Where does the Sicilian language come from?
  You could say from the Greeks or the Latins or the Byzantines. What is certain is that Siculi, Sicani and Elimi mixed with all the people arrived in our beautiful land, who knows how they finished speaking? And yet the roots of their language have remained: The native consonants.

  But let's get to the Arabs.
  It began when these hungry for conquest, on June 17, 827, arrived from Africa led by Qayrawan, began raiding expeditions in our countryside and cities, where the people, having met them, shouted "Mamma, li turchi!", ran to lock themselves in their homes. Over time the Arabs settled in our land and, ousting the Byzantines, learned to govern the districts, to cultivate the land, to fish at sea, and from their civilization they brought customs, construction of houses and palaces, and culture with poetry and knowledge. From this mixture of Byzantines, Christians, Jews and Arabs the spoken Sicilian language was born. For a thousand years the people, adapting to one another, learned to express the things to say with a language that gradually perfected itself in the vulgar Sicilian language. But only speaking, which was still written in Latin or Arabic or Hebrew.

  Everything changed with the arrival of the Normans from the North with spears and swords. Or when they, following the crusaders, stopped in our beautiful and fertile land. Far from the Holy Land. Or when those who deserved compensation were given fiefs by those in command. With the commanders Robert Guiscardo and Roger of Altavilla, the Normans, a warrior people, took over southern Italy and Sicily. Sicily, civilized by the Arabs, had to submit to the power of weapons. Yet these people gave rise to modern civilization.

  The last daughter of the Norman dynasty of the Altavillas, who had formed the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, was called Costanza. Having relations with the royals of Europe, Constance married Henry VI of Swabia, Holy Roman Emperor. This marriage united two powerful dynasties, creating a link between the Norman Kingdom of Sicily and the Hohenstaufen Swabian Empire. Thus was born Frederick II, heir to the throne of Sicily and the imperial title. And he had dominions in Italy and Europe. The boy grew up among the people of Sicily, and when the time came to rule, it was here that he established his throne.

  He was crowned emperor in the year 1220 and immediately implemented the imperial authority. He formed a court of scholars whom he invited to write in the vernacular that he already spoke because he had grown up between Sicily and Calabria. These scholars, however, were educated notables who wrote in Latin and Provençal. They did not adapt to writing as the people spoke, but they adapted the Provençal language of the poems of the musician storytellers in the langue d'Oc. This is how the same language, without the music, was used in Sicilian poems and sonnets. He is a Sicilian as illustrious as the courtly languages ​​Latin and Provençal. It was Giacomo da Lentini who invented the Sonnet, Odo delle Colonne, Rugieri d'Amici, Stefano Protonotaro, Guido delle Colonne, Mazzeo di Ricco, Tommaso di Sasso, Ruggero di Palermo who introduced us to this Sicilian language, but not as the Sicilians spoke and speak.

  When the patron Federico II died, everything was left hanging. Those who spoke Sicilian did not know how to write their own language and those who wanted to write Sicilian remade the verses already written, which was not true Sicilian.
  The difference between speaking and writing still exists. It is time to reevaluate the ancient native consonants of the people of Sicily, who still speak to each other.

  Now it is up to us to discover how we speak. What consonants, what syllables, what sounds we make when we speak. A world that has not yet been fully explored.
 

The reinforcement

We must consider that the syllable in Sicilian can be short "ă" or long "ā",
and has a phonetic and orthographic effect on the consonant that follows.
 

   They are some consonants that are pronounced only in Sicily,
and we must take care of them.

sh and Sc are two different consonants:
- sh is the weak form of the consonant C. it is variable and therefore, if it has a reinforcing syllable in front of it, it changes from sh to c.

• Ā shena change ă cena.

-The Sc is a stable consonant that does not change when it has a reinforcing syllable in front of it. Its hissing sound is pronounced through clenched teeth.

• Ā scena stays ă scena.

-When you pronounce "SC" the incisors, top and bottom, are in line. The tip of the tongue is lowered behind the teeth to let the tongue pass air that is however strangled by the tongue in the palate to give it the particular crawling sound of the consonant.

- To pronounce sh you pull your chin back half a centimeter. With a slight tension you widen the oral cavity a little. now, in the center, the tongue is placed low; the tip is suspended behind the teeth, and a little turned back, to make the swirl air and give the consonant that airy sound:

• shhhh... shauru, shuri, shoshu, shusciari, shusciuliari, shushuliari, cashara.

