions in so many ways.

If, for instance, I am staying at the Hotel Verdi, in Pisa, then I might use presso. It's not my house, but that's where I am temporarily lodged. One dictionary gives this definition for presso:

indica un indirizzo preciso ma non specificato

(it indicates a precise, but not specified address).

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Presso is a preposition, and we can use it to mean in casa di (at the home of), the equivalent of: "in care of," or "c/o," as you would write when addressing an envelope. Maybe you are writing to an exchange student friend staying at the home of a family in Tuscany.

Signorina Giovanna Bossi

     presso la famiglia Bianchi

via Verdi, 4

56036 Forcoli PI

Biancaneve vive presso i sette nani nel bosco.

Snow White lives with the seven dwarfs in the wood.

Caption 11, Ti racconto una fiaba - Biancaneve

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We immediately visualize that Snow White is staying with the dwarfs, or that she is staying at the home of the dwarfs.

1) Your friend is in the hospital and someone asks you where, for example: (dov'è ricoverato Giacomo?): How could you answer?

We can use it to mean "in a place," for example, where you work.

Ciao ragazzi, sono Adriano, un ragazzo italiano di ventisette anni

Hi guys! I'm Adriano, an Italian guy of twenty-seven

e lavoro presso un agenzia di programmatori informatici.

and I work at a computer programing agency.

Captions 1-2, Adriano - Giornata

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Adriano is implying that he also works for this agency. He could have said:

Ciao ragazzi, sono Adriano, un ragazzo italiano di ventisette anni e lavoro in un agenzia di programmatori informatici.

Presso is a bit more formal, a bit more refined.

2) Tu dove lavori/studi (where do you work/go to school)?

Arianna and Erica both used presso when talking about where they went to school.

Mi sono laureata presso l'Università di Perugia

I got my degree at the University of Perugia

in Lingue Straniere per la comunicazione internazionale.

in foreign languages for international communications.

Captions 5-6, Arianna spiega - vivere all'estero

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Quindi mi sono iscritta a, all'indirizzo archeologico

So I enrolled in, in the Archeology course of study

presso l'Università di Pisa.

at the University of Pisa.

Captions 10-11, Professioni e mestieri - Erica - archeologa

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Martina is talking about what she would like to do when she finishes her university studies.

Quando finirò i miei studi, vorrei diventare

When I finish my studies, I would like to become

o perito minorile o giudice onorario presso il tribunale per i minori.

either an evaluator of minors, or lay judge at juvenile court.

Captions 28-29, Serena - presenta Martina

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Daniela teaches some video lessons about writing letters, both formal and informal. She describes a letter applying for a job.

Per esempio io, io, Daniela Rossi,

For example, I, I, Daniela Rossi,

sto cercando un lavoro presso la casa editrice Feltrinelli

am looking for a job at the Feltrinelli Publishing House,

e scrivo al dottor Luca Monti, responsabile del personale,

and I am writing to Doctor Luca Monti, Personnel Manager,

per mandare la mia candidatura

to send in my application

e vedere se c'è una possibilità di lavoro per me.

and to see if there is a possibility of a job for me.

Captions 43-47, Corso di italiano con Daniela - Lettera formale

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We can also use it to mean "among," "in," "for," or "with": 

Presso gli Etruschi, l'aldilà era molto importante.

For the Etruscans, the afterlife was very important.

Lui è partito con... diciamo, all'interno del... di questa,

He set off... let's say, at the center of the... of this,

di questo movimento che

of this, of this movement that

fu chiamato la Nouvelle Cuisine,

was called la Nouvelle cuisine,

ma poi, dopo aver fatto, per esempio, esperienze molto intense

but then, after having had, for example, very intensive experiences

presso le cucine orientali e in particolare la... la cucina giapponese,

with Asian cooking, and in particular... Japanese cooking,

la sua attenzione è stata subito attratta da una delle più grandi cucine...

his attention was immediately drawn to one of the greatest cuisines...

Captions 40-45, L'arte della cucina - L'Epoca delle Piccole Rivoluzioni

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Translating presso isn't always easy, but the important thing is to grasp the idea of what it means. 

3) What if I wanted to say that in Italian, we often leave out the personal pronoun?

Presso as "near," "close by," "by"

Another meaning of presso is "near," "by," "close by."

Il sole splende in Val Rendena

The sun shines in the Rendena Valley

illuminando il fianco destro della chiesa di San Vigilio,

illuminating the right side of the church of San Vigilio

presso il cimitero di Pinzolo.

by Pinzolo's cemetery.

Captions 1-3, Itinerari Della Bellezza - Trentino Alto Adige

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4) Dove ci incontriamo Where shall we meet? You can answer by suggesting the bar near the train station, even if you don't know the name of it.

To conclude:

You can get away without using the preposition presso,  but isn't it nice to able to understand it if someone else uses it? And if you do use it, people will be impressed!

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Possible solutions:

1) È ricoverato presso l'ospedale XXX.

2a) Lavoro presso una scuola di lingue.

2b) Studio presso l'Università di Firenze.

3) Presso la lingua italiana, si può spesso omettere il pronome personale.

I could also say:

Nella lingua italiana, si può spesso omettere il pronome personale.

4) Ci vediamo nel bar presso la stazione.

Ci vediamo al bar vicino alla stazione.

Ci vediamo al bar all'interno della stazione.

Or in Tuscan Italian:

Ci si vede nel bar...

As always, if you have questions or comments about the lesson, we love to hear from you! Write to us at [email protected].