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LANGUAGE AND CULTURE

Italian word of the day: ‘Vigilia’

This one's for everyone who can't wait for Christmas.

Published: 24 December 2019 10:58 CET
Updated: 24 December 2022 08:48 CET
Vigilia on a black background with the Italian flag
Photo: Annie Spratt/Unsplash/Nicolas Raymond

Christmas is so close you can smell it – perhaps literally, if you’re in one of the parts of Italy where they celebrate on December 24th, known as la Vigilia di Natale, or simply la Vigilia.

The word comes from the same root that gave us ‘vigil’ and ‘vigilant’ in English, meaning ‘awake’, ‘alert’ or ‘watchful’. In Italian vigilia means ‘eve’, and it carries all the connotations of waiting for something so hard you can’t sleep.

In Italy the Vigilia di Natale marks the end of la novena, the nine days leading up to Christmas when the shepherds travelled to see newborn Jesus, and when traditionally children go house to house in costumes to perform Christmas songs and poems with the promise of a small reward of money or sweets.

Customs vary, but many Catholics abstain from eating meat on Christmas Eve ahead of the holy celebrations – not to mention il cenone (‘the feast’) – on Christmas Day itself. Traditionally the December 24th dinner consists of fish and seafood instead – though with baccalà (salt cod), oysters, clams and eel on the menu, that doesn’t sound like much of a hardship.

Photo: ChiccoDodiFC/DepositPhotos

You may have heard that this marine meal is called the Feast of Seven Fishes, after the seven sacraments or the number of days God took to create the world. In fact you won’t hear it referred to as such in Italy, where the number of dishes is different (nine for the Holy Trinity times three? Thirteen for the 12 Apostles plus Jesus?), or simply too numerous to count. The seven fishy dishes seems to be an invention of Italian-Americans, who probably adapted the old customs from Italy.

Other Christmas Eve celebrations include midnight mass for the faithful, or late-night gift exchanges for the more materially inclined. Tradition has it that Christ was born at midnight between December 24th and 25th, so that’s the time some Italians choose to give their presents.

But it all depends on where you are: in the Dolomites, we hear it’s the custom to ski down the mountains by torchlight to welcome the newborn Christ, while in parts of the south the entire family joins a sort of Nativity procession through the house, with the youngest member of the household carrying a Jesus figurine to the crib. Others just play cards, share stories or enjoy the copious food and drink.

However you’re celebrating, we hope you enjoy a happy – and delicious – Vigilia this year.

Do you have an Italian word you’d like us to feature? If so, please email us with your suggestion.

For members

ITALIAN WORD OF THE DAY

Italian expression of the day: ‘Al volo’

We’re sure you’ll learn this Italian phrase in no time.

Published: 14 June 2024 13:59 CEST
Italian expression of the day: ‘Al volo’

If you’ve ever found yourself at an Italian airport and looked up at the departure board, there’s a good chance you’re already familiar with the word volo, which is the Italian equivalent of ‘flight’ – but also the first person singular of the verb volare (to fly) in the present tense.

And if you’re a fan of classical music, you may of course have heard of Italy’s famous opera trio Il Volo (‘The Flight’).

But what do Italians mean when they say they’re going to do something al volo (hear it pronounced here)? 

Much like its closest English equivalent, ‘on the fly’, al volo has very little to do with aircraft or flying as it’s one of the most common Italian phrases to say that you’re doing something ‘quickly’ or ‘readily’, often without having prepared it or thought about it much beforehand.

Facciamoci una pasta al volo e poi usciamo.

Let’s cook some pasta on the fly and then get out.

Ho dovuto preparare la presentazione al volo perché non mi avevano avvisato della riunione.

I had to put the presentation together on the fly as I’d not been notified of the meeting. 

But usage of al volo is not limited to practical actions or tasks you may do quickly and without much thought. 

In fact, you can also pair it with the verb capire (understand), comprendere (comprehend) or imparare (learn) to say that you grasped something ‘immediately’ or ‘in no time’, meaning you won’t need any further explanation. 

Tuo figlio capisce tutto al volo. Ha un grande futuro davanti a lui, a mio parere.

Your son understands everything in no time. He’s got a great future ahead of him, in my opinion.

And if you haven’t fully understood or grasped something on your first try (which is painfully likely when dealing with Italy’s infamous red tape, even for locals), don’t worry: you’ll always have the option to ask a domanda al volo, or a ‘quick question’, to clear up your doubts. 

Another popular way to use the phrase is in relation to big opportunities, whether that be in life, in education or at work. So an opportunity that va presa al volo must be seized immediately as it’s too good to be missed. 

Finally, if you’re planning on watching Euro 2024 matches on Italian TV over the next month, you may hear football commentators use al volo multiple times while analysing a match as colpire la palla al volo means to strike it while it’s in the air, or ‘volley’ it.

Do you have a favourite Italian word you’d like us to feature? If so, please email us with your suggestion.

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