Lu Sicilianu … Its Origins and Evolution

Tom Verso (October 30, 2014)

The education system is THE most important instrument in the Terroni-izing process (as per Pino Apriel’s book "Terroni" and discussed repeatedly on this blog) whereby the history and culture of a society is obliterated from the minds of the population. For example, the most effective way to destroy the language of a people and replace it with another is through the school system. The Terroni-ization of southern-Italian Americans (a process of obliterating southern Italian history and culture from their minds) is effectively done by the American university system which precludes the study of the history and culture of societies south of Rome, either by foisting Tuscan-ism on to students as in "Italian Studies" programs, or completely ignoring Meridionale history and culture as in “Italian American Studies” programs. /// /// If it should ever come to pass that a Patria Meridionale Studies program is implemented in an American post-secondary school, then one of many topics of study would be the history of southern Italian languages (e.g. Sicilian, Neapolitan, Apulian, etc.). /// /// As historical studies, the objective of such studies would not necessarily involve fluency in the respective languages; rather, as social histories of languages, students would come to understand the social factors that brought the language into existence, caused it to evolve, and again passing out of existence. /// /// In as much as culture is embodied and communicated with language, such an historiographic approach to languages would necessarily immerse the student in the history and culture of primordial southern-Italian Americana. /// /// The ground work for such a course in the 'History of the Sicilian Language' has be prepared by Legas Publishing’s books such as Privitera’s “Sicilian the Oldest Romance Language”, Cipolla’s “Siciliana”, and many others. /// The purpose of this essay is to expand upon their work by presenting material on the subject developed by great classical scholars Edward A. Freeman, Arnold J. Toynbee and others.

Tools

Professor Joseph F. Privitera in his excellent book "Sicilian The Oldest Romance Language" posits the origins of the Sicilian language (proto-Sicilian) with the arrival of Romans during and after the Punic War (264-241 B.C.) bringing with them their Vulgar Latin. He writes:

“Vulgar Latin introduced by these early [Roman] settlers and soldiers had rapidly begun to develop into what we would today identify as Proto Sicilian. (Kindle Locations L 126-127)

The simple facts of history tell us that Sicilian is the oldest Romance language, older than Italian, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, or any other Latin spin-off. (L 138-139)

However, it may be that the origin of the Sicilian language lies further back in history than Privitera believes. Like Privitera, Ignizio Sucato thinks Sicilian is the oldest Romance Language. However, he dates its origin back to the original Sicilians circa 1,000 B.C.

Gaetanno Cipolla, in his outstanding book "Siciliana" writes:

“Ignazio Sucato in his La lingua siciliana, believes that Sicilian is the oldest of the Romance languages.

He argues that the Siculi … spoke a language that was very similar to the Latin of the Romans. Thus the language of the Siculi developed along the same line as Latin and eventually became a Romance language. (L 2089-2093).

Professor Cipolla does not develop the details Sucato’s argument and non so italiano. Accordingly, I cannot read and come to know the empirical and logical basis of Sucato’s conclusion. However, I find in the following English language texts evidence and rational supporting Sucato’s thesis that the Sicilian language originated circa 1,000 B.C.

In his profoundly well source and scholarly documented "The History of Sicily from Ancien Times", E. A. Freeman posits a fascinating and provocative thought. He writes:

“It may be that Ducetius and Frederick, could they have come across one another, might here and there have seen the likeness in a word or two of each other's native speech…” (vol. 1, p.132)

Specifically, Ducetius was the fifth century B.C. Sicel leader who twice led a Sicel unification movement and Frederick II was the thirteenth century A.D. King of Sicily.

The obvious question that comes to mind: What common language could these two men separated by over sixteen hundred years have shared? In a word … LATIN!

It seems that the Sicels came to Sicily circa 1000 B.C from southern Italy. Based on Greek source documents (e.g. Thucydides), Freeman writes:

“The Sikels crossed the straits from the mainland to the island about three hundred years before the first settlements of the Greeks [i.e. Greeks 734 B.C, ergo Sicels circa 1,000 B.C]” (vol. 1, p.128)

Further, while there is scant evidence of the Sicel language, there is significant agreement among classical scholars that there is enough to conclude the high probability that the Sicel language was Latin.

Freeman writing in 1891:

“No great amount of their language is handed down to us ... but we have Sikel words which are so plainly Latin that it is hardly needful to argue the point at any length... they were a Latin people, speaking a Latin tongue. (vol. 1 p 125-26 emp.+)

Two generations later another very highly qualified classical scholar agreed.

