Language with no sender
Italians mockingly call the language of public offices, contracts and notices burocratese. It isn't wrong; it is built for impersonality. Nobody orders and nobody forbids: things are "requested" and "required". English has the same thing in officialese like Passengers are kindly requested to…, but Italian uses it far more widely.
Your main goal is to understand it: at the station, in a rental contract, in a letter from the town hall. The work lies in translating each formula into a normal sentence in your head.
Requests, obligations, bans
Notices almost never address the reader directly. Instead of an imperative you find impersonal formulas with si or è fatto. The meaning is still a clear instruction.
On signs and notices
Si prega di non lasciare bagagli incustoditi.
Please do not leave luggage unattended.
In plain Italian: Non lasciate i bagagli da soli.
È fatto divieto di fumare nei locali dell'edificio.
Smoking is prohibited inside the building.
In plain Italian: Qui non si fuma.
È fatto obbligo di indossare il casco nell'area del cantiere.
Hard hats must be worn on the building site.
In plain Italian: Nel cantiere bisogna mettere il casco.
Si informa la gentile clientela che il negozio resterà chiuso per inventario.
Customers are kindly informed that the shop will be closed for stocktaking.
In plain Italian: Il negozio è chiuso per inventario.
References, deadlines, conditions
Forms and official letters keep returning to a set of fixed phrases. They refer to laws, set deadlines and attach conditions. Once you have decoded them, you read these texts much faster.
Formula and plain Italian
| Officialese | Plain Italian | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| ai sensi dell'art. 5 | secondo l'articolo 5 | pursuant to Article 5 |
| in ottemperanza a | per rispettare | in compliance with |
| entro e non oltre il 30 giugno | al massimo il 30 giugno | no later than 30 June |
| a decorrere dal 1° gennaio | dal 1° gennaio | with effect from 1 January |
| previa presentazione del documento | dopo aver mostrato il documento | upon presentation of ID |
| pena l'esclusione | altrimenti si viene esclusi | failing which you will be excluded |
pena means "on penalty of" here, not "pain" or "pity".
In a full sentence
La domanda va presentata entro e non oltre il 30 giugno, pena l'esclusione.
Applications must be submitted by 30 June at the latest, or they will not be considered.
Qualora il pagamento non pervenga entro dieci giorni, si procederà alla riscossione coattiva.
Should payment not be received within ten days, it will be recovered by enforcement.
qualora means "if, should" and takes the subjunctive.
Words that only live on paper
Some words turn up almost only in forms and official letters. In conversation they sound odd or comic.
il sottoscritto / la sottoscritta: "the undersigned", meaning you yourself on the form.
il/la richiedente: the applicant.
suddetto, sopracitato, il medesimo: "the above-mentioned", "the same".
codesto ufficio: "your office", the office of the recipient.
in calce: at the foot of the page, for example where you sign.
nonché: "as well as".
Il sottoscritto Marco Bellini chiede il rilascio del certificato di residenza.
I, the undersigned Marco Bellini, request a certificate of residence.
The same notice, twice
Burocratese
Si invitano i signori condomini a non depositare rifiuti ingombranti nel cortile, ai sensi del regolamento condominiale.
Residents are requested, pursuant to the building regulations, not to deposit bulky waste in the courtyard.
Plain Italian
Per favore, non lasciate mobili vecchi e altri rifiuti grandi in cortile.
Please don't leave old furniture or other big rubbish in the courtyard.