C: sweet strong: Ci

When you pronounce C the incisors are close together and in line above and below. The tip of the tongue, up to a couple of centimeters back, is pressed into the front part of the palate up to the attachment of the teeth. When the air blow is given it comes off and makes the characteristic sound of the consonant.

• Si cioshu. 'un ciusciari chiù. pi ciusciuliari ci voli u muscaloru. A ciushuliari vi mittistuvu? Ma chi ciauru e ciuri!

Some words in D are stable:

• Dati ,Dijunu, Dammiggiana, Debbitu, Duluri, dutturi . . .

 

D: Strong: D

The tip of the tongue rests against the upper teeth towards the gums and is detached with a sharp blow and a little air, otherwise it becomes "t" .

• Renti: Chi denti chi hai!
• reshi: vali pi deshi
• riri: e diri chi ...
• rari: m'ha dari i documenti
• rumani: finu a dumani.

 

D: Weak: R

the weak form of the D is a light R, almost not pronounced .

• -Renti, reshi, riri, roti , rari, rumani, . . .

This is a consonant all ours, and we are proud of it.
Those who are not Sicilian, to pronounce it, must learn:

Turn your tongue backwards, and with the underside of the tip of your tongue, which is now on top, give a blow to the roof of your mouth as if to say D.

• 'Un ha ghiri dhochu, ha ghiri addhabbanna.
• Sti dhattuli su dushi. Dhi dhattuli si stannu pirdennu.
• Ha ghiri na dhu dutturi.
• Adduma dhu lumi.

There is It must be said, however, that in the eastern part of Sicily the tongue is not turned all the way up, so that the tip does not reach the center of the palate, but only reaches behind the teeth, and makes a somewhat liquid sound. of "R".

 

D: Impregnated with N becomes N

The nasal N changes the whole nature of the D: Ndria=Nniria

• I riscursa (weak)
• Essir'a discursu (strog).
• Fari un niscursu (impregnated).



• Riri cosi fausi (weak).
• Pi diritill'a tia ... (strong):
• 'Un niri nenti (impregnated)

 

Some words have a stable G.

• Giacchetta, gira, giuggiulena, giugnu, giummarra, giarra, giostra, giachetta (gravel) , . . .

 

G: soft and weak: J-

The J is not I, but is a consonant, and to pronounce it you have to put your tongue against the palate:

• Jocu, Jornu, Jardinu, Jimenta, Jettatura, Jacu, . . .

 

G: sweet strong: Palatal

  The tongue is flattened against the hard palate, as soon as the stream of air passes when pronouncing Ghi-, it detaches from the palate. The lungs are still. The sound is formed with the air that is in the mouth.

• Jimenta: Quarche ghimenta figghia muli.
• Jornu: Va fazzu a spisa, jornu pi ghiornu.
• Jiri: Quannu ci ha ghiri a far' a spisa?(...ci hai ă ghiri...)
• Jocu: Ssi cosi nun si fannu pi ghiochu
• Jardinu: Na sta cuntrata abbunnanu puzzura e ghiardina.
• Jimmu: Ma chistu é ghimmu.

G dolce: impregnata di N diventa Gn

• un jardinu: un gnardinu
• un jornu: un gnornu
• nun jucari: nun gnucari
• un jimmu: Un gnimmu
• nun jittari nenti: nun gnittari nenti

The aspirated G cannot be heard.

• 'Attu, 'Addhu, 'Arzuni, 'Amma, 'Ana, ' ;Umma, 'Uvitu, . . .

 

G: Hard strong: (1) G guttural

• ogni gattu, quarche gaddhu, è garzuni, nun é gana, cu gumma, è guvitu

G: Hard strong: (2) with the "i" becomes Palatal. (Ghi+ e, a, o, u)

   The tongue is flattened against the hard palate.
   While the tongue, as soon as the flow of air passes, detaches itself from the palate pronouncing Ghi-, the lungs are still. The sound is formed with the air that is in the mouth.
   Let's take this opportunity to consider the palatal Chi-, where, pronouncing Chi-, the flow of air from the lungs makes the consonant sound hard: -Chiossai.

