Italian Vocabulary Research Articles

How do health authorities inform about general practitioner selection? Analysis of Italian Websites

Abstract Background The Next Generation EU and Italian Recovery and Resilience Plan share the common goal of supporting digital transformation. In health, adequate digitalization and web communication strategies are essential to achieve adequate population health outcomes. This work describes the level of digitalization and information of a fundamental primary care service: the choice or change of the General Practitioner (GP). Methods The analysis was conducted by consulting websites of Italian Local Health Authorities (LHAs). First, we explored digitalization levels of 105 websites through the Primary Care Digital Information (PCDI) composite index. It comprises four dimensions: informativeness, accessibility, inclusiveness, and adaptability, scoring from 0-5 (low-high digitalization). Second, we conducted a readability analysis of websites. Text quality was measured using the Gulpease and READ-IT indexes and New Basic Italian Vocabulary (NBIV) was used for lexical complexity. Results We found a national average of 2,48 for the PCDI (Min 0 - Max 4,38). Nationally, the best performing dimension was adaptability, while the worst was inclusiveness. Half of the LHAs provided several digital alternatives to choose or change the GP, while the remaining provided limited or no options. Most LHAs (70%) displayed directly on their home page a reference on how citizens can choose or change GP. However, 70% lacked specific information for non-residents citizens. Regarding readability, the national average was 48,78 for READ-IT (Min 32 - Max 62), on a scale from 0-100 (good-bad readability). Conclusions Overall, our findings depict variable and fragmented digitalization and information levels of a key health service. Despite best practices, several areas require monitoring and intervention. Moreover, some barriers characterize Italian health communication strategies, notably the variability of information across and within regions and on average low website readability. Key messages • There are significant digitalization discrepancies in Italy with respect to the primary care service observed. The PCDI scores highlight a fragmented scenario and opportunities for improvement. • The aspects related to the readability of information remain to be monitored. This study highlights the need to invest more in fostering efficient service comprehension and clarity.

Learning Italian as a Second Language in a Sample of Ukrainian Children: A Game-Based Learning Approach.

Game-based learning is an educational approach aimed at acquiring knowledge through the use of play. There are various studies that note the effectiveness of playing as an educational tool and the use of digital platforms as a tool that can increase its effectiveness. We wanted to investigate whether a game-based learning approach may determine an improvement in Italian as a foreign language in terms of vocabulary expansion. The sample consists of 48 Ukrainian children between 6 and 7 years old. There were 24 female children and 24 male children in the sample, divided into two groups: the control group (Gr1) learnt Italian through frontal lessons (traditional approach), the experimental group (Gr2) learnt Italian through games and activities (game-based learning). The results have shown that the experimental group had a major increase in Italian vocabulary. However, both groups had an increase in this sense. Game-based learning remains an effective and promising educational approach, but other variables must be taken into account. Furthermore, the scarcity of literature on foreign language learning through game-based learning creates the need for more studies.

From Divided to Diasporic: Re-envisioning Italian American Texts through Transformative Translingual Practices

From Divided to Diasporic: Re-envisioning Italian American Texts through Transformative Translingual Practices

The Impact of the English Language on Italian Lexis A study on students from the University of Catania in international exchanges

This research paper aims to explore how learning English in multilingual contexts motivates and influences the use of English terms in Italian lexis by Italian university students. The topic of this study is valuable because it focuses in detail on the impact of English as a second language during the international exchange programmes. University students’ international exchange has developed a lot in the last decades, having a positive influence on their personal growth and linguistic skills, especially from the English language proficiency point of view. The impact of English learning on the mother tongue lexis has been analyzed. The data collection instrument was a questionnaire. The results were received directly through Google Module and consequently analyzed. The sample group was made up of the students of the departments of Political and Social Sciences, Educational Sciences and Humanities and Languages of the University of Catania. Furthermore, learning of the second language has been inspected questioning how the exposition to multilingual contexts can determine an impoverishment of the respondents’ Italian vocabulary or otherwise an enrichment process towards a lingua franca that would help a better communication with young people of other countries. The hypothesis that the English language is a lingua franca and it has enriched the mother tongue lexis was widely confirmed and we can sum up, through the survey results, that the sample of students is well aware of the influence that the English language has on their communication in native language.

