View source for Sicilian language

{{Short description|Language of Sicily and its satellite islands}}
{{Distinguish|Silesian language}}
{{use dmy dates|date=September 2024}}
{{Infobox language
| name = Sicilian
| nativename = {{lang|scn|sicilianu}}
| states = [[Italy]]
| ethnicity = [[Sicilians]]
| region = [[Sicily]]
| speakers = 4.7 million
| date = 2002
| ref = e18
| familycolor = Indo-European
| fam2 = [[Italic languages|Italic]]
| fam3 = [[Latino-Faliscan languages|Latino-Faliscan]]
| fam4 = [[Latin]]
| fam5 = [[Romance languages|Romance]]
| fam6 = [[Italo-Western languages|Italo-Western]]
| fam7 = [[Italo-Dalmatian languages|Italo-Dalmatian]]
| fam8 = [[Italo-Dalmatian languages#Italo-Romance|Italo-Romance]]
| fam9 = [[Extreme Southern Italian]]
| dia1 = [[Pantesco dialect|Pantesco]]
| dia2 = [[Western Sicilian dialect|Western]]
| dia3 = [[Eastern Sicilian dialect|Eastern]]
| dia4 = [[Central Metaphonetic dialect|Central Metaphonetic]]
| dia5 = [[Southeast Metaphonetic dialect|Southeast Metaphonetic]]
| dia6 = [[Ennese dialect|Ennese]]
| dia7 = [[Eastern Non-Metaphonetic dialect|Eastern Non-Metaphonetic]]
| dia8 = [[Messinese dialect|Messinese]]
| dia9 = [[Eoliano dialect|Eoliano]]
| dia10 = [[Reggino dialect|Reggino]]
| iso2 = scn
| iso3 = scn
| minority = [[Sicily]] (limited recognition)<ref name=":0" />
| glotto = sici1248
| glottorefname = Sicilian
| lingua = 51-AAA-re & -rf
(mainland 51-AAA-rc & -rd)
| mapcaption = 
| map2 = Idioma siciliano.PNG
| mapcaption2 = Sicilian linguistic area
| map3 = Central-southern Italian linguistic area.png
| mapcaption3 = Sicilian as part of the Central-southern Italian linguistic area
{{col-begin}}
{{legend|#019FFE|Middle Italian}}
{{legend|#A349A4|Intermediate Southern Italian}}
{{legend|#FEA327|[[Extreme Southern Italian]] (Includes Sicilian)}}
{{col-end}}
| notice = IPA
}}
{{Sicilian language|state=expanded}}

'''Sicilian''' ({{langx|scn|sicilianu|link=no}}, {{IPA|scn|sɪʃɪˈljaːnʊ, sɪdʒɪˈljaːnʊ|pron}}; {{langx|it|siciliano}}) is a [[Romance languages|Romance language]] that is spoken on the island of [[Sicily]] and its satellite islands.<ref name=Ethnologue>{{cite web|url=https://www.ethnologue.com/language/scn|title=Sicilian entry in Ethnologue|website=www.ethnologue.com|access-date=27 December 2017|quote= (20th ed. 2017)}}</ref>
It belongs to the broader [[Extreme Southern Italian]] language group (in Italian {{lang|it|italiano meridionale estremo}}).<ref name=Avolio>{{cite book|language=it|first=Francesco|last=Avolio|title=Lingue e dialetti d'Italia|trans-title=Languages and dialects of Italy|edition=2nd|location=[[Rome]]|publisher=Carocci|year=2012|page=54}}</ref>

''[[Ethnologue]]'' (see [[#Ethnologue report|below]] for more detail) describes Sicilian as being "distinct enough from [[Italian language|Standard Italian]] to be considered a separate language",<ref name=Ethnologue/> and it is recognized as a [[minority language]] by [[UNESCO]].<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ybiJNs6UHGcC|title=Opportunities and Challenges of Bilingualism|last1=Wei|first1=Li|last2=Dewaele|first2=Jean-Marc|last3=Housen|first3=Alex|year=2002|publisher=[[Walter de Gruyter]]|isbn=9783110852004|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xsgPxL4b8GsC|title=Sicily|last1=Facaros|first1=Dana|last2=Pauls|first2=Michael|year=2008|publisher=[[New Holland Publishers]]|isbn=9781860113970|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.unesco.org/languages-atlas/en/atlasmap/language-id-1023.html|title=UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in danger|website=www.unesco.org|access-date=16 August 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.alpdn.org/alp/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=38|title=Lingue riconosciute dall'UNESCO e non tutelate dalla 482/99|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304121941/http://www.alpdn.org/alp/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=38|archive-date=2016-03-04|publisher=Associazion Linguìstica Padaneisa|location=[[Piacenza]]}}</ref> It has been referred to as a language by the Sicilian Region.<ref name=:0>{{Cite act|language=it|url=http://www.regione.sicilia.it/deliberegiunta/file/giunta/allegati/Delibera_199_18.pdf|title=Iniziative per la promozione e valorizzazione della lingua Siciliana e l'insegnamento della storia della Sicilia nelle scuole di ogni ordine e grado della Regione|trans-title=Initiatives for the promotion and development of Sicilian language in the schools of all type and degree of the Region|type=resolution|date=15 May 2018|access-date=July 17, 2018}}</ref> It has the oldest literary tradition of the [[Italo-Dalmatian languages|Italo-Romance languages]].{{sfn|Cipolla|2004|pages=150–151}}<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SJ8KB0YifC4C|title=Sicily: An Informal History|last1=Sammartino|first1=Peter|last2=Roberts|first2=William|date=2001-01-01|publisher=[[Associated University Presses]]|isbn=9780845348772|language=en}}</ref> A version of the ''[[UNESCO Courier]]'' is also available in Sicilian.

== Status ==
[[File:Super Enalotto sicilianu.jpg|thumb|left|200px|A sign in Sicilian at [[Santo Stefano di Camastra]], Messina]]
Sicilian is spoken by most inhabitants of Sicily and by emigrant populations around the world.{{sfn|Cipolla|2004|pages=140–141}} The latter are found in the countries that attracted large numbers of [[Sicilians|Sicilian]] immigrants during the course of the past century or so, especially the [[United States]] (specifically in the [[Gravesend, Brooklyn|Gravesend]] and [[Bensonhurst, Brooklyn|Bensonhurst]] neighborhoods of [[Brooklyn]], [[New York City]], and in [[Buffalo, New York|Buffalo]] and [[Western New York]] State), [[Canada]] (especially in [[Montreal]], [[Toronto]] and [[Hamilton, Ontario|Hamilton]]), [[Australia]], [[Venezuela]] and [[Argentina]]. During the last four or five decades, large numbers of Sicilians were also attracted to the industrial zones of [[Northern Italy]] and areas of the [[European Union]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bestofsicily.com/mag/art424.htm|last1=Salerno|first1=Vincenzo|title=Diaspora Sicilians Outside Italy|website=www.bestofsicily.com|access-date=27 December 2017}} </ref>

Although the Sicilian language does not have official status (including  in Sicily),<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Giacalone |first=Christine Guedri |date=2016 |title=Sicilian Language Usage: Language Attitudes and Usage in Sicily and Abroad |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/44504566 |journal=Italica |volume=93 |issue=2 |pages=305–316 |jstor=44504566 |issn=0021-3020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |author-link=Ethnologue |date=2024 |title=Sicilian |url=https://www.ethnologue.com/language/scn/ |access-date=2024-03-18 |website=Ethnologue |language=en}}</ref> in addition to the standard Sicilian of the medieval Sicilian school, academics have developed a standardized form. Such efforts began in the mid-19th century when [[Vincenzo Mortillaro]] published a comprehensive Sicilian language dictionary intended to capture the language universally spoken across Sicily in a common orthography.  Later in the century, [[Giuseppe Pitrè]] established a common grammar in his ''Grammatica Siciliana'' (1875). Although it presents a common grammar, it also provides detailed notes on how the sounds of Sicilian differ across dialects.{{citation needed|date=March 2022}}

In the 20th century, researchers at the [[Centro di studi filologici e linguistici siciliani]] developed an extensive descriptivist orthography which aims to represent every sound in the natural range of Sicilian accurately.<ref name="piccitto">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SwNdAAAAMAAJ&q=vocabolario+siciliano+volume+4|title=Vocabolario siciliano|last=Piccitto|first=Giorgio|date=1997|publisher=Centro di studi filologici e linguistici siciliani, Opera del Vocabolario siciliano|language=it}}</ref> This system is also used extensively in the [[Vocabolario siciliano]] and by [[Gaetano Cipolla]] in his ''Learn Sicilian'' series of textbooks<ref name="mparamu">{{cite book
 | last        = Cipolla
 | first       = Gaetano
 | author-link = Gaetano Cipolla
 | date        = 2013
 | title       = Learn Sicilian
 | publisher   = Legas
 | isbn        = 978-1-881901-89-1
}}</ref> and by [[Arba Sicula]] in its journal.

In initially 2017, with an updated version in 2024 the nonprofit organisation [[Cademia Siciliana]] created an orthographic proposal to help to normalise the language's written form.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.identitainsorgenti.com/lingua-siciliana-da-firefox-in-siciliano-alla-proposta-di-norma-ortografica-vi-raccontiamo-la-cademia-siciliana/|title=LINGUA SICILIANA / Da Firefox in Siciliano alla proposta di Norma Ortografica, vi raccontiamo la Cademia Siciliana|work=Identità Insorgenti|access-date=20 December 2017|language=it}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://cademiasiciliana.org/orthography/|title=Orthography Standardisation – Cademia Siciliana|work=Cademia Siciliana|access-date=20 December 2017|language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://catania.liveuniversity.it/2017/12/06/cademia-siciliana-siciliano-dialetto-lingua/|title=L'Accademia che studia il siciliano: "È ancora chiamato dialetto, ma ha un valore immenso"|date=6 December 2017|work=Liveunict|publisher=[[University of Catania]]|access-date=12 December 2017|language=it}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Standardizzazione Ortografica |url=https://cademiasiciliana.org/standardizzazione-ortografica/ |access-date=2024-11-22 |website=Cademia Siciliana |language=it-IT}}</ref> This orthography was used by the organisation in their collaboration with Google to bring the Sicilian Language to Google Translate.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Direttore |date=2024-06-29 |title=Google Translate in Siciliano |url=https://www.ilgiornaledipantelleria.it/google-translate-in-siciliano/ |access-date=2024-11-22 |website=Il Giornale di Pantelleria |language=it-IT}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Perché la nostra è una lingua (da tradurre): c'è Google Translate in siciliano, come si usa |url=https://www.balarm.it/news/perche-la-nostra-e-una-lingua-da-tradurre-c-e-google-translate-in-siciliano-come-si-usa-146699 |access-date=2024-11-22 |website=Balarm.it |language=it}}</ref> Their "Manifesto" currently has been signed by many towns and cities of Sicily demanding official status for the language.[https://cademiasiciliana.org/u-manifestu/] There are currently proposals in the Sicilian Regional Assembly to include Sicilian in the list of the Italian Law n. 482 of 1999 .[https://www.palermotoday.it/politica/disegno-legge-ars-lingua-siciliana-dialetto.html]