Toynbee writing in 1954:

“[Before the Roman unification of Italy] languages of the Latin type were spoken by three peoples: the Sicel natives of Sicily, the Ligurians in the North-Western Apennines and Maritime Alps, and the Latins and Falisci in the lower basin of the River Tiber.

“The fragmentary surviving relics of the Sicel language ... appear to the writer of this Study [Toynbee] … the evidence proves conclusively that the Sicels' mother tongue was virtually identical with Latin …” (“Study of History” vol. 8, p. 704 emp+)

Thus, Freeman is suggesting that both the Sicel revolutionary ‘would-be-king’ of Sicily Ducetius spoke Latin (in some form), as did Frederic II the King of Sicily.

[Note: for a discussion of Ducetius revolutionary efforts see Article # 1 in the Related Articles box]

Sicel Latin vs. Colonial Greek

What is surprising about Freeman’s suggestion of linguist commonality between fifth century B.C. and thirteenth century A.D. Sicilian Latin speakers is that histories of Sicily often indicate that the Greek language had displaced the Sicel Latin before Ducetius (i.e. before circa 450 B.C.), and the Romans reintroduced Latin when Sicily became apart of the Roman Empire (circa 260 B.C.).

For example, Toynbee writes:

"During the first bout of the Romano-Carthaginian War (264-261 B.C.)… by this date, the non-Greek populations of Sicily had been Hellenized, long ago, through its intercourse with the numerous and powerful Greek colonies round the coasts of the island.

“The Sicels, Sicans, and Elymi in Sicily had already Hellenized themselves in the Pre-Alexandrine Age [before circa 325 B.C.] to the extent of adopting the Greek language in place of their mother-tongue... (“Hannibal’s Legacy” vol. 2, p.421 emp.+)

Even after the Romans conquered Sicily, the Greek language and culture prevailed. Toynbee:

“By 241 B.C. Romans had conquered Sicily... the ascendancy of the Hellenic culture survived the extinction of Greek rule... they [Romans] became philhellenes” (Ibid, p. 422 emp.+)

“Throughout the Post-Alexandrine Age of Hellenic history, the public that spoke, wrote and read the Greek language was numerous and widely extended; and it is not surprising that, when the Romans first came into direct contact with this imposing Hellenic World, they should have wished to communicate with it by writing for it in its Greek lingua franca.” (Ibid, p. 422-3 emp.+)

Importantly and more specifically, Toynbee is referring to the linguistic character of the Roman Empire’s literati (i.e. those who “wrote and read Greek”)… not the illiterate proletarian! He writes:

"From the third century B.C. onwards until perhaps half-way through the third century A.D., every highly-educated Roman was as familiar with Greek as every highly-educated Netherlander, German, or Englishman was with French in the eighteenth century of the Christian Era. (Ibid, p.424 emp.+)

"[For example], the successful histories of Rome in Greek were written, for the Greek-speaking public, not by Roman but by a series of Greek historians [e.g. the Sicilian Diodorus Siculus circa 50 B.C.] ... a long list extending over a time-span of eight or nine centuries. (Ibid, p.429 emp.+)

In short, the overwhelming amounts of ancient source documents produced by or about Sicilians from the third century B.C. to the third century A.D. demonstrate beyond a doubt that Greek was the language of Sicilian literati.

However, while there is no doubt that the Sicilian literati spoke and wrote Greek through the third century A.D., it does not logically follow that the Sicilian masses spoke and wrote Greek.

By way of an analogy, in late nineteenth century Sicily the literati spoke, wrote and read the Tuscan Italian national language. But, the illiterate masses spoke Sicilian. Professor Gaetano Cipolla, in his outstanding book "Siciliana" writes:

“In 1861, Tuscan became the de facto language of choice for government bureaucracies to communicate with the people, the courts, and poets and writers who wanted to reach a larger audience.

“The rest of the people carried on their daily affairs in their native languages. (Kindle Locations L 2064-2066 emp.+)

This means that from the time Sicilian was born as a language until well into the 20th century the great majority of Sicilians—the situation was not different in other regions of the South like Calabria, Basilicata and Apulia— had only one language at their disposal: Sicilian. And since 85% were illiterate, Sicilian remained for them essentially an oral medium of communication. (L 2073-2076 emp.+)

Similarly, even though all ancient source documents coming down from ancient Sicily are written in Greek or Roman Latin, it is reasonable to infer the probability that the descendants of the Sicels living in Roman times (like the Sicilians post-Risorgimento) were still speaking some form of their original language.

Empirical Evidence supporting this probability takes the form of the isolated Sicel communities that never fully integrated into the Greek and Roman society.