Vocabulary and reading speed in the majority language are affected by maternal language proficiency and language exposure at home: a study of language minority bilingual children in Italy

ABSTRACT Environmental sources of variance in the Italian vocabulary and reading skills of bilingual primary school children from immigrant families (or language minority bilingual children (LMBC)) in Italy were investigated, and the LMBC’s skill levels were compared to those of their monolingual classmates. A total of 140 children from the first, third, and fifth grades were administered standardized tests of receptive vocabulary, word reading, and nonword reading skills. LMBC’s exposure to Italian at home and their mothers’ Italian proficiency were reported by mothers. Immigrant mothers’ Italian proficiency was a significant predictor of vocabulary and word reading speed but not of word accuracy or nonword reading. High levels of Italian exposure at home in combination with low levels of maternal Italian proficiency was a negative predictor of vocabulary; high exposure to Italian at home was positively associated with word reading speed and negatively associated with nonword reading speed. LMBC had lower vocabulary scores but did not differ from monolingual children in measures of reading skill. The findings underscore the importance of the quality of language exposure for language development and replicate findings that bilingual children show decoding skills on a par with monolingual children despite smaller vocabularies.

THE EFFECT OF PSYCHOTYPOLOGY AND LINGUISTIC ATTITUDES TOWARDS TARGET LANGUAGE ON THE OCCURRENCE OF TRANSFER ON THE RECEPTIVE LEVEL UPON THE FIRST CONTACT OF CROATIAN SPEAKERS WITH ITALIAN AS L2

Psychotypology is one of the conditions for the occurrence of crosslinguistic influences. Following empirical findings, we conducted a study to establish the presence and the effect of psychotypology on the language transfer between Italian, as a foreign language, and the local speech of Split, as a variant of learners’ L1. Two target groups with no prior knowledge of Italian were questioned: one hundred students regularly in contact with the speech of Split and another hundred with no competence and no contact with it. The two groups took the Yes/No Vocabulary test. The aim was to reveal the initial comprehension of Italian vocabulary. Through the questionnaire, we gained insight into the intuitive behaviour of both groups of participants regarding the meaning of given Italian words, distance perceived, and subjective perception of the relationship between the Italian language and the speech of Split. The results of the two groups were compared using the quantitative test data. In addition, the relationship between psychotypology and a successful test outcome was thoroughly examined, according to the qualitative data. The results demonstrated an extremely high percentage of informants in both groups being aware of similarities between the two idioms at the lexical level. The findings indicated that participants who perceived the similarities as significant performed better on the test. The analysis of results showed that the experimental group found the Italian language easily comprehensible, whereas the control group defined it as somewhat demanding. Significantly better vocabulary test results of the experimental group confirmed that participant’s attitude is essential to achieve language transfer.

Non-word repetition in bilingual children: the role of language exposure, vocabulary scores and environmental factors

ABSTRACT Assessing language development in bilingual children is challenging in geographical areas where bilinguals have different native languages. Lexical development measures are often used as a starting point to study linguistic abilities in bilingual children. Non-word repetition (NWR) has been found to be very informative in detecting variation. The present study contributes to the broader research aim of documenting bilinguals’ language skills. In a sample of 19 Italian-speaking bilingual children with different native languages, correlations among performance on an Italian-like NWR and receptive vocabulary score (Italian PPVT-R), cumulative exposure, age of first exposure to Italian, current Italian exposure, maternal education, parental concerns and vocabulary in toddlerhood (MB-CDI) were calculated. NWR performances correlated with PPVT-R and parental concerns, but not with maternal education and language exposure measures. Neither NWR scores nor PPVT-R scores were related to Italian vocabulary size in toddlerhood (MB-CDI). We integrate our results with those of others and discuss the advantages and disadvantages of administering NWR to bilingual children, and more generally how to perform early bilingual language assessments.

I germanismi nello spazio linguistico della penisola italica: superstrato prodotto dalla migrazione; ambito di analisi diacronica, diatopica, e stilistica; strumento per la didattica.