The autonomous regional parliament of Sicily has legislated Regional Law No. 9/2011 to encourage the teaching of Sicilian at all schools, but inroads into the education system have been slow.{{sfn|Cipolla|2004|pages=163–165}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.csfls.it/legge-regionale-31-maggio-2011-n-9/|title=Centro di studi filologici e linguistici siciliani » Legge Regionale 31 maggio 2011, N. 9|website=www.csfls.it|language=it|access-date=14 December 2017}}</ref> The CSFLS created a textbook "Dialektos" to comply with the law but does not provide an [[orthography]] to write the language.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://dialektos.it/|title=Home|access-date=20 December 2017|language=it|work=www.dialektos.it}}</ref> In Sicily, it is taught only as part of [[dialectology]] courses, but outside Italy, Sicilian has been taught at the [[University of Pennsylvania]], [[Brooklyn College]] and [[Manouba University]]. Since 2009, it has been taught at the [[Italian Charities of America]], in New York City (home to the largest Sicilian speaking community outside of Sicily and Italy)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.sas.upenn.edu/lpscourses/courses/term/2017C/subject/ITAL/course/ITAL105601|title=Sicilian Language and Culture {{!}} LPS Course Guide|website=www.sas.upenn.edu|language=en|access-date=20 December 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.lapresse.tn/component/culture/?task=article&id=114411|title=La langue de Pirandello bientôt enseignée|language=fr|work=La presse de Tunisie|access-date=20 December 2017}}</ref> and it is also preserved and taught by family association, church organisations and societies, social and ethnic historical clubs and even Internet social groups, mainly in [[Gravesend, Brooklyn|Gravesend]] and [[Bensonhurst, Brooklyn]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://dir.groups.yahoo.com/group/sicilianamericanclub/message/766|title=Sicilian American Club|work=Yahoo |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131031093414/http://dir.groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/sicilianamericanclub/conversations/topics/766 |archive-date=31 October 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{cite encyclopedia|url=http://www.everyculture.com/multi/Pa-Sp/Sicilian-Americans.html|title=Sicilian Americans – History, Modern era, The first sicilians in america |first=Laura C. |last=Rudolph |encyclopedia=World Culture Encyclopedia}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://nsaf.net/|title=Welcome to the National Sicilian American Foundation|publisher=National National Sicilian American Foundation|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150104032924/http://nsaf.net/|archive-date=4 January 2015|url-status=dead|access-date=2 January 2017}}</ref> On 15 May 2018, the Sicilian Region once again mandated the teaching of Sicilian in schools and referred to it as a language, not a dialect, in official communication.<ref name=:0/>
The language is officially recognized in the municipal statutes of some Sicilian towns, such as [[Caltagirone]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.regione.sicilia.it/presidenza/ull/gazzette/g04-25s/g04-25s-p1.htm|title=Gazzetta Ufficiale della Regione Siciliana: Statuto del Comune di Caltagirone|first=Michele|last=Arcadipane|publisher=Legislative and legal office of Regione Sicilia|language=it}}</ref> and [[Grammichele]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.regione.sicilia.it/presidenza/ull/gazzette/g05-28s/g05-28s-p1.htm|title=Gazzetta Ufficiale della Regione Siciliana: Statuto del Comune di Grammichele|first=Michele|last=Arcadipane|publisher=Legislative and legal office of Regione Sicilia|language=it}}</ref> in which the "inalienable historical and cultural value of the Sicilian language" is proclaimed. Furthermore, the Sicilian language would be protected and promoted under the [[European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages]] (ECRML). Although Italy has signed the treaty, the [[Italian Parliament]] has not ratified it.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eurolang.net/index2.php?option=com_content&do_pdf=1&id=3002|last=Cardi|first=Valeria|title=Italy moves closer to ratification of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages|work=Eurolang|date=12 December 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071212173616/http://www.eurolang.net/index2.php?option=com_content&do_pdf=1&id=3002|archive-date=12 December 2007}}</ref> It is not included in Italian Law No. 482/1999 although some other minority languages of Sicily are.<ref>{{cite act|url=http://www.camera.it/parlam/leggi/99482l.htm|title=Legge 482|date=15 December 1999}}</ref>

== Ethnologue report ==
[[File:Romance-lg-classification-en.svg|thumb|375x375px|Chart of Romance languages based on structural and comparative criteria (not on socio-functional ones)]]

=== Other names ===
Alternative names of Sicilian are {{lang|en|Calabro-Sicilian|italic=yes}}, {{lang|scn|sicilianu}}, and {{lang|scn|sìculu}}.<ref name=Ethnologue/> The first term refers to the fact that a form of Sicilian is spoken in southern Calabria, particularly in the [[province of Reggio Calabria]].<ref name=Ethnologue/> The other two are names for the language in Sicily itself: specifically, the term {{lang|scn|sìculu}} originally describes one of the larger prehistoric groups living in Sicily (the [[Italic peoples|Italic]] [[Sicels]] or {{lang|la|Siculi}}) before the arrival of [[Greeks]] in the 8th century BC (see [[#Early influences|below]]). It can also be used as a prefix to qualify or to elaborate further on the origins of a person, for example: [[Sicilian Americans|Siculo-American]] ({{lang|scn|sìculu-miricanu}}) or Siculo-Australian.

=== Dialects ===
As a language, Sicilian has its own [[dialects]] in the following main groupings:<ref name=Ethnologue/>{{sfn|Bonner|2001|pages=2–3}}
*Western Sicilian (Palermitano in [[Palermo]], Trapanese in [[Trapani]], Central-Western Agrigentino in [[Agrigento]])
*Central Metafonetic (in the central part of Sicily that includes some areas of the provinces of [[Province of Caltanissetta|Caltanissetta]], [[Metropolitan City of Messina|Messina]], [[Province of Enna|Enna]], [[Metropolitan City of Palermo|Palermo]] and [[Province of Agrigento|Agrigento]])
*Southeast Metafonetic (in the [[Province of Ragusa]] and the adjoining area within the [[Province of Syracuse]])
*Ennese (in the [[Province of Enna]])
*Eastern Non-Metafonetic (in the area including the [[Metropolitan City of Catania]], the second largest city in Sicily, as Catanese, and the adjoining area within the [[Province of Syracuse]])
*Messinese (in the [[Metropolitan City of Messina]], the third largest city in Sicily)
*Eoliano (in the [[Aeolian Islands]])
*[[Pantesco dialect|Pantesco]] (on the island of [[Pantelleria]])
*Reggino (in the [[Metropolitan City of Reggio Calabria]],<ref name="Varvaro A. 1988">{{cite book|language=de|last=Varvaro|first=Alberto|chapter=Sizilien|title=Italienisch, Korsisch, Sardisch|trans-title=Italian, Corsican, Sardinian|publisher=Max Niemeyer Verlag|location=[[Tübingen]]|year=1988}}</ref><ref name=DevotoGiacomelli>{{cite book|first1=Giacomo|last1=Devoto|author-link1=Giacomo Devoto|first2=Gabriella|last2=Giacomelli|language=it|title=I dialetti delle regioni d'Italia|url=https://archive.org/details/idialettidellere00devo|trans-title=Dialects of the regions of Italy|location=Florence|publisher=Sansoni|year=1972|page=143}}</ref> especially on the [[Scilla, Calabria|Scilla]]–[[Bova, Calabria|Bova]] line,<ref>{{cite book|last=La Face|first=Giuseppe|language=it|title=Il dialetto reggino – Tradizione e nuovo vocabolario|trans-title=The dialect of Reggio – Tradition and new vocabulary|publisher=Iiriti|location=[[Reggio Calabria]]|year=2006}}</ref> and excluding the areas of [[Locri]] and [[Rosarno]], which represent the first isogloss that divide Sicilian from the [[Neapolitan language|continental varieties]]).<ref name=Avolio/>

== History ==
{{Blockquote|First let us turn our attention to the language of Sicily, since the Sicilian vernacular seems to hold itself in higher regard than any other, because all the poetry written by the [[Italians]] is called "Sicilian"...|[[Dante Alighieri]], [[De Vulgari Eloquentia]], Lib. I, XII, 2<ref>"Et primo de siciliano examinemus ingenium: nam videtur sicilianum vulgare sibi famam pre aliis asciscere eo quod quicquid poetantur Ytali sicilianum vocatur..." [http://www.thelatinlibrary.com/dante/vulgar.shtml#XII ''Dantis Alagherii De Vulgari Eloquentia'', Lib. I, XII, 2] on [[The Latin Library]]</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.danteonline.it/english/opere2.asp?idcod=000&idope=3&idliv1=1&idliv2=12&idliv3=1&idlang=UK|title=Dante Online – Le Opere|website=www.danteonline.it}}</ref>}}
[[File:Lingua siciliana.png|thumb|Etymological analysis of 5,000 terms from the ''Dizionario etimologico siciliano'' by Salvatore Giarrizzo:<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UMbjAAAAMAAJ&q=(EN)+Joseph+Frederic+Privitera,+Sicilian.+The+oldest+romance+language,+Canada,+Legas,+2004,+ISBN+978-1-881901-41-9.|title=Sicilian: The Oldest Romance Language|last=Privitera|first=Joseph Frederic|date=2004|publisher=Legas|isbn=9781881901419|language=en}}</ref><br />{{color|#FF0000|'''Latin'''}} 2,792 (55.84%)<br />{{color|#002070|'''Greek'''}} 733 (14.66%)<br />{{color|#CCCC00|'''Spanish'''}} 664 (13.28%)<br />{{color|orange|'''French'''}} 318 (6.36%)<br />{{color|green|'''Arabic'''}} 303 (6.06%)<br />{{color|#ba55d3|'''Catalan'''}} 107 (2.14%)<br />{{color|#4682b4|'''Occitan'''}} 103 (1.66%)

]]

=== Early influences ===
Because [[Sicily]] is the largest island in the [[Mediterranean Sea]] and many peoples have passed through it ([[Phoenicia]]ns, [[Ancient Greece|Ancient Greeks]], [[Carthaginians]], [[Ancient Rome|Romans]], [[Vandals]], [[Jews]], [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantine Greeks]], [[Arabs]], [[Normans]], [[Swabians]], [[Spaniards]], [[Austrians]], [[Italians]]), Sicilian displays a rich and varied influence from several languages in its lexical stock and grammar. These languages include [[Latin]] (as Sicilian is a [[Romance languages|Romance language]] itself), [[Ancient Greek]], [[Byzantine Greek]], [[Spanish language|Spanish]], [[Norman language|Norman]], [[Lombard language|Lombard]], [[Hebrew]], [[Catalan language|Catalan]], [[Occitan language|Occitan]], [[Arabic]] and [[Germanic languages]], and the languages of the island's aboriginal [[Indo-European]] and [[pre-Indo-European languages|pre-Indo-European]] inhabitants, known as the [[Sicels]], [[Sicanians]] and [[Elymians]]. The very earliest influences, visible in Sicilian to this day, exhibit both prehistoric Mediterranean elements and prehistoric [[Indo-European languages|Indo-European]] elements, and occasionally a blending of both.{{sfn|Ruffino|2001|pages=7–8}}{{sfn|Giarrizzo|1989|pages=1–4}}

Before the [[Sicilia (Roman province)|Roman conquest]] (3rd century BC), Sicily was occupied by various populations. The earliest of these populations were the [[Sicanians]], considered to be autochthonous. The [[Sicels]] and the [[Elymians]] arrived between the second and first millennia BC. These aboriginal populations in turn were followed by the [[Phoenicians]] (between the 10th and 8th centuries BC) and the [[Ancient Greece|Greeks]].<ref name=Ruffino>{{harvnb|Ruffino|2001|pages=9–11}}</ref> The heavy Greek-language influence remains strongly visible, while the influences from the other groups are smaller and less obvious.<ref name=Ruffino/> What can be stated with certainty is that in Sicilian remain pre-Indo-European words of an ancient Mediterranean origin, but one cannot be more precise than that: of the three main prehistoric groups, only the Sicels were known to be Indo-European with a degree of certainty, and their speech is likely to have been closely related to that of the Romans.<ref name=Ruffino/>