For example, Freeman informs us that the Sicels lived in isolated hill top towns down to the twentieth century. He writes:

“It is wonderful how long a list we can put together of places which are recorded as Sicel sites. Not a few of them grew into considerable towns, towns which play a considerable part in history …” (Ibid vol.1, p. 136 emp.+)

“[The Sicel] tills the fruitful ground, he grows rich in flocks and herds and honey; but, like his successors to this day, the center of Sicel life was the fortified town, however small, perched on its hill-top. (p.137 emp.+)

“The history of the Sicels is no small part of the history of the island which was specially theirs. It was not without fitness that the island bore their name and not that of any other of its inhabitants.

“The Greek-speaking people of Cicero’s time [circa 100 B.C.] must have been made up of many elements strangely unlike each other; but, if heads could have been counted, the Sicel element must have outnumbered every other. (p.194 emp.+)

Athough Freeman implies that the Sicels were "Greek-speaking people", there are no written records to confirm this. Further, given the isolation of the Sicel towns ("perched on a hill--top") from the Greek city-states, it is reasonable to infer (based on the post-Risorgimento model above) that their language remained largely unchanged; similarly, during the Roman period.

Also note, Freeman writes: “to this day” i.e. 1891 the date of his books publication and at the time of the great Sicilian migration to America. This is to say: there was a continuous Sicilian cultural tradition from the second millennium B.C. (when the Sicels arrive on the island) down to twentieth century when the Sicilians left the Island for “Little Italy”).

Is it not possible that ‘cultural tradition’ included a ‘linguistic tradition’ also?

This to say: was the Sicilian language the immigrants brought to American essentially the language spoken by their primordial Sicel progenitors?

Latin Roman and Sicel

Note: Toynbee above refers to the dominance of the Greek language from third century B.C. down to the third century A.D.

While Greek was dominant in literati cultural writing, Latin was the language of government and military. Toynbee writes:

“The Romans showed restraint in the imposition of Latin as an official language in provinces of their empire in which Greek was either the mother tongue or the established lingua franca.

“They contented themselves with making Latin the exclusive language of military command for units of the Imperial Army, wherever recruited and wherever stationed, and the principal language of municipal administration for colonies of Italian origin on Greek or oriental ground. (“Study of History” vol. 7, p. 245 emp.+)

However, beginning in the third century B.C., by the third century A.D. Latin began to assert itself as both the language of governance and culture.

“The Latin language did not begin to acquire a fixed literary form till more than half way though the third century B.C.” ("Hannibal" vol.1, p.539 emp.+)

“The literature written in the Romans’ mother-tongue was a cultural by-product of Rome’s military and political success … A literature has seldom been conjured into existence, as Latin literature suddenly was … (Ibid vol.2 p 432 emp.+)

“The creation of a Latin literature was an extraordinary achievement …The Roman People jumped, at one bound, from being barely literate in the Latin language, to acquisition of a literature written in the Latin language… (Ibid vol.2, p. 433 emp.+)

However, once again one has to take into consideration what Toynbee is referring to with the phrase “Roman People”. Clearly, it was the literate elite and not illiterate masses. Indeed, he makes the distinction between the “classical language” and vulgate. He writes:

"... Latin in its vulgarization from the classical language of the Augustan Age [e.g. Vergil, Horace, Livy, etc.] to the 'Dog Latin' that was handed down through the slums and the 'ergastula' of the western provinces of the Roman Empire to an affiliated Western Christian Society…” ("Study" vol. 5 p.495 emp.+)

In sum … Sicel Language through circa 500 A.D.

The language history of Sicily from circa 1,000 B.C. down to the end of the Roman Empire (circa 500 A.D.) consists of essentially three languages: (1) Sicel Latin (2) Greek (3) Roman Latin (classical & “Dog”).

There is a tendency to represent the history of the three linearly; i.e. from Sicel Latin … to Greek … to Roman Latin.

However, as the above indicates, there was no clear transition one to the other. In fact, by the end of the Roman Empire, it is certain that both Greek and Latin were functional and the reasonable probability that Sicel Latin was still used in Sicilian mountain towns.

The question is: Did some form of that Sicel Latin come down to circa 1900 A.D.?

{Note: The language configuration of Sicily during Roman times was further complicated by the mass importation of slaves from various parts of the Empire.

For example, Eunus who lead the first slave revolt circa 135 B.C. at Enna was Syrian. However, the implications of those languages may not be significant.

For example, I don’t know that African slave languages affected American English idiom.

But, the role of slave languages in Sicily is an empirical issue to be researched.}

Norman Sicily … Lu sicilianu: Oldest Romance Language ?