Germanic peoples appear strongly on the stage of history during late antiquity. With the advent of so-called “Barbarian Invasions” (or “folk migrations”, if the perspective is that of the invaders), raids by Germanic tribes gradually turn into migrations of ethnic groups settling in the areas they strike. With the fall of the Empire and the creation of Barbarian Kingdoms, this phenomenon leads to lasting effects on local languacultures. In the Italian peninsula, Goths, Langobards, and Franks, impacted the evolution of vulgar Latin, leaving visible traces in the Italian language.
 The Germanic element of Italian vocabulary is represented by a multitude of toponyms and anthroponyms; it characterises specific lexical areas, and is observable in basic vocabulary and derivational morphology. These elements (systematically collected within the LEI project) are an extremely interesting object of study, on several levels.
 In a diachronic perspective: analysing their presence at different stages, and as an instrument for dating.
 In a diatopic perspective: as a criterion of dialectological analysis, also frequently linked to geosynonyms and so-called “parole bandiera”. (Besides also being a differentiating criterion between romance languages).
 In a sociolinguistic and stylistic perspective: considering the value of a Latin or a Germanic equivalent, in context.
 It is moreover ultimately relevant to consider an approach involving Germanic elements in Italian as an effective pedagogical tool. They can prove extremely useful, not only in educating about the history of the languaculture of the Italian peninsula, but also in teaching basic language-competence, and in the expansion of vocabulary, exploiting intercomprehension in learners with a Germanic mother tongue in general, and a Scandinavian one in particular (and vice versa).

Globalization and Italian Children's Publishing

Globalization and Italian Children's Publishing Manuela Salvi (bio) In 2012, only one fourth of the books produced by Mondadori, the largest Italian publishing house, were written by Italian authors. And of all the books in translation, only 3% were from non-English-speaking countries. This meant that, in a typical Italian bookshop, it was easier to find a book translated from English than to find a book by an Italian author. As Amselle highlights, through globalization, American culture has become a sort of agent of universalization, in which our specificities can be reformulated but not necessarily lost. However, I have noticed over the years that the best compliment an Italian children's author can receive today is something like: "Oh, your book is so good, it doesn't even sound as if it's written by an Italian author; it could be English or American!" The writers' reaction to this kind of comment is often hopefulness, because they are generally aware of inhabiting a world within a world, and that consequently their culture depends on a "core" that often ignores its "peripheries." When analyzing the historical development of Italian culture in the last century, it is not hard to find several intersections with American culture. A few examples are the CPI (the Committee of Public Information), which in 1918 flooded Italy with millions of dispatches, postcards, and flags in order to promote the political "friendship" between the two countries; the Marshall Plan; Hollywood; and twenty years of Berlusconi's government, during which Italian television was radically transformed in accord with the American model. Generations of children grew up with American words and values, which were seen as necessary to having a life full of adventures, power, and wealth; they got used to assimilating narratives in which the hero was hardly ever Italian. Even the Italian language has changed under the influence of American globalized culture. In Italy, words from English are slowly being assimilated into everyday speech and then officially become part of the Italian vocabulary. In the last edition of Tullio De Mauro's Italian dictionary, 5,370 out of 316,800 words are English. It doesn't [End Page 53] seem like an impressive number, since it represents only 1.7% of the Italian language, but it is important to note that all these English terms—from computer to stalker, target, meeting, T-shirt, and so on—are among the most commonly used words in everyday life. Furthermore, the official dictionary does not include words commonly used in spoken language and slang that are a fusion between the original English word and an Italian suffix (for example: chat combined with the Italian verb suffix –are makes chattare, meaning to chat online). Many published books by Italian authors now look like American or British editions, since their covers display the title in English. Some examples are The Frozen Boy by Guido Sgardoli, the series Candy Circle by Domenico Baccalario, and Tales from the Darkroom by Alessandro Gatti and Manuela Salvi. This trend seems to demonstrate that some Italian authors are part of that cultural reception highlighted by Rydell and Kroes, in which people not only consume what they like, but also elaborate and reuse this material to reshape narratives that are perceived to be universal. Ultimately, a peripheral group that has been culturally invaded within a globalized system can only express itself through the categories of the group that represents the core. On the other hand, American culture has always been the symbol of modernity, hope, enterprise, and possibility. Such values as going beyond people's differences and dismissing elitism in order to affirm an egalitarian society, in which each individual can find his or her place, are widely accepted as being universal. Moreover, in the global market, being translated and published in other countries has become a sign of success, especially being translated and published in English-speaking countries. As Emily Apter notes, everyone wants a special place in the publishing market. For example, postcolonial authors, minority authors, and Scandinavian writers have gained international visibility. So, it is only natural for several Italian authors to try to write for a global audience, building translatability into their texts...

