Chapter 1: Beautiful Beast: Glossary

Sicily: location and language

Sicily is one of five autonomous regions of Italy. The local government has administrative powers that allow for the protection of cultural differences and linguistic minorities. However, Sicily is a part of Italy and not an independent country.

The region is the largest and most populous island in the Mediterranean Sea and is located just south of the Italian peninsula. Although Sicily has its own distinct dialect (i.e., Sicilian), and many people are bilingual, the official language is Italian, the same as in mainland Italy.

Thus, the characters in this book speak Italian.

Russian names: patronymic, family, and diminutive

Russian names consist of three parts: first name, middle (patronymic), and surname (family name). A patronymic is derived from a father’s name (or another paternal ancestor, in certain cases), with an addition of a suffix. Some readers may be more familiar with a similar cultural practice of using a “son of” reference for family names (e.g., Tomson = “son of Tom”).

In Russian patronymic, the ending of the name is changed to indicate the name bearer’s gender. For a man, the suffixes of “evich” or “ovich” are used. For a woman, these are “evna” or “ovna.” For example, Vasilisa Romanovna Petrova (Vasilisa “daughter of Roman” Petrova).

It should be noted, also, that Russians are prevalent in using short (“intimate”) forms of names (e.g., Vasilisa would be shortened to Vasya).

Note: When it comes to non-English insults (both Italian and Russian), the literal phrasing is often extremely vulgar but it loses meaning in direct translation. Thus, an equivalent wording is used to depict context.

Italian words and phrases

Vespetta – little wasp (diminutive)

Cumpari – godfather

Signore/Signor – sir. The “e” at the end is always dropped when used in conjunction with a name (e.g., Signor De Santi; but, Yes, signore.)

Vuole provare del prosciutto? – Would you like to taste the ham?

Che cazzo! – What the fuck?

Stai zitto! – Shut up; be quiet!

Chi è quella? – Who is that (woman)?

Sbrigati, idiota. Ho bisogno di quella vernice. – Hurry up, idiot. I need that paint.

Sei la ragazza di Raffaello? – Are you Rafael’s girlfriend?

Pronto – Ready

Cosa è successo? – What happened?

Merda. Venti minuti. – Shit. Twenty minutes.

Buonasera, signorina. – Good evening, miss.

Non toccarla. Lei è mia. Capito? – Do not touch her. She is mine. Understand?

SÌ. Ho capito. Mi dispiace molto. – YES. I understand. I’m very sorry.

Potrei ucciderti per questo. – I could kill you for this.

Dice che è urgente. – He says it’s urgent.

Ma che fai, stronzo?! – What are you doing, asshole?!

Vaffanculo! Sei cieco? Madonna santa! – Go fuck yourself! Are you blind? Dear Mother of God!

Coglione! Mangia merda e morte, porca puttana! – Moron! Eat shit and die, you pig-whore!

Testa di cazzo. – You dickhead.

Tutto bene? – Everything okay?

La mia principessa russa. – My Russian princess.

Non ti lascerò mai andare. – I will never let you go.

Sei pronto? – Are you ready?

Si. Iniziamo. – Yes. Let’s get started.

Vi dichiaro marito e moglie. – I now pronounce you husband and wife.

Farei qualsiasi cosa per te. Perfino lasciarti andare. – I would do anything for you. Even letting you go.

Russian words and phrases

Cволочь – Scum

Придурок – Idiot, moron

Kакой ужасный беспорядок. – What a dreadful mess.

Mне он нужен живым, Сергей. Понимаешь? – I need him alive, Sergei. Do you understand?