By circa 1100 A.D. Sicily had completed the transition from a Roman Empire colony to a unique and distinctive Mediterranean society. However, the remnants of its 2,100-year history were very much present. The previous dominance of Greeks, Roman and Arabs were obvious in architecture, language, etc.

Sicily at that time was also a chrysalis, from which much of the culture of future Western Civilization would emerge … Romance Languages for example.

As noted above, Messrs. Privitera and Sucato think that Sicilian was the oldest Romance language originating respectively circa 260 B.C. or 1,000 B.C.

However, Professor Toynbee presents a serious contradictory argument:

“It was the Lombard immigration into Sicily that converted the Sicilians to the Romance language which they speak at the present day (1954 A.D.)

“It is remarkable that the Greek language in Sicily should have succumbed to the intrusive Romance language of Lombardy under the Norman and Hohenstaufen regimes after having survived the impact of Latin under the Roman Empire and the impact of Arabic under the Aghlabid regime

“The first Lombard colony in Sicily of which there is a record dates from A.D. 1145. An examination of the Romance dialects of Sicily shows that the colonists must have been drawn from Liguria and the Po Basin, as well as from Apulia.” ("Study" vol. 8, p.459, fn 1, emp.+)

Toynbee is not claiming scholarly authority on the subject of the Lombards in Sicily. Rather he cites as his source:

(Chalandon, F. : Histoire de la Domination Normande en Italie et en Sicile (Paris 1907, Picard, 2 vols.), vol. I, p. 349) ... Google e-book version at (https://archive.org/stream/histoiredeladom00chalgoog#page/n60/mode/1up in sicily director) ... [note: page 349 = e-book page 456]

Like the chain of evidence in criminal procedures, Chalandon in turn cites the prolific French scholar Hugues Falcand and the Sicilian scholar Michele Amari

In as much as I do not know French, I resorted to Google Translation of the Chalandon text. Google of course is limited in translation perfection, especially text that is over 100 years old. However, I believe one can get the ‘gist’ of Chalandon’s meaning via Google.

Accordingly, below is a two-column table: on the left Chalandon’s French and on the right the Google translation. Below the table are my thoughts.

p 349

Doit-on attribuer au comte Roger de ces colonies lombardes, dont nous constatons l'existence au milieu du XII siecle, dans diverses villes de Sicile, a Butera, Piazza, Randazzo, Vicari, Capizzi, Nicosia, Maniaci. …(fn.2 Hugues Falcand)

A plusieurs reprises Falcand parle des Lombards habitant la Sicile. Se basant sur le temoignage s'Ibn el Athir, Amari a suppose que des bandes d'aventuriers italiens s'etaient joints aux conquerants, et a releve dans des diplomes les noms d'un certain nombre de personnages dont l'origine italienne ne saurait etre douteuse.

L'etude des dialectes de certaines regions de la Sicile a confirme l'hypothese emise par l'auteur de la Storia dei musulmini.

La parente de ces dialectes avec ceux de la Ligurie, de l'Emilie, du Piemont, de la Pouille, permet de constater qu'il y a eu en Sicile, en dehors des colnonies de marchands venitiens, genois ou amalfitains, un nombre considerable d'immigrants venus un peu de toutes les parties de l'Italie

p 350

L'absence de documents ne permet pas d'etablir si cette immigratio à eu lieu sous Roger Ier ou sous Roger II.

Toutefois, un fait certain, c'est que celle-ci ne s’est pas produite en un jour; nous la voyons même se continuer au XIII siecle.

Neanmoins, il serait probable que c'est au moment de la conquete que les bandes de lombards ont du venir en plus grand nombre; comme d'autre part nous vouons le comte Roger se preoccuper d'attirer des habitants dans l'ile, depeuplee par une longue serie de guerres, et prendre des mesures pour creer de nouveaux centres de population, on peut, semble-t-il, admettre que c'est sous son regne que l'immigration lombarde a commence.

p 349

Must be attributed to Count Roger of the Lombard colonies, we find the existence in the mid-twelfth century, in various cities of Sicily, has Butera, Piazza, Randazzo, Vicari, Capizzi, Nicosia, Maniace. …. (in fn.2, Chalandon cites Hugues Falcand as his authority)

On several occasions speaks Falcand Lombard inhabitants of Sicily. Based on the testimony to Ibn el Athir, Amari guess bands Italian adventurers were joined conquerors, notes and diplomas in the names of a number of characters whose Italian origin not be doubtful.