Internationalisms, Anglo-Latinisms and other kinship ties between Italian and English

In the analysis of language contact and borrowing, the category of internationalism denotes lexical items that are formally and semantically similar across unrelated languages, mainly of neo-classical origin. Internationalisms are characteristically unmarked for a specific national provenance, like the pair En electricity / It elettricita. On the other hand, many similar examples, such as En romantic and It romantico, are the result of borrowings from English into Italian, a fact that can be established only on historical grounds, because the word itself does not reveal any trace of foreignness to the lay Italian speaker, being Italian a Latin-based language. In this paper, the lexical category of internationalism will be defined and set apart from other outcomes of language contact, like direct and indirect Anglicisms, Anglo-Latinisms, and other forms of linguistic kinship between these two, partly unrelated, European languages. Linguistic factors such as etymology, route of transmission, and non-linguistic ones such as historical events and motivation for borrowing (Wexler 1969) are used for this analysis, which will be applied to relevant examples of Italian vocabulary.

A Spell Checking Web Service API for Smart City Communication Platforms

The Internet of Things becomes Internet of Everything when in the process of communication machine-to-machine also intelligent forms of communication between human and machine are involved. Cities can be viewed as a microcosm of this interconnected system where ICT and emerging technologies can be enabling factors to transform cities in Smart Cities. Cities can take great advantage by using information intelligence to achieve important public-policy goals and, in particular, by enabling network communication channels between citizens and public administrators in order to provide information and online services in real time through platform systems rather than by means of humans, using Artificial Intelligence and Natural Language Processing techniques. This work was the first step of a wider project aimed at providing a Spell Checking Web Service API for Smart City communication platforms able to automatically select, among the large availability of open source spell checking tools, the most suitable tool based on the semantic structure of the specific textual data. The system should manage an enhanced Italian Vocabulary Database, specifically implemented to support all the tools of the system. The goal of the present work was to test, through an experimental research, the feasibility of the entire project by implementing a Spell Checking Prototype System designed to manage two selected spell checking tools. Results showed that the Spell Checking Prototype System significantly improves performances by allowing the user to select the most suitable tool for the specific semantic structure of the text. The system also enables to manage the list of exceptions, which continuously enhance the Italian Vocabulary Database. The experimentation proved scientific evidence of the validity of the project aimed at implementing a Spell Checking Web Service API in order to improve the quality of natural language data to be stored or processed in Smart City NCeSDP systems, through the use of existing spell checking tools.

Il gourmet manga al di là del sushi

The imagery of many (the majority of ) Italians, especially the younger generations, seems to have abandoned the icons by longstanding tradition associated with Japanese culture, geisha and samurai, in favour of other models, which landed, in the last ten/twenty years, in the world of manga and sushi. Two terms which, along with karaoke and the less auspicious tsunami, have now become part of the Italian vocabulary. In both cases, there was also a rapid crystallisation of rooted clichés: if, on the one hand, the manga has often been assimilated only to images of violence or sentimental and exhausting platitudes, on the other, the rich and innovative landscape of Japanese cuisine has been reduced only to sushi, very often identified by the personal interpretations of other countries (the Californian rolls seem to be a case in point). Apart from stereotypes and cliché, manga and kitchen – as indeed literature and food – give rise to a happy convergence in Japan today. The article examines the role that in many manga (so-called ryōri manga) is taken by food in all its variations, from the most traditional (which does not live by sushi alone), to the one that reworks in a very felicitous way suggestions coming from other countries, from the most sophisticated that analyses any minimum dish with maniacal rigor, to the simplest and most minimalist to one that accepts fast food without much remorse. It is a complex role, which goes far beyond a limiting definition of recipes, but expands and is enriched to the point of creating stories, situations and characters that become a mirror of a particular moment in contemporary Japanese society.

