“Ciao,” Italy in a greeting. “Ciao,” a word often repeated, known by many, even abroad. The greeting “ciao” is a clear marker of our language and the best-known Italian word abroad after “pizza,” so common that it is sometimes expressed without ...
speaking at all, with just a wave of the hand…
“Ciao” conveys friendliness, sharing, familiarity, goodwill, and warmth, but it can also express coldness in relationships and even the bitterness of a farewell. Much also depends on tone of voice and facial expression, showing that it is a word that engages one’s whole personality, even in moments of boredom or weariness. The international success of the word “ciao” is also linked to music and to memorable songs—from the early-twentieth-century waltz Ciao, to the partisan song Bella ciao, to Domenico Modugno’s Ciao, ciao, bambina, Luigi Tenco’s Ciao, amore, ciao, and Louis Armstrong’s Ciao, stasera son qui. Italian migration around the world helped spread “ciao” beyond national borders, as did cinema—especially neorealist films and Italian comedies—along with advertising such as Piaggio’s famous Ciao moped and the mascot logo of the 1990 FIFA World Cup held in Italy. Ciao is also the title of a book by linguist Nicola De Blasi, published by Il Mulino, which explores the history and meanings of the term.
The word “ciao” has ancient roots, though its current form has a relatively recent history. It first appeared in a written text in a letter by the Tuscan tragedian Francesco Benedetti, who in 1818 attributed it to the familiar greeting given to him by Milanese audiences when he went to La Scala. The famous Milanese theatre is also linked to an account from the following year, in which the English writer Lady Sidney Morgan mentions this frequent greeting among some spectators. Also from 1818 is a letter written to her husband by the Veronese countess Giovanna Maffei, in which she notes that their young son has learned to pronounce his name and says “ciao to Moti.” “Ciaò, simpaticone” (“Ciao, you charmer”) is the Italian greeting recorded at the end of the nineteenth century in a French novel by Paul Bourget.
The ancient root of the word “ciao” can be traced back to the Latin sclavum, which is in turn linked to slavum, referring to the slavery of Slavic populations in Illyria or Dalmatia, even though the classical Latin term for “slave” is servus. Over the centuries, the word evolved from sclavum to the Venetian s’ciavo (“slave”), eventually becoming “ciao.” In the late Middle Ages, s’ciavo (“slave”) began to be used as a greeting to express respect and the willingness to place oneself at the other’s service. In the Venice of the doges, calling oneself s’ciavo became commonplace: the term extended to relationships of affection and politeness toward women, and to the attitudes of the cavalier servente and the cicisbeo. It also appears in several of Goldoni’s comedies. And servus is still used today as a common greeting in many parts of Central Europe—from Germany to Hungary, from Austria to northern Italy’s Alto Adige.
Today, “ciao” is the most common informal greeting, and it is avoided in formal contexts. Yet its widespread international use is leading to an extension of the term into less familiar relationships as well, partly because those who do not know Italian well tend not to distinguish the hierarchy of social relationships. Nevertheless, “ciao” is perhaps today the word that best expresses an attitude of friendliness, openness, and generosity toward others, beyond national borders and beyond attempts to erect anachronistic and dangerous barriers.
(Felice d’Adamo)
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