=== Stratification ===
The following table, listing words for "twins", illustrates the difficulty linguists face in tackling the various substrata of the Sicilian language.{{sfn|Ruffino|2001|page=8}}
{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col" | Stratum
! scope="col" | Word
! scope="col" | Source
|-
| Modern
! scope="row" style="font-weight: normal; font-style: italic;" | giameddi
| [[Italian language|Italian]] {{lang|it|gemelli}}
|-
| rowspan="2" | Medieval
! scope="row" style="font-weight: normal; font-style: italic;" | bizzuni, vuzzuni
| [[Old French]] or [[Catalan language|Catalan]] {{lang|nrf|bessons}}<ref>[[Albert Dauzat]], ''Dictionnaire étymologique des noms de famille et prénoms de France'', éditions Larousse, 1980, p. 41a</ref>
|-
! scope="row" style="font-weight: normal; font-style: italic;" | binelli
| [[Ligurian (Romance language)|Ligurian]] {{lang|lij|beneli}}
|-
| rowspan="4" | Ancient
! scope="row" style="font-weight: normal; font-style: italic;" | èmmuli
| [[Latin]] {{lang|la|gemelli}}
|-
! scope="row" style="font-weight: normal; font-style: italic;" | cucchi
| Latin {{lang|la|copula}}
|-
! scope="row" style="font-weight: normal; font-style: italic;" | minzuddi
| Latin {{lang|la|medii}}
|-
! scope="row" style="font-weight: normal; font-style: italic;" | ièmiddi, ièddimi
| [[Ancient Greek]] {{lang|grc|δίδυμοι}} {{transliteration|grc|ALA-LC|dídymoi}}
|}

A similar qualifier can be applied to many of the words that appear in this article. Sometimes it may be known that a particular word has a prehistoric derivation, but it is not known whether the Sicilians inherited it directly from the indigenous populations, or whether it came via another route. Similarly, it might be known that a particular word has a Greek origin but it is not known from which Greek period the Sicilians first used it (ancient [[Magna Grecia]] or the [[Theme of Sicily|Byzantine period]]), or once again, whether the particular word may even have come to Sicily via another route. For instance, by the time the Romans had occupied Sicily, the Latin language had made its own borrowings from Greek.{{sfn|Ruffino|2001|pages=11–12}}

=== Pre-classical period ===
The words with a prehistoric Mediterranean derivation often refer to plants native to the Mediterranean region or to other natural features.<ref name=Ruffino/> Bearing in mind the qualifiers mentioned above (alternative sources are provided where known), examples of such words include:
* {{lang|scn|alastra}} – "[[spiny broom]]" (a thorny, prickly plant native to the Mediterranean region; but also Greek {{transliteration|grc|ALA-LC|kélastron}} and may in fact have penetrated Sicilian via one of the [[Gaulish languages]])<ref name=Ruffino/><ref name=Giarrizzo>{{harvnb|Giarrizzo|1989}}</ref>
* {{lang|scn|ammarrari}} – "to dam or block a canal or running water" (but also Spanish {{lang|es|embarrar}} "to muddy")<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|calancuni}} – "ripples caused by a fast running river"
* {{lang|scn|calanna}} – "landslide of rocks" (cf. Greek χαλάω (khaláō) "loosen, drop", verb borrowed into Latin, widespread in Romance languages)
* {{lang|scn|racioppu}} – "stalk or stem of a fruit etc." (ancient Mediterranean word ''rak'')<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|timpa}} – "crag, cliff" (but also Greek {{transliteration|grc|ALA-LC|týmba}}, Latin {{lang|la|tumba}} and Catalan {{lang|ca|timba}}).<ref name=Giarrizzo/>

There are also Sicilian words with an ancient Indo-European origin that do not appear to have come to the language via any of the major language groups normally associated with Sicilian, i.e. they have been independently derived from a very early Indo-European source. The Sicels are a possible source of such words, but there is also the possibility of a cross-over between ancient Mediterranean words and introduced Indo-European forms. Some examples of Sicilian words with an ancient Indo-European origin:
* {{lang|scn|dudda}} – "[[mulberry]]" (similar to Indo-European ''*h₁rowdʰós'', [[Romanian language|Romanian]] {{lang|ro|dudă}} and [[Welsh language|Welsh]] {{lang|cy|rhudd}} "red, crimson")<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|scrozzu}} – "not well developed" (similar to [[Lithuanian language|Lithuanian]] {{lang|lt|su-skurdes}} with a similar meaning and [[Old High German]] {{lang|goh|scurz}} "short")<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|sfunnacata}} – "multitude, vast number" (from Indo-European ''*h₁we[n]d-'' "water").<ref name=Giarrizzo/>

=== Greek influences ===
In 535, [[Justinian I]] made Sicily a [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantine]] province, which returned the [[Byzantine Greek|Greek language]] to a position of prestige, at least on an official level.<ref name=Hull>{{cite book|last=Hull|first=Geoffrey|year=1989|title=Polyglot Italy: Languages, Dialects, Peoples|publisher=CIS Educational|location=[[Melbourne]]|pages=22–25}}</ref> At this time the island could be considered a border zone with moderate levels of [[bilingualism]]: Latinisation was mostly concentrated in western Sicily, largely among the upper class, whereas Eastern Sicily remained predominantly Greek.<ref name=Hull/>

The following Sicilian words are of a Greek origin (including some examples where it is unclear whether the word is derived directly from Greek, or via Latin):
* {{lang|scn|babbiari}} – "to fool around" (from {{transliteration|grc|ALA-LC|babázō}}, which also gives the Sicilian words: {{lang|scn|babbazzu}} and {{lang|scn|babbu}} "stupid"; but also Latin {{lang|la|babulus}} and Spanish {{lang|es|babieca}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|bucali}} – "pitcher" (from {{transliteration|grc|ALA-LC|baúkalion}}) (cognate of Maltese ''buqar'',<ref name=Giarrizzo/> Italian ''boccale'')
* {{lang|scn|bùmmulu}} – "water receptacle" (from {{transliteration|grc|ALA-LC|bómbylos}}; but also Latin {{lang|la|bombyla}}) (cognate of Maltese ''bomblu'')<ref name=Ruffino12>{{harvnb|Ruffino|2001|page=12}}</ref>
* {{lang|scn|cartedda}} – "basket" (from {{transliteration|grc|ALA-LC|kártallos}}; but also Latin {{lang|la|cartellum}})<ref name=Ruffino12/>
* {{lang|scn|carusu}} – "boy" (from {{transliteration|grc|ALA-LC|koûros}}; but also Latin ''carus'' "dear", [[Sanskrit]] {{transliteration|sa|caruh}} "amiable")<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|casèntaru}} – "earthworm" (from {{transliteration|grc|ALA-LC|gês énteron}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|cirasa}} – "cherry" (from {{transliteration|grc|ALA-LC|kerasós}}; but also Latin {{lang|la|cerasum}}) (cognate of Maltese ''ċirasa'')<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|cona}} – "icon, image, metaphor" (from {{transliteration|grc|ALA-LC|eikóna}}; but also Latin {{lang|la|icona}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|cuddura}} – type of bread (from {{transliteration|grc|ALA-LC|kollýra}}; but Latin {{lang|la|collyra}})<ref name=Ruffino12/>
* {{lang|scn|grasta}} – "flower pot" (from {{transliteration|grc|ALA-LC|gástra}}; but also Latin {{lang|la|gastra}})<ref name=Ruffino12/>
* {{lang|scn|naca}} – "cradle" (from {{transliteration|grc|ALA-LC|nákē}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|ntamari}} – "to stun, amaze" (from {{transliteration|grc|ALA-LC|thambéō}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|pistiari}} – "to eat" (from {{transliteration|grc|ALA-LC|esthíō}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|tuppiàri}} – "to knock" (from {{transliteration|grc|ALA-LC|týptō}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|nìcaru}} – "small, young" (from {{transliteration|grc|ALA-LC| mīkkós}})<ref>{{cite web | url=https://scn.m.wiktionary.org/wiki/nicu | title=Nicu | date=6 June 2022 }}</ref>

=== Germanic influences ===
From 476 to 535, the [[Ostrogoths]] ruled Sicily, although their presence apparently did not affect the Sicilian language.{{sfn|2001|page=18}} The few [[Germanic languages|Germanic]] influences to be found in Sicilian do not appear to originate from this period. One exception might be {{lang|scn|abbanniari}} or {{lang|scn|vanniari}} "to hawk goods, proclaim publicly", from [[Gothic language|Gothic]] {{transliteration|got|bandwjan}} "to give a signal".<ref name=Giarrizzo/> Also possible is {{lang|scn|schimmenti}} "diagonal" from Gothic {{transliteration|got|slimbs}} "slanting".<ref name=Giarrizzo/> Other sources of Germanic influences include the [[Hohenstaufen]] rule of the 13th century, words of [[Germanic languages|Germanic]] origin contained within the speech of 11th-century [[Normans]] and [[Lombards|Lombard]] settlers, and the short period of [[Austrian Empire|Austrian]] rule in the 18th century.

Many Germanic influences date back to the time of the Swabian kings (amongst whom [[Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor]] enjoyed the longest reign). Some of the words below are "reintroductions" of Latin words (also found in modern Italian) that had been Germanicized at some point (e.g. {{lang|la|vastāre}} in Latin to<ref>{{cite web|url=http://dizionario.internazionale.it/parola/guastare|title=Guastare: significato – Dizionario italiano De Mauro|work=Internazionale}}</ref> {{lang|it|guastare}} in modern Italian). Words that probably originate from this era include:
* {{lang|scn|arbitriari}} – "to work in the fields" (from {{lang|gem|arbeit}}; but other possible Latin derivations)<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|vardari}} – "to watch over" (from {{lang|gem|wardon}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|guddefi}} – "forest, woods" (from {{lang|gem|wald}}; note the resemblance to [[Old English language|Anglo-Saxon]] {{lang|ang|wudu}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|guzzuniari}} – "to wag, as in a tail" (from {{lang|gem|hutsen}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|lancedda}} (terracotta jug for holding water; from Old High German {{lang|goh|lagella}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|sparagnari}} – "to save money" (from Old High German {{lang|goh|sparen}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/>

=== Arabic influence ===
As the power of the Byzantine Empire waned, [[Muslim conquest of Sicily|Sicily was progressively conquered]] by [[Saracen]]s from [[Ifriqiya]], from the mid 9th to mid 10th centuries. The [[Emirate of Sicily]] persisted long enough to develop a distinctive local variety of Arabic, [[Siculo-Arabic]] (at present extinct in Sicily but surviving as the [[Maltese language]]).<ref name=Hull/> Its influence is noticeable in around 300 Sicilian words, most of which relate to agriculture and related activities.{{sfn|Ruffino|2001|pages=18–20}} This is understandable because of the [[Arab Agricultural Revolution]]; the [[Saracen]]s introduced to [[Sicily]] their advanced irrigation and farming techniques and a new range of crops, nearly all of which remain endemic to the island to this day.

