Italian Pop Culture: 10+ Italian Inside Jokes and Their Origins
Italian Inside Jokes and Memes || Get All the References!
Learning Italian involves not just mastering grammar rules and vocabulary but also understanding Italian pop culture and everyday life.
For Italian learners and enthusiasts, understanding Italy goes beyond textbooks and formal language lessons. One aspect that often gets overlooked, but can be really fun to know about, is that of Italy’s inside jokes and memes – those humorous references that are often used in everyday conversations, especially by the younger generation in Italy.
This article will explore some of these references (some may be more niche, others are more well-known) and explain their origin and usage; hopefully, you’ll be able to better understand your Italian friends or comments you may read on the Internet, as well as use these references yourself.
Italian Pop Culture || La nuvola di Fantozzi
Italian Pop Culture || Presidente?
Italian Pop Culture || Il signor Giancarlo
Italian Pop Culture || 15 e 18 quanto fa?
Italian Pop Culture || Non posso né scendere né salire
Italian Pop Culture || Dignitosamente brillo
Italian Pop Culture || Molisn’t
Italian Pop Culture || Questa è benzina
Italian Pop Culture || Che succede?
Italian Pop Culture || Buongiornissimo… Kaffé?
Italian Pop Culture || Padova è vicino all’Islanda
Italian Pop Culture || Per me è la cipolla
Italian Pop Culture || I limoni
Italian Pop Culture || Poteva succedere ovunque, e invece
Italian Pop Culture || FAQs
Italian Pop Culture || La nuvola di Fantozzi
Let’s start with an old-school reference: Fantozzi is a fictional character created by Italian writer and actor Paolo Villaggio.
He is the protagonist of a popular series of Italian books, films, and television programs, known for his comic misadventures and his proverbial bad luck.
This character created many expressions that are still used in everyday conversations. When someone seems to be haunted by bad luck, we tell them “Sei come Fantozzi!”
“La nuvola di Fantozzi” is used to talk about clouds that seem to follow us (when we feel like we are being followed by bad weather, or it seems like it’s only raining in the exact spot we are at the moment).
The reference is this scene:
Italian Pop Culture || Presidente?
Now let’s move on to a more modern reference.
The now deceased life senator Andreotti, being interviewed by Perego, suddenly fell ill during the interview, remaining silent for a few moments, as if paralyzed and staring into space. Perego sent the commercial.
Luckily, Mr. Andreotti recovered shortly thereafter, but to this day, when someone zones out or stops responding, it’s not unusual to ask: “Presidente? … Presidente?”.
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Italian Pop Culture || Il signor Giancarlo
Another famous moment in the history of Italian television is this episode of “La ruota della fortuna”, an old game show.
As you can see, a crucial vowel was missing: if Mr. Giancarlo had chosen the right vowel, he would have won; if he had chosen the wrong one, he would have created an obscene but very funny sentence. The rest is history.
When someone is faced with such a choice, especially on game shows, one always wonders if he will “do as Mr. Giancarlo did.”
Speaking of which, have you ever watched Italian game shows?
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Italian Pop Culture || 15 e 18 quanto fa?
Often used when someone gets simple calculations wrong. The reference is this video in which two gentlemen from Veneto very calmly discuss the scores of a card game.
Don’t listen if you are sensitive to swearing and profanity, and if that’s the case, it’s better if you never visit Veneto.
Italian Pop Culture || Non posso né scendere né salire
Back to Italian filmography, the comedy trio Aldo, Giovanni and Giacomo is the author of many common expressions.
When you find yourself stuck somewhere, it is common to say “Non posso né scendere né salire” (I can’t climb or go down):
Another popular expression is: “Non ce la faccio, troppi ricordi…” (I can’t take it, too many memories…), used when seeing something that reminds you of the good old days:
Italian Pop Culture || Dignitosamente brillo
Although the context in which these phrases were uttered is not the funniest (it was a trial), Mr. Biggiogero’s absurd responses and expressions such as “dignitosamente brillo” (“respectably tipsy”) have become a meme.
Italian Pop Culture || Molisn’t
A very recurrent and widespread joke among Italians is that Molise does not exist.
This joke is based on the fact that it is a small region that is not often remembered and with which nothing particular is associated.
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Italian Pop Culture || Questa è benzina
Another crucial moment of Italian television.
“This is gasoline, I set myself on fire,” a phrase that has made Italian meme history and is now a popular reaction pic.
The reference is this man, who tried to set himself on fire on tv. Luckily, once again, no one got hurt.
Italian Pop Culture || Che succede?
This now famous reaction pic stems from a memorable moment at the 2020 Sanremo festival.
During their performance of the song ‘Sincero,’ the singer Morgan changed the lyrics of the song by insulting fellow singer Bugo, who left the stage.
The music stopped and Morgan, bewildered, asked “che succede?” (“what’s going on?”).
To this day, when someone has a go at someone else, it’s possible to find the comment “le brutte intenzioni, la maleducazione” (the first line of the changed lyrics – watch the full video here).
Italian Pop Culture || Buongiornissimo… Kaffé?
“Buongiornissimo…kaffè?” is something you can write or say when someone’s behaving like a boomer: the reference is the kind of image your grandma shares on Facebook to wish her friend a good day.
Italian Pop Culture || Padova è vicino all’Islanda
Yet another emblematic moment on Italian TV: this child from Vicenza talks about how far away Iceland is, being close to Padua.
Italian Pop Culture || Per me è la cipolla
Another gem given to us by Italian game shows. When you don’t know the answer, you can always answer “for me it’s the onion,” as this contestant did:
Italian Pop Culture || I limoni
For those who have seen this video, it is now impossible to say “i limoni” (“the lemons”) in a normal tone and without adding “signoraaaaaa!” (meaning “Mrs.”).
Italian Pop Culture || Poteva succedere ovunque, e invece
“It could have happened anywhere, yet…” this sentence could be considered offensive, but we are reporting it for the sake of knowledge.
It is often said when something questionable happens in Naples.
Another recurring joke involves wondering if something happened in Bolzano or some other city in the far north of Italy, when the video in question blatantly depicts some over-the-top Neapolitan ceremony.
That’s all for today! I hope you found this article entertaining and useful, and that Italian inside jokes will appear less obscure from now on!
Obviously, these were just some of them: the world of Italian memes is immense! See you in the next article 😊😉
Italian Pop Culture || FAQs
Does everybody in Italy know about these memes?
Not at all, but people who spend their time on social media will probably know them and cite them in conversations with friends. These were some of the best known ones, but obviously there are many, many others.
What is “la nuvola di Fantozzi”?
It’s a small cloud, or bad weather in general, that seems to be following you.
What does it mean if someone tells me “presidente… presidente?”
It probably means you zoned out and are not answering.
Where do Italian memes come from?
Italian memes often originate from trash tv, scandals, game shows, films and so on.
What does “poteva succedere ovunque…” mean?
“It could have happened anywhere…” but often it implies that something happened in an expected place.
How can I learn more of these memes?
You should like Italian meme pages and read the comments. It’s probably better if you have an Italian friend to help you, because sometimes a meme can have many layers and therefore be almost impossible to understand if you don’t know the backstory.
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