Mar 19, 2010 16:11
14 yrs ago
Italian term
Oje né'
Italian to English
Art/Literary
Poetry & Literature
Neopolitan song
This is the last of the songs I'm translating from Neopolitan dialect to English - and it's also the most difficult. I have a number of questions which I will post in succession. Below is the entire strophe - my question concerns the word né' - does it mean something or is it only an exclamation? And how can I render it.
Oje né', fa' priesto viene!
nun mme fa' spantecá...
ca pure 'a rezza vène
ch'a mare stó' a mená.
Grazie a tutti quelli che mi hanno aiutato prima, e spero mi aiuteranno ancora.
Oje né', fa' priesto viene!
nun mme fa' spantecá...
ca pure 'a rezza vène
ch'a mare stó' a mená.
Grazie a tutti quelli che mi hanno aiutato prima, e spero mi aiuteranno ancora.
Proposed translations
(English)
| 4 +1 | hey girl |
Cedric Randolph
|
| 4 | Baby |
Gerardo Della Greca
|
| 3 -1 | ne' |
JordanLancaster
|
Proposed translations
+1
24 mins
Cedric Randolph
Italy
Italy
Native in Italian
&
English
Works in field
Italy
Reliable, punctual and accurate
Native in: English (Variants: US, UK) 
, Italian
Works in: Italian to English
Related KudoZ points
:
40
Selected
hey girl
..
Note from asker:
| Thank you again Cedric! |
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
-1
1 hr
JordanLancaster
United Kingdom
United Kingdom
Native in English
Works in field
United Kingdom
law student in London
Native in: English
Works in: Italian to English, French to English, Spanish to English, and 1 more.
Related KudoZ points
:
8
ne'
I've looked this up in the Neapolitan-Emglish dictionary but there's nothing listed at all. My next step was to consult the "Grammatica della Lingua Napoletana" (Rusconi) by Aurelio Fierro, where ne' is listed as a "copulative negative conjunciton" meaning that it could be a negative here. Does that work with your understanding of the song??
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Note added at 2 hrs (2010-03-19 18:19:53 GMT)
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As both Therese and Cedric go with a different opinion, I've become curious and intrigued, so back to my faithful "Dizionario Napoletano-Itlaliano" which doesn't include "ne'" but when I checked "oje", gave me the following:
oje = ehi; oje ni' = ehi ragazzo
So from this perhaps we can extrapolate "ne" for "girl"
So I think we're all agreed now that this is the correct translation.
And "oje ne'" occurs in the lyrics of "O sole mio" although it isn't always dealt with explicitly in the various translations I've quickly reviewed on line just now.
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2 hrs (2010-03-19 18:19:53 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
As both Therese and Cedric go with a different opinion, I've become curious and intrigued, so back to my faithful "Dizionario Napoletano-Itlaliano" which doesn't include "ne'" but when I checked "oje", gave me the following:
oje = ehi; oje ni' = ehi ragazzo
So from this perhaps we can extrapolate "ne" for "girl"
So I think we're all agreed now that this is the correct translation.
And "oje ne'" occurs in the lyrics of "O sole mio" although it isn't always dealt with explicitly in the various translations I've quickly reviewed on line just now.
Peer comment(s):
| disagree |
Therese Marshall
: Oje nè = sweet girl - this is a term of affection (sweet child)
39 mins
|
|
OK, I've done more research ;-)
|
6 hrs
Gerardo Della Greca
Native in Italian
Environmental Engineer
Native in: Italian (Variants: Standard-Italy, Neapolitan)
Works in: English to Italian, Italian to English, Spanish to Italian
Baby
I'm from Naples, so I think I can answer
Nè is the short form for "nennella", that is a tender way of calling a little girl , and it's used only in "oje nè" like it is a "vocative case"
Anyway Baby (or even better the slang form babe) fits better rather than girl.
Nè is the short form for "nennella", that is a tender way of calling a little girl , and it's used only in "oje nè" like it is a "vocative case"
Anyway Baby (or even better the slang form babe) fits better rather than girl.
Example sentence:
E tu pe nu capriccio tutto è distrutto ojnè ma Dio nun t'o perdona chelle che è fatt'a mme
Reference:
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