Some words of [[Influence of Arabic on other languages|Arabic origin]]:
* {{lang|scn|azzizzari}} – "to embellish" ({{lang|ar|عزيز|rtl=yes}} {{transliteration|ar|ʿazīz}} "precious, beautiful") (Cognate of Maltese ''għażiż'', meaning "dear")<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|babbaluciu}} – "snail" (from {{transliteration|ar|babūš}}, Tunisian {{transliteration|ar|babūša}}; but also Greek {{transliteration|grc|ALA-LC|boubalákion}}.<ref name=Giarrizzo/> Cognate of Maltese ''bebbuxu)''<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://mlrs.research.um.edu.mt/resources/gabra/lexemes/view/522d86716f3bad513700152b|title=Ġabra|website=mlrs.research.um.edu.mt|access-date=2020-03-06}}</ref>
* {{lang|scn|burnia}} – "jar" ({{lang|ar|برنية|rtl=yes}} {{transliteration|ar|burniya}}; but also Latin {{lang|la|hirnea}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|cafisu}} (measure for liquids; from Tunisian {{lang|ar|قفيز|rtl=yes}} {{transliteration|ar|qafīz}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|[[cassata]]}} (Sicilian ricotta cake; from {{lang|ar|قشطة|rtl=yes}} {{transliteration|ar|qišṭa}}, chiefly North African; but Latin {{lang|la|caseata}} "something made from cheese".<ref name=Giarrizzo/> Cognate of Maltese ''qassata'')
* {{lang|scn|gèbbia}} – artificial pond to store water for irrigation (from Tunisian {{lang|ar|جابية|rtl=yes}} {{transliteration|ar|jēbya}}.<ref name="Giarrizzo" /> Cognate of Maltese ''ġiebja''<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://mlrs.research.um.edu.mt/resources/gabra/lexemes/view/56dd8037f9003f494146d303|title=Ġabra|website=mlrs.research.um.edu.mt|access-date=2020-03-06}}</ref> and Spanish {{lang|es|aljibe}})
* {{lang|scn|giuggiulena}} – "sesame seed" (from Tunisian {{lang|ar|جلجلان|rtl=yes}} {{transliteration|ar|jiljlēn}} or {{transliteration|ar|juljulēn}}.<ref name="Giarrizzo" /> Cognate of Maltese ''ġunġlien'' or ''ġulġlien''<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://mlrs.research.um.edu.mt/resources/gabra/lexemes/view/522d86636f3bad51370013d3|title=Ġabra|website=mlrs.research.um.edu.mt|access-date=2020-03-06}}</ref> and Spanish {{lang|es|ajonjolí}}).
* {{lang|scn|ràisi}} – "leader" ({{lang|ar|رئيس|rtl=yes}} {{transliteration|ar|raʾīs}}.<ref name="Giarrizzo" /> Cognate of Maltese ''ras'' "head")<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://mlrs.research.um.edu.mt/resources/gabra/lexemes/view/5200a374e36f2379880001d7|title=Ġabra|website=mlrs.research.um.edu.mt|access-date=2020-03-06}}</ref>
* {{lang|scn|saia}} – "canal" (from {{lang|ar|ساقية|rtl=yes}} {{transliteration|ar|sāqiya}}.<ref name="Giarrizzo" /> Cognate of Spanish ''acequia'' Maltese ''saqqajja'')<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://mlrs.research.um.edu.mt/resources/gabra/lexemes/view/5612ed2493f9884b20a9af47|title=Ġabra|website=mlrs.research.um.edu.mt|access-date=2020-03-06}}</ref>
* {{lang|scn|zaffarana}} – "[[saffron]]" (type of plant whose flowers are used for medicinal purposes and in Sicilian cooking; from {{lang|ar|زعفران|rtl=yes}} {{transliteration|ar|zaʿfarān}}. Cognate of Maltese ''żagħfran'' and English ''Saffron'')
* {{lang|scn|zàgara}} – "blossom" ({{lang|ar|زهرة|rtl=yes}} {{transliteration|ar|zahra}}.<ref name="Giarrizzo" /> Cognate of Maltese ''żahar''<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://mlrs.research.um.edu.mt/resources/gabra/lexemes/view/5200a366e36f2379750015e8|title=Ġabra|website=mlrs.research.um.edu.mt|access-date=2020-03-06}}</ref> and Spanish {{lang|es|azahar}})
* {{lang|scn|zibbibbu}} – "[[muscat of Alexandria]]" (type of dried grape; {{lang|ar|زبيب|rtl=yes}} {{transliteration|ar|zabīb}}.<ref name="Giarrizzo" /> Cognate of Maltese ''żbib'')<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://mlrs.research.um.edu.mt/resources/gabra/lexemes/view/522d864d6f3bad51370011b8|title=Ġabra|website=mlrs.research.um.edu.mt|access-date=2020-03-06}}</ref>
* {{lang|scn|zuccu}} – "market" (from {{lang|ar|سوق|rtl=yes}} {{transliteration|ar|[[souq|sūq]]}}; but also [[Aragonese language|Aragonese]] {{lang|an|soccu}} and Spanish {{lang|es|zoque}}.<ref name="Giarrizzo" /> Cognate of Maltese ''suq'')<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://mlrs.research.um.edu.mt/resources/gabra/lexemes/view/5200a375e36f2379880001eb|title=Ġabra|website=mlrs.research.um.edu.mt|access-date=2020-03-06}}</ref>
* {{lang|scn|Bibbirria}} (the northern gate of [[Agrigento]]; {{lang|ar|باب الرياح|rtl=yes}} {{transliteration|ar|bāb ar-riyāḥ}} "Gate of the Winds").<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.santiebeati.it/dettaglio/76035|title=San Libertino di Agrigento Vescovo e martire|first=Domenico|last=De Gregorio|date=November 2, 2007|publisher=Santi e Beati|access-date=January 26, 2010|language=it}}</ref>
* ''Gisira'' – "island" ({{lang|ar|جَزِيرَة‎|rtl=yes}} ''jazīra''. Cognate of Maltese ''gżira'') ''(archaic)''

Throughout the Islamic epoch of Sicilian history, a significant Greek-speaking population remained on the island and continued to use the Greek language, or most certainly a variant of Greek influenced by Tunisian Arabic.<ref name=Hull/> What is less clear is the extent to which a Latin-speaking population survived on the island. While a form of Vulgar Latin clearly survived in isolated communities during the Islamic epoch,{{citation needed|date=November 2021}} there is much debate as to the influence it had (if any) on the development of the Sicilian language, following the re-Latinisation of Sicily (discussed in the next section).{{citation needed|date=November 2021}}

=== Linguistic developments in the Middle Ages ===
[[File:Scribes 01 Kingdom of Sicily Petrus de Ebulo.PNG|thumb|220px|An 1196 miniature depicting the various [[scribes]] (1. Greeks; 2. Saracens; 3. Latins) for the various populations of the [[Kingdom of Sicily]]]]
By AD 1000, the whole of what is today [[Southern Italy]], including Sicily, was a complex mix of small [[Sovereign state|states]] and [[Principality|principalities]], languages and religions.<ref name=Hull/> The whole of Sicily was controlled by Saracens, at the elite level, but the general population remained a mix of Muslims and Christians who spoke Greek, Latin or Siculo-Arabic. The far south of the Italian peninsula was part of the Byzantine empire although many communities were reasonably independent from [[Constantinople]]. The [[Principality of Salerno]] was controlled by Lombards (or Langobards), who had also started to make some incursions into Byzantine territory and had managed to establish some isolated independent [[city-state]]s.<ref name=Norwich>{{harvnb|Norwich|1992}}</ref> It was into this climate that the Normans thrust themselves with increasing numbers during the first half of the 11th century.

=== Norman and French influence ===
When the two most famous of Southern Italy's Norman adventurers, [[Roger I of Sicily|Roger of Hauteville]] and his brother, [[Robert Guiscard]], began their conquest of Sicily in 1061, they already controlled the far south of Italy ([[Apulia]] and [[Calabria]]). It took Roger 30 years to complete the conquest of Sicily (Robert died in 1085).<ref name=Norwich/> In the aftermath of the Norman conquest of Sicily, the reintroduction of Latin in Sicily had begun, and some [[Norman language|Norman]] words would be absorbed, accompanied with an additional wave of [[Parisian French]] loanwords during the rule of [[Charles I of Anjou|Charles I]] from the [[Capetian House of Anjou]] in the 13th century.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/80167171.pdf|last1=Trofimova|first1=Olga|last2=Di Legnani|first2=Flora|last3=Sciarrino|first3=Chiara|title=I Normanni in Inghilterra e in Sicilia. Un capitolo della storia linguistica europea|language=it|year=2017|publisher=[[University of Palermo]]}}</ref> 
* {{lang|scn|accattari}} – "to buy" (from Norman French {{lang|nrf|acater}},<ref name=Giarrizzo/> French {{lang|fr|acheter}}; but there are different varieties of this Latin etymon in the ''Romania'', cf. [[Old Occitan]] {{lang|pro|acaptar}})<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cnrtl.fr/etymologie/acheter|publisher=CNRTL|title=CNRTL : etymology of ''acheter''|language=fr}}</ref>
* {{lang|scn|ammucciari}} – "to hide" (Old Norman French {{lang|nrf|muchier}}, Norman French {{lang|nrf|muchi}}/{{lang|nrf|mucher}}, [[Old French]] {{lang|fro|mucier}}; but also Greek {{transliteration|grc|ALA-LC|mychós}})
* {{lang|scn|bucceri}}/{{lang|scn|vucceri}} "butcher" (from Old French {{lang|fro|bouchier}})<ref name=Hull/>
* {{lang|scn|custureri}} – "tailor" (Old French {{lang|fro|cousturier}}; Modern [[French language|French]] {{lang|fr|couturier}})<ref name=Hull/>
* {{lang|scn|firranti}} – "grey" (from Old French {{lang|fro|ferrant}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|foddi}} – "mad" (Old French {{lang|fro|fol}}, whence French {{lang|fr|fou}})<ref name=Hull/>
* {{lang|scn|giugnettu}} – "July" (Old French {{lang|fro|juignet}})<ref name=Hull/>
* {{lang|scn|ladiu}}/{{lang|scn|laiu}} – "ugly" (Old French {{lang|fro|laid}})<ref name=Hull/>
* {{lang|scn|largasìa}} – "generosity" ({{lang|fr|largesse}}; but also Spanish {{lang|es|largueza}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|puseri}} – "thumb" (Old French {{lang|fro|pochier}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|racina}} – "grape" (Old French, French {{lang|fr|raisin}})<ref name=Hull/>
* {{lang|scn|raggia}} – "anger" (Old French, French {{lang|fr|rage}})<ref name=Hull/>
* {{lang|scn|trippari}} – "to hop, skip" (Norman French {{lang|nrf|triper}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/>