The influence of task demand and social categorization diversity on performance and enjoyment in a language learning game

Task demand type (e.g., competitive, cooperative, conjunctive) is an important factor influencing learning motivation and performance in a group. Limited research is available regarding conjunctive task demand for learning tasks, especially for the lower performing individuals. Additionally, group composition or social categorization diversity in a group is another important yet relatively understudied factor. To fill the research gap, this study attempted to examine the effects of task demand and social categorization diversity in a group on motivation and performance in a computer-based foreign language learning game. Seven conditions were included: 2 (social categorization diversity: in-group or out-group) x 3 (group task demand: competitive, conjunctive, or cooperative) plus an individual task demand control condition. A total of 102 undergraduates without prior Italian language background were randomly assigned to one of the seven conditions to play an Italian learning game on the computer in the laboratory for about 15 min. We found that for inferior group members, a conjunctive task was the most effective for the performance of learning Italian vocabulary. Significant interaction effects between social categorization diversity and task demand were found for both task performance and enjoyment. Implications for serious games and mediated educational tool design are discussed.

Facilitating Lexical Acquisition in Beginner Learners of Italian Through Task-Induced Involvement Load

This empirical study explores the facilitation of lexical acquisition and retention through an incidental experiment examining the effect of Involvement Load on Italian vocabulary growth among beginner learners. The experiment, with a pre-test/post-test design investigates the facilitative effects of elaborate processing on L2 lexical acquisition and retention. Participants in sections of the same first-year Italian course were divided into one of five groups consisting of a Control Group and four Treatment groups. Treatment groups were divided based on level of Involvement (Laufer & Hulstijn, 2001) such that some groups processed target words elaborately (Craik, 2002; Lockhart, 2002) through vocabulary exercises while others completed low involvement activities limited to comprehension of the lyrics. The fifth group constituted the Control. In terms of lexical gains, it was hypothesized that (i) if medium was held constant (Music or Poem), the High Involvement groups would outperform Low involvement groups. The Vocabulary Knowledge Scale (VKS) (Wesche & Paribakht, 1993) was administered at pre-test and at four and eight weeks following pre-test respectively. Mean scores at post-test and delayed post-test in addition to ANOVA indicated that participants in the High Involvement groups outperformed participants in Low Involvement groups (p=0.017). The facilitative role of involvement load is discussed in light of pedagogical implications for the language learning classroom.

Parallel developments: the Mandarin of Chinese Muslims and Jewish languages

Judeo-Italian, a typical Jewish language, is a group of closely related dialects consisting of a basically Italian vocabulary and grammar but including a component of words of Hebrew or Aramaic origin and occasionally words borrowed from other languages, e.g orsai ‘anniversary of a death’ from Yiddish and negro ‘wretched’ from Ladino. The language was traditionally written in the Hebrew alphabet but today is written in Latin letters.Xiao’erjing is a group of closely related dialects spoken by Chinese Muslims living in Mandarin-speaking parts of China. Its vocabulary is largely Chinese, but it includes words borrowed from Arabic. It was written in the Arabic alphabet but today is almost always written in Chinese characters. The borrowings from Hebrew and Arabic frequently are for terms connected with religion, such as cascer in Judeo-Italian and kosher in Yiddish are analogous to halal in Xiao’erjing for food that is ritually permitted. However, the borrowings are not restricted to religion but may fall into any semantic category.Most Jewish languages and Xiao’erjing were widely used a century ago, and both are disappearing today, reflecting political and social changes in Europe, the Americas, and China.

Incidental Lexicon Acquisition through Playful Interaction

This paper presents an educational game which aids learners with foreign lexicon acquisition while entertaining them at the same time. An overview over existing language learning tools is given, and a general platform for educational games for second language acquisition (SLA) is described. It introduces a specific prototype video game which teaches Italian vocabulary to the user. The application puts learning at the core of its game mechanics and combines it with a narrative and role-playing elements. In a user study, the game is compared to two other learning methods with focus on long term retention of vocabulary and enjoyment of the exercise. The game is found to perform within 10% of the efficiency of pure vocabulary learning exercises, while being considerably more enjoyable to the user.

