In Italy, they really do. Gestures are used daily as a form of emphasising meaning, and the use of hands can add shading where a word may be lacking. Last week my fantastic Italian teacher, Massimo, decided to give our class the lowdown on this mysterious language, where he genuinely had difficulty speaking certain phrases without the gestures in order to test us! He just couldn’t help but wave his hands around, as if it were another language engrained into him. I’ve decided to share a few of my favourite gesti tipici degli italiani with you, brought to you courtesy of my amazing Firenze family.
Che Vuoi?
One of the most regularly used gestures in Italy: my number one Sicilian friend, Daniela, is asking you (with her face as much as her hands) ‘che cosa vuoi? cosa stai dicendo?’. In other words, ‘what’s your problem? what do you want? what are you saying?’. If you waggle this closed hand back and forth a few times, any native will know what you mean.
Se l’intendono/sono d’accordo
Here, marvellous Miriam is showcasing the gesture for two people ‘being together’ or ‘in agreement’. The underlying tone of ‘something’s going on there’ can be emphasised with a winky face or cheeky grin.
Che delizioso! Che buono!
Kelsey has come all the way across the pond to drill a finger into her cheek on multiple occasions, expressing her contentment with Italian cuisine. If something is yummy, you better let the cook know. What better way than to prod your (now) chipmunk cheeks and exclaim ‘how delicious!’
Oh nooo! Che stupido!
I think my flatmate Claudia has had enough of me. My chat is boring her so much that she is clasping her head, essentially saying ‘you idiot, how stupid are you?!’ without having to open her mouth. I don’t blame her, really…
Ottimo! Bellissimo!
Daniela kisses her fingers and then she tosses them away. Why does she do this? Because she saw my face and decided to say ‘wonderful! beautiful! excellent!’, that’s why. This superlative action works for pretty much anything: I tend to use it for food, but you could even use it if you like someone’s outfit.
Facciamo le corna!
‘Make the horns!’ doesn’t quite translate into English. Essentially, if you see someone pointing their horned hand down towards the ground, what they mean is ‘touch wood!’. Italians are equally as superstitious as us Brits, but don’t go around knocking on wooden tabletops like back at home: that’s a gesture indicating that you think your company is thick (sei dura!)
Che me n’importa? Me ne frego
Daniela sure has these facial expressions down to compliment her dynamic hand gestures. But here, she really couldn’t care less. Literally. She’s saying ‘I don’t care’. On that note, I think I’ll draw this lesson to a close…
Limoncello, Livia & La Dolce Vita 