=== Other Gallic influences ===
The [[Gallo-Italic|Northern Italian]] influence is of particular interest. Even to the present day, [[Gallo-Italic of Sicily]] exists in the areas where the Northern Italian colonies were the strongest, namely [[Novara di Sicilia|Novara]], [[Nicosia, Sicily|Nicosia]], [[Sperlinga]], [[Aidone]] and [[Piazza Armerina]].<ref name=Hull/> The Siculo-Gallic dialect did not survive in other major Italian colonies, such as [[Randazzo]], [[Caltagirone]], [[Bronte, Sicily|Bronte]] and [[Paternò]] (although they influenced the local Sicilian vernacular). The Gallo-Italic influence was also felt on the Sicilian language itself, as follows:<ref name=Hull/>
* {{lang|scn|sòggiru}} – "father-in-law" (from {{lang|mis|suoxer}})
* {{lang|scn|cugnatu}} – "brother-in-law" (from {{lang|mis|cognau}}) (cognate of Maltese {{lang|mt|kunjat}})<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://mlrs.research.um.edu.mt/resources/gabra/lexemes/view/522d85b16f3bad51370002b1|title=Ġabra|website=mlrs.research.um.edu.mt|access-date=2020-03-06}}</ref>
* {{lang|scn|figghiozzu}} – "godson" (from {{lang|mis|figlioz}}) (cognate of Maltese {{lang|mt|filjozz}})<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://mlrs.research.um.edu.mt/resources/gabra/lexemes/view/55ad1ebb29f971201b95cb64|title=Ġabra|website=mlrs.research.um.edu.mt|access-date=2020-03-06}}</ref>
* {{lang|scn|orbu}}/{{lang|scn|orvu}} – blind (from ''orb'')
* {{lang|scn|arricintari}} – "to rinse" (from {{lang|mis|rexentar}})
* {{lang|scn|unni}} – "where" (from ''ond'')
* the names of the days of the week:
** {{lang|scn|luni}} – "Monday" (from {{lang|mis|lunes}})
** {{lang|scn|marti}} – "Tuesday" (from {{lang|mis|martes}})
** {{lang|scn|mèrcuri}} – "Wednesday" (from {{lang|mis|mèrcor}})
** {{lang|scn|jovi}} – "Thursday" (from {{lang|mis|juovia}})
** {{lang|scn|vènniri}} – "Friday" (from {{lang|mis|vènner}})

=== Occitan influence ===
The origins of another Romance influence, that of [[Occitan language|Occitan]], had three reasons:
# The Normans made [[San Fratello]] a garrison town in the early years of the occupation of the northeastern corner of Sicily. To this day (in ever decreasing numbers) a Siculo-Gallic dialect is spoken in San Fratello that is clearly influenced by Occitan, which leads to the conclusion that a significant number in the garrison came from that part of France.<ref name=Privitera>{{cite book|last=Privitera|first=Joseph Frederic|year=2003|title=Sicilian|publisher=[[Hippocrene Books]]|location=[[New York City]]|pages=3–4}}</ref> This may well explain the dialect spoken only in San Fratello, but it does not wholly explain the diffusion of many Occitan words into the Sicilian language. On that point, there are two other possibilities:
# Some Occitan words have entered the language during the regency of [[Margaret of Navarre]] between 1166 and 1171, when her son, [[William II of Sicily]], succeeded to the throne at the age of 12. Her closest advisers, entourage and administrators were from the south of France, and many Occitan words entered the language during this period.<ref name=Norwich/>
# The [[Sicilian School]] of poetry was strongly influenced by the Occitan of the [[troubadour]] tradition.<ref name=Privitera/> This element is deeply embedded in Sicilian culture: for example, the tradition of Sicilian puppetry ({{lang|scn|[[Opera dei Pupi|òpira dî pupi]]}}) and the tradition of the {{lang|scn|cantastorie}} (literally "story-singers"). Occitan troubadours were active during the reign of [[Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor]], and some Occitan words would have passed into the Sicilian language via this route.

Some examples of Sicilian words derived from Occitan:
* {{lang|scn|addumari}} – "to light, to turn something on" (from {{lang|pro|allumar}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|aggrifari}} – "to kidnap, abduct" (from {{lang|pro|grifar}}; but also German {{lang|de|greiffen}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|banna}} – "side, place" (from {{lang|pro|banda}}) <ref name=Giarrizzo/> (cognate of Maltese ''banda'' "side")<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ġabra |url=https://mlrs.research.um.edu.mt/resources/gabra/lexemes/view/5200a376e36f237988000201 |access-date=2022-12-11 |website=mlrs.research.um.edu.mt}}</ref>
* {{lang|scn|burgisi}} – "landowner, citizen" (from {{lang|pro|borges}})
* {{lang|scn|lascu}} – "sparse, thin, infrequent" (from {{lang|pro|lasc}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/>(cognate of Maltese {{lang|mt|laxk}} "loose")<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://mlrs.research.um.edu.mt/resources/gabra/lexemes/view/522d86276f3bad5137000e12|title=Ġabra|website=mlrs.research.um.edu.mt|access-date=2020-03-06}}</ref>
* {{lang|scn|pariggiu}} – "equal" (from {{lang|pro|paratge}}).<ref name=Giarrizzo/> (cognate of Maltese {{lang|mt|pariġġ}} "equal, as")<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://mlrs.research.um.edu.mt/resources/gabra/lexemes/view/522d85f36f3bad513700090c?lang=eng|title=Ġabra|website=mlrs.research.um.edu.mt|access-date=2020-03-06}}</ref>

=== Sicilian School of Poetry ===
{{Main|Sicilian School}}
It was during the reign of [[Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor|Frederick II]] (or Frederick I of Sicily) between 1198 and 1250, with his patronage of the Sicilian School, that Sicilian became the first of the modern Italic languages to be used as a [[literary language]].<ref name=Cipolla141>{{harvnb|Cipolla|2004|page=141}}</ref> The influence of the school and the use of Sicilian itself as a poetic language was acknowledged by the two great Tuscan writers of the early Renaissance period, [[Dante]] and [[Petrarch]]. The influence of the Sicilian language should not be underestimated in the eventual formulation of a ''[[lingua franca]]'' that was to become modern [[Italian language|Italian]]. The victory of the [[Capetian House of Anjou|Angevin]] army over the Sicilians at [[Benevento]] in 1266 not only marked the end of the 136-year Norman-[[Swabians|Swabian]] reign in Sicily but also effectively ensured that the centre of literary influence would eventually move from Sicily to Tuscany.<ref name=Cipolla141/> While Sicilian, as both an official and a literary language, would continue to exist for another two centuries, the language would soon follow the fortunes of the kingdom itself in terms of prestige and influence.

=== Catalan influence ===
Following the [[Sicilian Vespers]] of 1282, the kingdom came under the influence of the [[Crown of Aragon]],{{sfn|Runciman|1958}} and the [[Catalan language]] (and the closely related [[Aragonese language|Aragonese]]) added a new layer of vocabulary in the succeeding century. For the next 250 years, both Catalan and Sicilian were the official languages of the royal court.{{sfn|Hughes|2011|pages=108–109}} Sicilian was also used to record the proceedings of the [[Parliament of Sicily]] (one of the oldest parliaments in Europe) and for other official purposes.<ref name=Cipolla153>{{harvnb|Cipolla|2004|pages=153–155}}</ref> While it is often difficult to determine whether a word came directly from Catalan (as opposed to Occitan), the following are likely to be such examples:
* {{lang|scn|addunàrisi}} – "to notice, realise" (from {{lang|ca|adonar-se}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/> (cognate of Maltese {{lang|mt|induna}})<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://mlrs.research.um.edu.mt/resources/gabra/lexemes/view/522d863d6f3bad513700102a|title=Ġabra|website=mlrs.research.um.edu.mt|access-date=2020-03-06}}</ref>
* {{lang|scn|affruntàrisi}} – "to be embarrassed" (from {{lang|ca|afrontar-se}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|arruciari}} – "to moisten, soak" (from {{lang|ca|arruixar}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/> (cognate of Maltese {{lang|mt|raxx}} "to shower")<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://mlrs.research.um.edu.mt/resources/gabra/lexemes/view/5200a366e36f237975001281|title=Ġabra|website=mlrs.research.um.edu.mt|access-date=2020-03-06}}</ref>
* {{lang|scn|criscimonia}} – "growth, development" (from {{lang|ca|creiximoni}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|muccaturi}} – "handkerchief" (from {{lang|ca|mocador}}; but also French {{lang|fr|mouchoir}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/> (cognate of Maltese {{lang|mt|maktur}})<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://mlrs.research.um.edu.mt/resources/gabra/lexemes/view/5200a380e36f23798800036a|title=Ġabra|website=mlrs.research.um.edu.mt|access-date=2020-03-06}}</ref>
* {{lang|scn|priàrisi}} – "to be pleased" (from {{lang|ca|prear-se}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|taliari}} – "to look at somebody/something" (from {{lang|ca|talaiar}}; but also Arabic {{lang|ar|طليعة|rtl=yes}} {{transliteration|ar|ṭalīʿa}}).
* ''fardali'' – "apron" (from ''faldar'') (cognate of Maltese ''fardal'')

=== Spanish period to the modern age ===
By the time [[Catholic Monarchs of Spain|the crowns of Castille and Aragon were united]] in the late 15th century, the [[Hispanicisation]] and [[Italianisation]] of written Sicilian in the parliamentary and court records had commenced. By 1543 this process was virtually complete, with the [[Tuscan dialect]] of [[Italian language|Italian]] becoming the ''lingua franca'' of the [[Italian peninsula]] and supplanting written Sicilian.<ref name=Cipolla153/>

Spanish rule had hastened this process in two important ways:
* Unlike the Aragonese, almost immediately the Spanish placed [[viceroy]]s on the Sicilian throne. In a sense, the diminishing prestige of the Sicilian kingdom reflected the decline of Sicilian from an official, written language to eventually a spoken language amongst a predominantly illiterate population.
* The [[Expulsion of Jews from Spain|expulsion of all Jews]] from Spanish dominions that began in 1492 altered the population of Sicily. Not only did the population decline, many of whom were involved in important educated industries, but some of these Jewish families had been in Sicily for around 1,500 years, and Sicilian was their native language, which they used in their schools. Thus the seeds of a possible broad-based education system utilising books written in Sicilian were lost.<ref name=Cipolla153/>

Spanish rule lasted over three centuries (not counting the Aragonese and [[House of Bourbon|Bourbon]] periods on either side) and had a significant influence on the Sicilian vocabulary. The following words are of Spanish derivation:
* {{lang|scn|arricugghìrisi}} – "to return home" (from {{lang|es|recogerse}}; but also Catalan {{lang|ca|recollir-se}})
* {{lang|scn|balanza}}/{{lang|scn|valanza}} – "scales" (from {{lang|es| balanza}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|fileccia}} – "arrow" (from {{lang|es|flecha}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/> (cognate of Maltese {{lang|mt|vleġġa}})<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://mlrs.research.um.edu.mt/resources/gabra/lexemes/view/5200a36ce36f2379880000a9|title=Ġabra|website=mlrs.research.um.edu.mt|access-date=2020-03-06}}</ref>
* {{lang|scn|làstima}} – "lament, annoyance" (from {{lang|es|lástima}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|pinzeddu}} – "brush" (from {{lang|es|pincel}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/> (cognate of Maltese {{lang|mt|pinzell}})<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://mlrs.research.um.edu.mt/resources/gabra/lexemes/view/5200a382e36f2379880003b8|title=Ġabra|website=mlrs.research.um.edu.mt|access-date=2020-03-06}}</ref>
* {{lang|scn|ricivu}} – "receipt" (from {{lang|es|recibo}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|spagnari}} – "to be frightened" (crossover of local {{lang|scn|appagnari}} with Spanish {{lang|es|espantarse}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/>
* {{lang|scn|sulità}}/{{lang|scn|sulitati}} – "solitude" (from {{lang|es|soledad}})<ref name=Giarrizzo/>