Italian Words in the Language of Petar Ii Petrovic Njegos

This paper analyzes the presence of words derived from the Italian language and its dialects in the written heritage of Petar II Petrovic Njegos. The analyzed corpus includes his literary works, letters and his “Biljeznica”. Taking into account the statements of various experts that Italian words represent an integral part of people's speech in Montenegro of Njegos’s time, and the fact that the bishop had the opportunity to be in many ways directly acquainted with the language, it seems reasonable to presume that some elements of the Italian lexicon must be present in his written heritage. The collected material was compared to the Italian vocabulary registered in the colloquial speech of Kotor, Budva and Pastrovici to determine the extent to which Italian words from Njegos’s written heritage coincide with those that entered the vernacular, regardless of the fact that those locations are not a part of his homeland. In this way, we tried to establish the extent to which the presence of Italian words in Njegos’s language is determined by the fact that he knew Italian, as several authors who have dealt with this issue have already proven. DOI: 10.5901/jesr.2014.v4n4p41

An Autoethnographic Study of the Use of Mobile Devices to Support Foreign Language Vocabulary Learning

This autoethnographic study involved the author in the dual role of researcher and subject in a self-study language learning episode. The paper describes a foreign language learning experience of using a mobile phone (Apple iPhone) word card application to learn Italian vocabulary. Data from diary entries were analysed and categorised, and the findings show that learning strategies, content, motivation and interface design are prominent themes. The significance of these themes is addressed in the discussion, and suggestions for further research are made. The findings are of value in order to inform the design, development and deployment of mobile device-based vocabulary learning resources for language learners, and are therefore of interest to language educators, mobile device materials designers, developers and publishers, as well as researchers.

BEGINNER’S VOCABULARY OF ITALIAN AS A SECOND LANGUAGE IN THE LITHUANIAN CLASSROOM

Teaching Italian as a foreign language vocabulary in the Lithuanian classroom is still an unexplored field of study. The article raises the question of the selection of the most important words for the beginners’ group. Rather than to present a simple list of words (or, more precisely, of lexical units), the focus is on the composition both of the general Italian vocabulary and of the one which has to be simplified for didactic reasons. Starting with the frequency list of Italian words LI P, the Lexicon of spoken Italian (developed in 1993), it is possible to create other lists of lexical units of any size. The article presents a 300 entries minimal dictionary, which is built however not by a mechanical transcription of the first 300 entry in the LI P: the list is revised on the basis of certain usage criteria (for example, by deleting entries which nowadays have already become out-of-date). Necessarily this process has a certain degree of subjectivity. Afterwards the list is analysed from a didactic perspective, assigning the lexical material to categories based on a predictable learning difficulty. Supposing that students know English, the following categories are defined: words which are common to Italian and Lithuanian, words which are common to Italian and English, Italian words which cannot be directly related to either language and the so-called “false friends”. The author expresses the view that the comparative-contrastive method better than others helps learners assimilate new vocabulary because they are lead to spend more time studying each lexical unit. Connections made by the students between elements of the foreign language and of the mother tongue (or another known language, such as English), their morphological features, their usage in a text, result in an overall improved effectiveness of the learning process. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7220/2335-2027.2.10

BEGINNER’S VOCABULARY OF ITALIAN AS A SECOND LANGUAGE IN THE LITHUANIAN CLASSROOM

Teaching Italian as a foreign language vocabulary in the Lithuanian classroom is still an unexplored field of study. The article raises the question of the selection of the most important words for the beginners’ group. Rather than to present a simple list of words (or, more precisely, of lexical units), the focus is on the composition both of the general Italian vocabulary and of the one which has to be simplified for didactic reasons. Starting with the frequency list of Italian words LI P, the Lexicon of spoken Italian (developed in 1993), it is possible to create other lists of lexical units of any size. The article presents a 300 entries minimal dictionary, which is built however not by a mechanical transcription of the first 300 entry in the LI P: the list is revised on the basis of certain usage criteria (for example, by deleting entries which nowadays have already become out-of-date). Necessarily this process has a certain degree of subjectivity. Afterwards the list is analysed from a didactic perspective, assigning the lexical material to categories based on a predictable learning difficulty. Supposing that students know English, the following categories are defined: words which are common to Italian and Lithuanian, words which are common to Italian and English, Italian words which cannot be directly related to either language and the so-called “false friends”. The author expresses the view that the comparative-contrastive method better than others helps learners assimilate new vocabulary because they are lead to spend more time studying each lexical unit. Connections made by the students between elements of the foreign language and of the mother tongue (or another known language, such as English), their morphological features, their usage in a text, result in an overall improved effectiveness of the learning process. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7220/2335-2027.2.10