The study of dialects of certain regions of Sicily confirms the hypothesis emitted by the author [Amari] of the Storia dei musulmini

The parent of these dialects with those of Liguria, Emilia, Piedmont, from Apulia, indicated that there was in Sicily, outside colonies of venetian merchants, genoa or Amalfi, a considerable number immigrants to come a little from all parts of Italy

p 350

The absence of documents does not allow to establish whether this immigration held under Roger I or under Roger II.

However, a certain fact is that it does not happen in a day; we see even continue in the thirteenth century.

Nevertheless, it is likely that this is the time of the conquest of Lombard bands that have come to the greatest number; secondly as we dedicate Count Roger be concerned to attract people in the island depopulated by a long series of wars, and take action to create new centers of population, we can, it seems admit that it was under his reign that the Lombard immigration began.

Chalandon cites a very impressive list of Falcand references on the subject of immigration into Sicily from other parts of Italy and the affect on language. Seemingly, the French scholar Falcand is claiming to have access to historic source documents supporting the thesis that Lombards immigrated to Sicily.

Importantly, Falcand’s contention seems to be supported by the Sicilian scholar Michele Amari’s renowned book “Storia dei Musulmani di Siclia”

The specific Lombard settlements cited in the Chaladon text above are shown on the map below.

Privitera vs Toynbee et al

Professor Privitera, drawing on the works of Cipolla, Camilleri and Giarrizzzo, has provided us with a brilliant linguistic study of the Sicilian language spoken circa 1900 A.D. In a 5,000-word sample of 250,000 Sicilian words, he writes:

“ I have made a count of all the Sicilian words listed by Giarrizzo, which are derived from Latin, Greek, Spanish, Arabic, French, Old Provençal and Catalan.

I was amazed to discover the following: of the approximately 5,000 Sicilian words,

733 were derived from Greek,

664 from Spanish,

303 from Arabic,

318 from French,

83 from Old Provençal and

107 from Catalan.

The remainder were derived from Latin. The derivation breaks down as follows:

Derived from Latin: 2792

Derived from Greek, Spanish, Arabic, French, Old Provençal and Catalan: 2208

Therefore, of the approximate total of 5,000 words, 2792, just barely over half, were derived from Latin: the remaining 2208, just under half, were derived from Greek, Spanish, Arabic, French, Old Provençal and Catalan. (Kindle Locations 1701-1717)

The most important fact about this list vis a vis the above discussion about the role of Lombard influence on the Sicilian language is … Hello!

There are no words of Lombard origin in the Privitera sample.

How does one explain this discrepancy?

Clearly Toynbee et al are scholars par excellence. Why do they claim that northern Italian languages had significant affect on the Sicilian language?

To my mind the differences of scholarly conclusions turn, AGAIN, on the difference between spoken and written language. Whenever discussing language in any society, before the introduction of mass media and education, that distinction must be kept in mind.

I think Toynbee et al. are talking about the written language of Sicily in Norman times. However, the masses of Sicilians at that time were illiterate. So we have no record of the characteristics of their language.

Coming down to circa 1900 A.D., the masses of Sicilians were still illiterate. However, scholars such as Privitera were both literate and also fluent in the Sicilian "Dog" language of the masses, and differentiate between the two.

In conclusion

There is some reason to believe that the Sicilian language spoken in Sicily at the time of the great emigration, the language brought to America’s Little Italy enclaves, was essentially the same language spoken at least since circa 260 B.C. and perhaps back as far as 1,000 B.C.

However, the most important fact to be taken way from the above is NOT linguistic … rather, pedagogic. Sicilian Americans and more generally southern-Italian Americans, have a very long, very complex and VERY Intellectually Challenging cultural history that is completely ignored in the Terroni-izing American university system, that systematically and conscientiously ignores our history and culture; foisting on us a Terroni-izing cultural lobotomizing Tuscan education.

For example, while there have been a half-dozen or more English translations of Manzoni’s novel The Betrothed, which has generated a cottage industry of dissertations, journal articles and universtiy courses; the corpus of Michele Amari's historiograhic works, with one exception (“La Guerra del Vespro Siciliano”) remains untranslated and most importantly untaught in the American university system (see Related Articles box #4). Could this be construded as insulting to near five million Sicilian Americans?

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if at least one American university offered a Meridionale Studies program comparable to and offsetting the dozens of Terroni-zing Tuscany Italian Studies programs at our most renowned universities?

Savor the irony!
Washington Square Park in Manhattan is arguably the geographic center of the largest concentration of southern-Italian Americans (i.e. New York / New Jersey Metro area). It is also on the doorstep of THE most renowned American university Tuscan Studies program and THE most famous Italian Casa; i.e. the places where the crème de la crème of Italian American promineti rub shoulders with Northern Italian diplomats and haberdashers … Go Figure!

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