Since the [[Italian Unification]] (the Risorgimento of 1860–1861), the Sicilian language has been significantly influenced by (Tuscan) Italian. During the [[Fascist]] period it became obligatory that Italian be taught and spoken in all schools, whereas up to that point, Sicilian had been used extensively in schools.<ref name=Cipolla163>{{harvnb|Cipolla|2004|page=163}}</ref> This process has quickened since [[World War II]] due to improving educational standards and the impact of mass media, such that increasingly, even within the family home, Sicilian is not necessarily the language of choice.<ref name=Cipolla163/> The [[Sicilian Regional Assembly]] voted to make the teaching of Sicilian a part of the school curriculum at primary school level, but as of 2007 only a fraction of schools teach Sicilian.<ref name=Cipolla163/> There is also little in the way of mass media offered in Sicilian. The combination of these factors means that the Sicilian language continues to adopt Italian vocabulary and grammatical forms to such an extent that many Sicilians themselves cannot distinguish between correct and incorrect Sicilian language usage.<ref>{{cite book|last=La Rocca|first=Luigi|year=2000|language=it,scn|title=Dizionario Siciliano Italiano|publisher=Terzo Millennio|location=[[Caltanissetta]]|pages=7–8}}</ref>{{sfn|Bonner|2001|page=21}}{{sfn|Ruffino|2001|pages=90–92}}

== Phonology ==
{{for|the sound-to-spelling correspondence|Sicilian orthography}}
{| class="wikitable" style=text-align:center
|+
Sicilian consonants
!
! scope="col" | [[Labial consonant|Labial]]
! scope="col" | [[Dental consonant|Dental]]/<br>[[Alveolar consonant|Alveolar]]
! scope="col" | [[Postalveolar consonant|Post-<br>alveolar]]
! scope="col" | [[Palatal consonant|Palatal]]
! scope="col" | [[Velar consonant|Velar]]
|-
! scope="row" | [[Stop consonant|Stop]]
|{{IPA link|p}}&emsp;{{IPA link|b}}
|{{IPA link|t}}&emsp;{{IPA link|d}}
|{{IPA link|ɖ}}
|({{IPA link|c}})&emsp;({{IPA link|ɟ}})
|{{IPA link|k}}&emsp;{{IPA link|ɡ}}
|-
! scope="row" | [[Affricate consonant|Affricate]]
|
|{{IPA link|ts}}&emsp;({{IPA link|dz}})
|{{IPA link|tʃ}}&emsp;{{IPA link|dʒ}}
|
|
|-
! scope="row" | [[Fricative consonant|Fricative]]
|{{IPA link|f}}&emsp;{{IPA link|v}}
|{{IPA link|s}}&emsp;({{IPA link|z}})
|{{IPA link|ʃ}}&emsp;({{IPA link|ʒ}})
|({{IPA link|ç}})
|
|-
! scope="row" | [[Trill consonant|Trill]]
|
|{{IPA link|r}}
|
|
|
|-
! scope="row" | [[Tap and flap consonants|Flap]]
|
|{{IPA link|ɾ}}
|
|
|
|-
! scope="row" | [[Nasal consonant|Nasal]]
|{{IPA link|m}}
|{{IPA link|n}}
|
|{{IPA link|ɲ}}
|({{IPA link|ŋ}})
|-
! scope="row" | [[Approximant consonant|Approximant]]
|
|{{IPA link|l}}
|
|{{IPA link|j}}
|({{IPA link|w}})
|}

{| class="wikitable"
|+Sicilian vowels<ref name=":12">{{Cite book|title=Basic Sicilian : a brief reference grammar|last=Privitera |first=Joseph Frederic|date=1998|publisher=Edwin Mellen Press|isbn=0773483357|location=Lewiston, N.Y.|oclc=39051820}}</ref>
! scope="col" | sound
! scope="col" | spelling
! scope="col" | example
|-
|{{IPAslink|a}}
|{{angbr|a}}
|{{lang|scn|p'''a'''tri}}
|-
|{{IPAslink|ɛ}}
|{{angbr|e}}
|{{lang|scn|b'''e'''ḍḍa}}
|-
|{{IPAslink|i}}
|{{angbr|i}}
|{{lang|scn|ch'''i'''ḍḍu}}
|-
|{{IPAslink|ɔ}}
|{{angbr|o}}
|{{lang|scn|s'''ò'''}}
|-
|{{IPAslink|u}}
|{{angbr|u}}
|{{lang|scn|t'''u'''tt'''u'''}}
|}

=== Consonants ===
Sicilian has a number of consonant sounds that set it apart from the other major Romance languages, notably its [[retroflex consonant]]s.{{sfn|Cipolla|2005|pages=5–9}}<ref name=Bonner11>{{harvnb|Bonner|2001|pages=11–12}}</ref><ref name="Cademia" />

* ''ḌḌ''/''DD'' — The retroflex phoneme /{{IPA link|ɖ}}/ (usually geminated or long [ɖː]) is normally the result of the evolution of Latin -''ll''-.<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal |last=Bonner |first=J. K. «Kirk» |date=2003 |title=Principal differences among Sicilian dialects: Part I. Phonological differences (English version) |url=https://raco.cat/index.php/Ianua/article/view/113861 |journal=Ianua: Revista philologica romanica |pages=29–38 |issn=1616-413X}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite book |last1=Ledgeway |first1=Adam |title=The Oxford Guide to the Romance Languages |last2=Maiden |first2=Martin |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2016 |isbn=9780199677108 |edition=1st |pages=479–480 |language=en}}</ref> This sound is rare but present among Romance languages, including Sardinian, Southern Corsican, and some dialects of Calabria.<ref name=":2" /> Similar but not identical sounds are also found in the rest of the Extreme Southern Italian dialect group.<ref name=":2" /> The older [lː] sequence is retained in some dialects,<ref name=":1" /> while the pronunciation of this phoneme as dental [dː] is increasingly common.<ref name="Cademia" /> Traditionally in Sicilian, the sound was written as ''-đđ-''{{citation needed|date=January 2022}}, and in more contemporary usage ''-dd-'' has been used. It is also often found written ''-ddh-'' or ''-ddr-'' (both of which are often considered confusing, as they may also represent {{IPAblink|d̪|dː}} and {{IPA|[ɖːɽ]}}, respectively). In the [[Cademia Siciliana]] orthographical proposal as well as the [[Vocabolario siciliano]] descriptive orthography, the [[digraph (orthography)|digraph]] ''-ḍḍ-'' is used.<ref name="Cademia">{{Cite web|url=http://cademiasiciliana.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Proposta-di-normalizzazione-ortografica-comune-della-lingua-siciliana-I-edizione-2017.pdf|title=Proposta di normalizzazione ortografica comune della lingua siciliana per le varietà parlate nell'isola di Sicilia, arcipelaghi ed isole satelliti, e nell'area di Reggio Calabria di Cademia Siciliana 2017|date=2017|website=cademiasiciliana.org|access-date=28 Dec 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SwNdAAAAMAAJ&q=vocabolario+siciliano+volume+four|title=Vocabolario siciliano|last=Piccitto|first=Giorgio|date=1997|publisher=Centro di studi filologici e linguistici siciliani, Opera del Vocabolario siciliano|language=it}}</ref> For example, the counterpart to Italian {{lang|it|bello}} in Sicilian is {{lang|scn|beḍḍu}}.<ref name=Bonner11/>
* ''DR'' and ''TR'' — The Sicilian pronunciation of the digraphs ''-dr-'' and ''-tr-'' is {{IPA|[ɖɽ]}} and {{IPA|[ʈɽ]}},<ref name="Cademia" /> or even {{IPAblink|ɖʐ}}, {{IPAblink|ʈʂ}}. If they are preceded by a nasal consonant, ''n'' is then a retroflex nasal sound {{IPAblink|ɳ}}.
*''GHI'' and ''CHI'' — The two digraphs -''gh''- and -''ch''-, when occurring before front vowel sounds ''i'' or ''e'' or a semivowel ''j'', can be pronounced as palatal stops {{IPAblink|ɟ}} and {{IPAblink|c}}. From Italian, in place of -''gl''-, a geminated [[Trigraph (orthography)|trigraph]] -{{lang|scn|ggh(i)}}- is used and is pronounced as {{IPAblink|ɟː}}. When -{{lang|scn|ch(j)}}- is geminated, -{{lang|scn|cch(j)}}- it can be pronounced as {{IPAblink|cː}}.
* ''RR'' — The digraph ''-rr-'', depending on the variety of Sicilian, can be a long trill {{IPAblink|r|rː}} (hereafter transcribed without the length mark)<ref name="Cademia" /> or a voiced retroflex sibilant {{IPAblink|ʐ|ʐː}}.<ref name="Bonner11" /> This innovation is also found under slightly different circumstances in [[Polish language|Polish]], where it is spelled ''-rz-'', and in some Northern [[Norwegian language|Norwegian]] dialects, where speakers vary between {{IPA|[ʐ]}} and {{IPAblink|ɹ̝}}. At the beginning of a word, the single letter ''r'' is similarly always pronounced double, though this is not indicated orthographically. This phenomenon, however, does not include words that start with a single ''r'' resulting from rhotacism or apheresis (see below), which should not be indicated orthographically to avoid confusion with regular double ''r''.
* Voiced ''S'' and ''Z'' — The {{IPAslink|s}} and {{IPAslink|ts}} sounds are voiced as {{IPAblink|z}} and {{IPAblink|dz}} when after {{IPAslink|n}} or other voiced sounds. In the Sicilian [[digraph (orthography)|digraphs]] ''-sb-'' and ''-sv-'', {{IPAslink|s}} becomes voiced and palatalized as a voiced post-alveolar fricative {{IPAblink|ʒ}} along with the voiced sounds /{{IPA link|b}}, {{IPA link|v}}/.
* ''STR'' and ''SDR'' — The Sicilian [[Trigraph (orthography)|trigraphs]] ''-str-'' and ''-sdr-'' are {{IPA|[ʂːɽ]}} or {{IPAblink|ʂ|ʂː}}, and {{IPA|[ʐːɽ]}} or {{IPAblink|ʐː}}.<ref name="Cademia" /> The ''t'' is not pronounced at all and there is a faint whistle between the ''s'' and the ''r'', producing a similar sound to the ''shr'' of English {{lang|en|shred|italic=yes}}, or how some English speakers pronounce "fru'''str'''ated".{{clarify|reason=Is this different from the fact that ʂ and ʃ are both sibilants?|date=August 2024}} The voiced equivalent is somewhat similar to how some English speakers might pronounce the phrase "wa'''s dr'''iving".
* Latin ''FL'' — The other unique Sicilian sound is found in those words that have been derived from Latin words containing ''-fl-''. In standard literary Sicilian, the sound is rendered as ''-ci-'' (representing the voiceless palatal fricative {{IPAslink|ç}}), e.g. {{lang|scn|ciumi}} ("river", from Latin {{Wikt-lang|la|flumen|flūmen}}), but can also be found in written forms such as ''-hi-'', {{lang|scn|-x(h)-}}, ''-çi-'', or erroneously ''-sci-''.<ref name="Filologici e Linguistici Siciliani 2002">{{harvnb|Piccitto|2002}}</ref>
* Consonantal [[lenition]] — A further range of consonantal sound shifts occurred between the Vulgar Latin introduced to the island following Roman rule and the subsequent development of the Sicilian language. These sound shifts include: Latin ''-nd-'' to Sicilian ''-nn-''; Latin ''-mb-'' to Sicilian ''-mm-''; Latin ''-pl-'' to Sicilian ''-chi-''; and Latin ''-li-'' to Sicilian ''-gghi-''.{{sfn|Pitrè|2002}}
* Rhotacism and apheresis — This transformation is characterized by the substitution of single ''d'' by ''r''. In Sicilian this is produced by a single flap of the tongue against the upper alveolar ridge {{IPAblink|ɾ}}. This phenomenon is known as [[rhotacism (sound change)|rhotacism]], that is, the substitution of ''r'' for another consonant; it is commonly found both in Eastern and Western Sicilian, and elsewhere in Southern Italy, especially in [[Neapolitan language|Neapolitan]]. It can occur internally, or it can affect initial ''d'', in which case it should not be represented orthographically to avoid confusion with the regular ''r'' (see above). Examples : {{lang|scn|pedi}} ("foot") is pronounced {{IPA|scn|ˈpɛːɾi|}}; {{lang|scn|Madonna}} ("Virgin Mary") is pronounced {{IPA|scn|maˈɾɔnna|}}; {{lang|scn|lu diri}} ("to say it") is pronounced {{IPA|scn|lʊ ˈɾiːɾi|}}. Similarly, [[Apheresis (linguistics)|apheresis]] of some clusters may occur in certain dialects, producing instances such as {{lang|scn|'ranni}} {{IPA|scn|ˈɾanni|}} for {{lang|scn|granni}} "big".<ref name="Cademia" />
* ''NG'' — The digraph ''-ng-'', depending on the variety of Sicilian, can be a {{IPAblink|ŋ|ŋ}}  or a {{IPAblink|ŋ|ŋg}}. It is found in the word ''sangu'' ("blood").
* ''Ï'' — The Sicilian letter ï indicates that the unstressed i is not a semivowel {{IPAblink|j}} with the following vowel. It is found in the word ''pistïari'' {{IPA|scn|pis.ti'a.ri|}} (pejorative of eat).