• Jimenta: Quarche ghimenta figghia muli.
• Jornu: Va fazzu a spisa, jornu pi ghiornu.
• Jiri: Quannu ci ha ghiri a far' a spisa?(...ci hai ă ghiri...)
• Jocu: Ssi cosi nun si fannu pi ghiochu
• Jardinu: Na sta cuntrata abbunnanu puzzura e ghiardina.
• Jimmu: Ma chistu é ghimmu!

 

Hard G impregnated with N becomes: nGh-

The soft palate is a membrane at the back of the mouth. When you put your tongue on it, it blocks the air from the lungs. As soon as the tongue comes loose, it does  a sound soft guttural characteristic, which is reinforced by the nasal 'N'.

• Un ghattu, un ghaddhu, un gharzuni, n ghana, n ghamma

 

• If this word has a reinforcing syllable in front of it ( a, e, è, chiù, . . .),
  the "R Base" is pronounced double:
  
  
  • é (r)russu, Pi (r)ririri, Cuarche (r)rota, ...
  
  


• If this word does not have a reinforcing syllable in front,
  the "R Base" is pronounced . . . WEAK:
  
  
  • Rhashina, Rhota, Rhimari, ...
  
  
  

  1. When pronouncing the simple R, normally, the top of the tip of the tongue (about 2 cm) rests on the upper gums. When air passes, it vibrates against the gums and makes the sound R.
  
  
  
  2. To make the double sound, it is pronounced louder.
  
  
  
  3. When pronouncing the weak R (R), the tip of the tongue goes straight against the connection between the upper teeth and gums.
     When air passes, the tongue does not vibrate, but lets it pass sliding, hissing, sonorous against the almost closed teeth.
     The characteristic modulation to the sliding air is given by the tremolo and the vibrations of the vocal cords.

  
  
    Here are some words that begin with the consonant R Base:
  
  Rabbia, Raccamu, Rashina, Rashoppu, Raddhu, Rarica, Rarisha, Rariri, Ragghiu, Raggia, Raggiuni, Rama, Rampa, Ramu, Rapashi, Rappa, Raru, Raspa, Rata, Razza, Re, Reshita, Reggistru, Reula, Resca, restu, Riccu, Ricotta, Ririri, Rifiutu, Riga, Rialu, Rima, Rimorsu, Rimu, Rina, Ripa, Riposu, Risata, Risettu, Risina, Rispiru, Risposta, Ristagnu, Ristuccia, Risu, Ritegnu, Riti, Rizza, Robba, Rosa, Rota, Ruccheddhu, Rugnuni, Ruina, Rumpiri, Runfuliari, Rusicu, Russu, Ruvulu.
  
  
  
• 'D, S, ST, T', and next comes the weak R (Rh), they form Native Phonemes.
  It is customary not to write the H to avoid confusing reading:
  
  

  Pronunciation Drhappu Srharicari Strhata Trhenu

  Writing Drappu Sraricari Strata Trenu

• These are particular native phonemes that must be practiced in order to be able to pronounce them.





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The consonant "Derived R" It is pronounced and written as strong R. And it can depend on two cases:


• or on the "weak D" which is pronounced "strong R", but light:
  
  
  • Veni rumani e nni parramu.
  ( D weak )
  • A festa è pi dumani.   ( strong D )
    
    
  • Accatta reshi ova ca fineru.
    ( D weak )
  • Cu deshi ova ti fazzu 'na ran frittata. ( D strong )
  
  
  
  
• or from the remaining "R", when in the group "GR" the "hard G weak" is aspirated:  'R .
  The pronunciation is R forte.
  • Prinota un tavulu ranni ca semu assai.
      ( G aspirated)
  • Stu tavulu è granni ca semu picca. (G strong)
    
    
  • Chiuri a rara du jardinu!
       ( G aspirated)
  • Chissa fu grara ca nun  si potti chiuriri. (G strong)
  
  
  There are some words, which begin with the group "GR", in which the G is, and remains, hard. They are called amorphous words, because the shape of the consonant does not change:
     - Griggiu, Gravi, Grillu (Grape), Gruppu (Quantity), . . .

     The Z is pronounced softly.

It can be said that the variable V is aspirated only in V + U='U.
With the other vowels it has reinforcing as a stable consonant: V - VV/BB
- Varca: I rimi n marca
- 'Ucca: Ficu carimi n mucca.