The Abruzzo region is so diverse – from its shoreline on the Adriatic coast, to its small quaint towns on the hilltops, to the majestic peaks of the Maiella Mountains, Abruzzo, has it all.

Castello dei Semivicoli – Casacanditella (Chieti)

Two years ago, my wife and I spent a few days in a Casacanditella, a small hamlet perched on an enchanted hill, to admire the Maiella Mountains and the surrounding landscape.  Gabrielle d’Annunzio referred to this location as “Il terrazzo d’Abruzzo”.

The only place one can overnight is at the  Castello dei Semivicoli, a Baronial house with only 10 rooms, built by il Barone Pernicone between the 17^th and 18^th century.

In the early 1980’s Mr Gianni Masciarelli took over the property and started producing selected wines from Montepulciano grapes and turned the home into a Castle for guests to enjoy the wonderful surroundings and great wine.

A few words on the Masciarelli family: Gianni became a great wine producer, but part of the Masciarelli family immigrated to the USA from San Martino sulla Marrucina at the turn of the last century.

In the USA, Anthony Masciarelli, an industrial film producer, changed his last name to Marshall after he arrived in the Bronx.  In 1934 and in 1943 Gary Marshall and Penny Marshall were born and went on to conquer Hollywood.

Whether its wine in Abruzzo or great films in America the Masciarelli family became great producers.

Many restaurants in Italy charge a small fee called “il coperto” to cover the cost of a table set-up such as the tablecloth, napkins, silver ware, bread etc.  However, the origin of this practice started for a different and humble reason that dates back to the Middle Ages.

During this period, many faithful individuals flocked to Rome, from England and France, on a pilgrimage seeking redemption. The easy way to get to Rome was by taking Via Francigena which crossed many towns and finally ended in Rome.

Once the pilgrims crossed the Alps, the villages and towns folks, along the way, offered a safe area under “il portico” to allow the faithful to rest-up and have some food before continuing on their long journey.  The locals, who were very supportive of the pilgrims, would make a collection of food and clothes and bring it to “il portico” as a charitable and honorable act.

Maybe tomorrow’s restaurateurs could collect “il coperto” to fund organizations that want to feed the poor of the world and not use the money to defray their costs.  A new idea from an old custom is still a great action. Meals-on-Wheels is not a bad idea after all isn’t it?

A recent BBC article claims that almost 8,000 universities, in non-English speaking countries, are offering programs entirely in English. Bachelors and master degrees are chosen by over 5 million and, while students once had to travel abroad, they are now staying in their own country to pursue their higher education in English.

Italy is one of these countries where at the University of Milan, the Sapienza in Rome and few others are offering under-graduate and graduate programs entirely in English.

There are nearly 100 million persons in the world speaking Italian but well over a billion speak English. In the financial, Hi-tech, science and other fields the “lingua franca” is undoubtedly English. If Italian millennials hope to compete in a global economy, they better be competitive and master the tongue of the Anglo Saxons.

However, it appears to me that the Italian government agencies and the media are over-extending themselves by arbitrarily choosing English expressions over Italian to communicate with its population. It seems that in Italy it is fashionable these days to utter English words and phrases.

Recently the Italian government took legislative action to reduce employment by easing hiring labor laws to urge employers to hire more staff. This program was labeled in English as “JOBS ACT”.

The Italian Navy placed ads in English to recruit personnel by using such caption as: “Be cool and join the Navy”.   What made the Italian armed forces act so unpatriotic?

Last week a gay couple wanted to adopt a child fathered by one partner while also allowing the mother of the child to retain her motherhood role. This social life anomaly was coined “Stepchild adoption”. All Italian newspapers, TV and radio shows, reported the story by using this English expression. Some reporters even had difficulty pronouncing it.

Italian companies now have “Business Meetings” instead of “una riunuione” and after the meetings obviously there are “Debriefings”.

Italians who need medical attention in a day-clinic must now look for signs saying “DAY HOSPITAL”. In pharmacies you need a “TICKET” to get your prescribed medicine.

On TV, “Notizie della domenica” is now announced as “SUNDAY NEWS” reported by an “Anchorman” sitting behind the “News Desk”. A day dosen’t go by where a multitude of English words penetrate the national media.

On a lighter note, a travel agency in Italy gave a couple a “HOTEL VOUCHER” for a prepaid vacation in a foreign country. It took the couple hours to realize that the name of their hotel was not “Voucher”. I guess the proper documentation should have been called “Buono Alberghiero”.

These are a few examples on how the Italian language is being de-emphasized by individuals who should be proud of Dante’s “Lingua Volgare”, a language that inspired so many musicians, artists, poets and many more. Italians accept new words from other cultures but the over-use of English expressions must be kept under check particularly when the public entities who should oversee abuses are the culprits.

Rosario Mariani