=== Vowels ===
{{Main|Sicilian vowel system}}
[[File:Vowel changes from Latin to Sicilian.png|thumb|320x320px|Development of stressed vowels from Latin to Sicilian]]
Sicilian has five phonemic vowels: {{IPAslink|i}}, {{IPAslink|ɛ}}, {{IPAslink|ä|a}}, {{IPAslink|ɔ}}, {{IPAslink|u}}. The mid-vowels {{IPAslink|ɛ}} and {{IPAslink|ɔ}} do not occur in unstressed position in native words but may do so in modern borrowings from Italian, English, or other languages. Historically, Sicilian {{IPAslink|i}} and {{IPAslink|u}} each represent the confluence of three Latin vowels (or four in unstressed position), hence their high frequency.<ref name="Hull" />

Unstressed {{IPAslink|i}} and {{IPAslink|u}} generally undergo [[Vowel reduction|reduction]] to {{IPAblink|ɪ}} and {{IPAblink|ʊ}} respectively, except in word-/phrase-final position, as in {{IPA|[pʊsˈsibbɪli]}} ‘possible’ and {{IPA|[kʊˈniɟɟu]}} ‘rabbit’.{{sfn|Ledgeway|2016|p=250–1}}

As in Italian, vowels are allophonically [[Open syllable lengthening|lengthened in stressed open syllables]].

==== Omission of initial ''i'' ====
In the vast majority of instances in which the originating word had an initial {{IPA|/i/}}, Sicilian has dropped it completely. That has also happened when there was once an initial {{IPA|/e/}} and, to a lesser extent, {{IPA|/a/}} and {{IPA|/o/}}: {{lang|scn|mpurtanti}} "important", {{lang|scn|gnuranti}} "ignorant", {{lang|scn|nimicu}} "enemy", {{lang|scn|ntirissanti}} "interesting", {{lang|scn|llustrari}} "to illustrate", {{lang|scn|mmàggini}} "image", {{lang|scn|cona}} "icon", {{lang|scn|miricanu}} "American".<ref name="Filologici e Linguistici Siciliani 2002"/>{{sfn|Camilleri|1998}}

=== Gemination and contractions ===
In Sicilian, [[gemination]] is distinctive for most consonant phonemes, but a few can be geminated only after a vowel: {{IPAslink|b}}, {{IPAslink|dʒ}}, {{IPAslink|ɖ}}, {{IPAslink|ɲ}}, {{IPAslink|ʃ}} and {{IPAslink|ts}}. Rarely indicated in writing, spoken Sicilian also exhibits [[syntactic gemination]] (or {{lang|scn|dubbramentu}}),{{sfn|Cipolla|2004|page=14}} which means that the first consonant of a word is lengthened when it is preceded by words like {{lang|scn|è, ma, e, a, di, pi, chi}} – meaning ‘it is, but, and, to, of, for, what’. For instance in the phrase {{lang|scn|è bonu}} ‘it's good’, there is a doubled {{IPA|/bb/}} in pronunciation.{{sfn|Bonner|2001|page=13}}

The letter {{angbr|j}} at the start of a word can have two separate sounds depending on what precedes the word.{{sfn|Cipolla|2005}} For instance, in {{lang|scn|jornu}} ("day"), it is pronounced {{IPAblink|j}}. However, after a [[nasal consonant]] or if it is triggered by syntactic gemination, it is pronounced {{IPAblink|ɟ}} as in {{lang|scn|un jornu}} with {{IPA|[nɟ]}} or {{lang|scn|tri jorna}} ("three days") with {{IPA|[ɟɟ]}}.{{sfn|Cipolla|2004|pages=10–11}}{{Verify source|date=March 2024}}

Another difference between the written and the spoken languages is the extent to which [[contraction (grammar)|contractions]] occur in everyday speech. Thus a common expression such as {{lang|scn|avemu a accattari...}} ("we have to go and buy...") is generally reduced to {{lang|scn|âma 'ccattari}} in talking to family and friends.<ref name=Bonner56>{{harvnb|Bonner|2001|page=56}}</ref>

The [[circumflex accent]] is commonly used in denoting a wide range of contractions in the written language, particularly the joining of simple prepositions and the definite article: {{lang|scn|di lu}} = {{lang|scn|dû}} ("of the"), {{lang|scn|a lu}} = {{lang|scn|ô}} ("to the"), {{lang|scn|pi lu}} = {{lang|scn|pû}} ("for the"), {{lang|scn|nta lu}} = {{lang|scn|ntô}} ("in the"), etc.{{sfn|Bonner|2001|page=39}}<ref name="Filologici e Linguistici Siciliani 2002"/>

== Grammar ==
=== Nouns and adjectives ===
Most feminine nouns and adjectives end in ''-a'' in the singular: {{lang|scn|casa}} ('house'), {{lang|scn|porta}} ('door'), {{lang|scn|carta}} ('paper'). Exceptions include {{lang|scn|soru}} ('sister') and {{lang|scn|ficu}} ('fig'). The usual masculine singular ending is ''-u'': {{lang|scn|omu}} ('man'), {{lang|scn|libbru}} ('book'), {{lang|scn|nomu}} ('name'). The singular ending ''-i'' can be either masculine or feminine.<ref name="Bonner, J K 2001 p. 25">{{harvnb|Bonner|2001|page=25}}</ref>

Unlike Standard Italian, Sicilian uses the same standard plural ending ''-i'' for both masculine and feminine nouns and adjectives: {{lang|scn|casi}} ('houses' or 'cases'), {{lang|scn|porti}} ('doors' or 'harbors'), {{lang|scn|tàuli}} ('tables'). Some masculine plural nouns end in ''-a'' instead, a feature that is derived from the Latin neuter endings ''-um, -a'': {{lang|scn|libbra}} ('books'), {{lang|scn|jorna}} ('days'), {{lang|scn|vrazza}} ('arms', compare Italian ''braccio'', ''braccia''), {{lang|scn|jardina}} ('gardens'), {{lang|scn|scrittura}} ('writers'), {{lang|scn|signa}} ('signs').<ref name="Bonner, J K 2001 p. 25"/> Some nouns have irregular plurals: ''omu'' has {{lang|scn|òmini}} (compare Italian ''uomo'', ''uomini''), {{lang|scn|jocu}} ('game') {{lang|scn|jòcura}} (Italian ''gioco'', ''giochi'') and {{lang|scn|lettu}} ("bed") {{lang|scn|letta}} (Italian ''letto'', ''letti''). Three feminine nouns are invariable in the plural: {{lang|scn|manu}} ('hand[s]'), {{lang|scn|ficu}} ('fig[s]') and {{lang|scn|soru}} ('sister[s]').{{sfn|Pitrè|2002|page=54}}

=== Verbs ===
==== Verb "to have" ====
Sicilian has only one [[auxiliary verb]], {{lang|scn|aviri}}, 'to have'.<ref name=Camilleri488>{{harvnb|Camilleri|1998|page=488}}</ref>{{sfn|Bonner|2001|page=123}} It is also used to denote obligation (e.g. {{lang|scn|avi a jiri}}, '[he/she] has to go'),<ref name=Bonner56/> and to form the future tense, as Sicilian for the most part no longer has a synthetic future tense: {{lang|scn|avi a cantari}}, '[he/she] will sing'.<ref name=Camilleri488/>

==== Verb "to go" and the periphrastic future ====
As in English and like most other Romance languages, Sicilian may use the verb {{lang|scn|jiri}}, 'to go', to signify the act of being about to do something. {{lang|scn|Vaiu a cantari}}, 'I'm going to sing'. In this way, {{lang|scn|jiri}} + {{lang|scn|a}} + infinitive can also be a way to form the simple future construction.<ref name=Bonner54>{{harvnb|Bonner|2001|page=54–55}}</ref>

==== Tenses and moods ====
The main conjugations in Sicilian are illustrated below with the verb {{lang|scn|èssiri}}, 'to be'.{{sfn|Pitrè|2002|pages=61–64}}

{| class="wikitable" style=text-align:center
|-
! Infinitive
|colspan="6"| èssiri / siri
|-
! Gerund
|colspan="6"| essennu / sennu
|-
! Past participle
|colspan="6"| statu
|-
! Indicative|| eu/iu/ju || tu || iḍḍu || nuàutri || vuàutri || iḍḍi
|-
! Present
| sugnu || si' || esti / è || semu || siti || sunnu / su'
|-
! Imperfect
| era || eri || era || èramu || èravu || èranu
|-
! Preterite
| fui || fusti || fu || fomu || fùstivu || foru
|-
! Future<sup>1</sup>
| — || — || — || — || — || —
|-
! Conditional<sup>2</sup> || ju || tu || iḍḍu || nuàutri || vuàutri || iḍḍi
|-
!
| fora || fori || fora || fòramu || fòravu || fòranu
|-
! Subjunctive|| ju || tu || iḍḍu || nuàutri || vuàutri || iḍḍi
|-
! Present
| sia || si' / fussi || sia || siamu || siati || sianu
|-
! Imperfect
| fussi || fussi || fussi || fùssimu || fùssivu || fùssiru
|-
! Imperative|| — || tu || vossìa<sup>3</sup> || — || vuàutri || —
|-
!
| — || sì || fussi || — || siti || —
|}

# The synthetic future is rarely used and, as Camilleri explains, continues its decline towards complete disuse.<ref name=Camilleri488/> Instead, the following methods are used to express the future:
#: 1) the use of the present indicative, which is usually preceded by an adverb of time:
#:: {{lang|scn|Stasira vaju ô tiatru}} — 'This evening I go to the theatre'; or, using a similar English construction, 'This evening I am going to the theatre'
#:: {{lang|scn|Dumani ti scrivu}} — 'Tomorrow I [will] write to you'
#: 2) the use of a compound form consisting of the appropriate conjugation of {{lang|scn|aviri a}} ('have to') in combination with the infinitive form of the verb in question:
#:: {{lang|scn|Stasira aju a ghiri ('j' becomes 'gh' after a vowel) ô tiatru}} — 'This evening I will [/must] go to the theatre'
#:: {{lang|scn|Dumani t'aju a scrìviri}} — 'Tomorrow I will [/must] write to you'
#:: In speech, the contracted forms of ''aviri'' often come into play:
#::: {{lang|scn|aju a}} → {{lang|scn|hâ}}/{{lang|scn|hê}}; {{lang|scn|ai a}} → {{lang|scn|hâ}}; {{lang|scn|avi a}} → {{lang|scn|avâ}}; {{lang|scn|avemu a}} → {{lang|scn|amâ}}; {{lang|scn|aviti a}} → {{lang|scn|atâ}}
#::: {{lang|scn|Dumani t'hâ scrìviri}} — 'Tomorrow I will [/must] write to you'.<ref name=Bonner54/>
# The synthetic conditional has also fallen into disuse (except for the dialect spoken in [[Messina]], {{lang|scn|missinisi}}).{{sfn|Camilleri|1998|page=460}} The conditional has two tenses:
#: 1) the present conditional, which is replaced by either:
#:: i) the present indicative:
#::: {{lang|scn|Cci chiamu si tu mi duni lu sò nùmmaru}} — "I [would] call her if you [would] give me her number', or
#:: ii) the imperfect subjunctive:
#::: {{lang|scn|Cci chiamassi si tu mi dassi lu sò nùmmaru}} — 'I'd call her if you would give me her number'; and
#: 2) the past conditional, which is replaced by the pluperfect subjunctive:
#::: {{lang|scn|Cci avissi jutu si tu m'avissi dittu [/diciutu] unni esti / è}} — 'I'd have gone if you would have told me where it is'
#: In a hypothetical statement, both tenses are replaced by the imperfect and pluperfect subjunctive:
#::: {{lang|scn|Si fussi riccu m'accattassi nu palazzu}} — 'If I were rich I would buy a palace'
#::: {{lang|scn|S'avissi travagghiatu nun avissi patutu la misèria}} — 'If I had worked I would not have suffered misery'.{{sfn|Bonner|2001|pages=149–150}}
# The second-person singular (polite) uses the older form of the present subjunctive, such as {{lang|scn|parrassi}}, which has the effect of softening it somewhat into a request, rather than an instruction. The second-person singular and plural forms of the imperative are identical to the present indicative, exception for the second-person singular ''-ari'' verbs, whose ending is the same as for the third-person singular: {{lang|scn|parra}}.{{sfn|Bonner|2001|page=45}}

== Literature ==
Extracts from three of Sicily's more celebrated poets are offered below to illustrate the written form of Sicilian over the last few centuries: [[Antonio Veneziano (poet)|Antonio Veneziano]], [[Giovanni Meli]] and [[Nino Martoglio]].

A translation of the [[Lord's Prayer]] can also be found in J. K. Bonner.{{sfn|Bonner|2001|page=180}} This is written with three variations: a standard literary form from the island of Sicily and a southern [[Apulia]]n literary form.

Luigi Scalia translated the biblical books of Ruth, Song of Solomon and the Gospel of Matthew into Sicilian. These were published in 1860 by Prince [[Louis Lucien Bonaparte]].

=== Extract from Antonio Veneziano ===
==== ''Celia, Lib. 2'' ====
({{Circa|1575}}–1580)
{|
!Sicilian
!Italian
!English
|-
|Non è xhiamma ordinaria, no, la mia,
|No, la mia non è fiamma ordinaria,
|No, mine is no ordinary flame,
|-
|è xhiamma chi sul'iu tegnu e rizettu,
|è una fiamma che sol'io possiedo e controllo,
|it's a flame that only I possess and control,
|-
|xhiamma pura e celesti, ch'ardi 'n mia;
|una fiamma pura e celeste che dientro di me cresce;
|a pure celestial flame that in me grows;
|-
|per gran misteriu e cu stupendu effettu.
|da un grande mistero e con stupendo effetto.
|by a great mystery and with great effect.
|-
|Amuri, 'ntentu a fari idulatria,
|l'Amore, desiderante d'adorare icone,
|Love, wanting to worship idols,
|-
|s'ha novamenti sazerdoti elettu;
|è diventato sacerdote un'altra volta;
|has once again become a high priest;
|-
|tu, sculpita 'ntra st'alma, sìa la dia;
|tu, scolpita dentro quest'anima, sei la dea;
|you, sculpted in this soul, are the goddess;
|-
|sacrifiziu lu cori, ara stu pettu.
|il mio cuore è la vittima, il mio seno è l'altare.
|my heart is the victim, my breast is the altar.{{sfn|''Arba Sicula''|1980}}
|}

=== Extract from Giovanni Meli ===
==== ''Don Chisciotti e Sanciu Panza'' (Cantu quintu) ====
(~1790)
{|
!Sicilian
!English
|-
|Stracanciatu di notti soli jiri;
|Disguised he roams at night alone;
|-
|S'ammuccia ntra purtuni e cantuneri;
|Hiding in any nook and cranny;
|-
|cu vacabunni ci mustra piaciri;
|he enjoys the company of vagabonds;
|-
|poi lu so sbiu sunnu li sumeri,
|however, donkeys are his real diversion,
|-
|li pruteggi e li pigghia a ben vuliri,
|he protects them and looks after all their needs,
|-
|li tratta pri parenti e amici veri;
|treating them as real family and friends;
|-
|siccomu ancora è n'amicu viraci
|since he remains a true friend
|-
|di li bizzarri, capricciusi e audaci.
|of all who are bizarre, capricious and bold.{{sfn|Meli|1995}}
|}

=== Extract from Nino Martoglio ===
==== ''Briscula 'n Cumpagni'' ====
(~1900; trans: A game of ''Briscula'' amongst friends){{sfn|Martoglio|1993}}
{|
!Sicilian
!Italian
!English
|-
|<nowiki>—</nowiki> Càrricu, mancu? Cca cc'è 'n sei di spati!...
|<nowiki>—</nowiki> Nemmeno un carico? Qui c'è un sei di spade!...
||<nowiki>—</nowiki> A high card perhaps? Here's the six of spades!...
|-
|<nowiki>—</nowiki> E chi schifiu è, di sta manera?
|<nowiki>—</nowiki> Ma che schifo, in questo modo?
||<nowiki>—</nowiki> What is this rubbish you're playing?
|-
| Don Peppi Nnappa, d'accussì jucati?
| Signor Peppe Nappa,{{efn|{{Interlanguage link|Peppe Nappa|it}} is a character of the [[Commedia dell'arte]], similar to [[Pulcinella]] o [[Arlecchino]].}} ma giocate così?
| Mr. Peppe Nappa, who taught you to play this game?
|-
|<nowiki>—</nowiki> Massari e scecchi tutta 'a tistera,
|<nowiki>—</nowiki> Messere e asino con tutti i finimenti,
|<nowiki>—</nowiki> My dear gentlemen and donkeys with all your finery,
|-
|comu vi l'haju a diri, a vastunati,
|come ve lo devo dire, forse a bastonate,
|as I have repeatedly told you till I'm blue in the face,
|-
|ca mancu haju sali di salera!
|che non ho nemmeno il sale per la saliera!
|I ain't got nothing that's even worth a pinch a salt!
|}

=== Traditional prayers compared to Italian ===
{| class="itwiki_template_toc" width="100%" style="text-align:center"
!bgcolor="#EFEFEF"| ''Patri nostru'' ([[Lord's Prayer]] in Sicilian)
!bgcolor="#EFEFEF"| ''Padre nostro'' (Lord's Prayer in Italian)
!bgcolor="#EFEFEFEE"| ''Aviu Maria'' ([[Hail Mary]] in Sicilian)
!bgcolor="#EFEFEFEE"| ''Ave Maria (Hail Mary in Italian)''
!bgcolor="#EFEFD"| ''Salvi o'Rigina'' ([[Salve Regina]] in Sicilian)
!bgcolor="#EFEFD"| ''Salve Regina'' (in Italian)
!bgcolor="#EFEFH"| ''Angelu ca ni custudisci'' ([[Angel of God]] in Sicilian)
!bgcolor="#EFEFH"| ''Angelo Custode'' (Angel of God in Italian)
|-
|
:Patri nostru, ca si' nnô celu,
:Santificatu sia lu nomu vostru,
:Vinissi prestu lu vostru regnu,
:Sempri sia faciuta la vostra Divina Vuluntati
:comu n celu accussì n terra.
:Dàtinillu a sta jurnata lu panuzzu cutiddianu
:E pirdunàtini li nostri piccati
:Accussì comu nuàutri li rimintemu ê nimici nostri;
:E nun ni lassati cascari ntâ tintazioni,
:ma scanzàtini dû mali.
:Amen.
|
:Padre nostro, che sei nei cieli,
:sia santificato il tuo nome,
:venga il tuo regno,
:sia fatta la tua volontà, come in cielo così in terra.
:Dacci oggi il nostro pane quotidiano,
:e rimetti a noi i nostri debiti
:come noi li rimettiamo ai nostri debitori,
:e non ci indurre in tentazione,[1]
:ma liberaci dal male.
:Amen.
|
:Aviu maria, china di grazia,
:u' Signuri è cu tia,
:tu sì a biniditta 'menzu i donni,
:e binidittu è u' fruttu dò tò senu Gesù,
:Santa Maria, matri di Diu,
:prega pì nanddri piccatura,
:ora e nò momentu da nostra morti.
:Amen.
|
:Ave, o Maria, piena di grazia,
:il Signore è con te.
:Tu sei benedetta fra le donne
:e benedetto è il frutto del tuo seno, Gesù.
:Santa Maria, Madre di Dio,
:prega per noi peccatori,
:adesso e nell'ora della nostra morte.
:Amen.
|
:Salvi o'Regina,
:matri di misericordia, è vita, è duci, spiranza nostra
:salvi, a tia ricurremu, naddri figghi di Eva
:a tia sospiramu, chiangennu,
:ne sta valli di lacrimi, allura abbucata
:nostra talinani cu chiddri occhi tò misericurdiusi,
:e fanni abbidiri doppu, stu esiliu Gesù
:u'fruttu binidittu dò tò senu;
:O clemente, bona
:o duci Virgini Maria!
|
:Salve, Regina, Madre di misericordia;
:vita, dolcezza e speranza nostra, salve.
:A Te ricorriamo, noi esuli figli di Eva;
:a Te sospiriamo, gementi e piangenti
:in questa valle di lacrime.
:Orsù dunque, avvocata nostra,
:rivolgi a noi gli occhi
:tuoi misericordiosi.
:E mostraci, dopo questo esilio, Gesù,
:il frutto benedetto del Tuo seno.
:O clemente, o pia,
:o dolce Vergine Maria!
|
:Angilu di Diu
:ca si' 'u me custodi,
:alluminami, custudiscimi, tenimi e guvernami
:ca ti vinni datu/a da pietà celeste
:Amen.
|
:Angelo di Dio,
:che sei il mio custode,
:illumina, custodisci,
:reggi e governa me
:che ti fui affidato/a
:dalla Pietà Celeste.
:Amen.
|}

== Influence on Italian ==
[[File:Minchia graffiti in Turin January 2017.jpg|thumb|''Minchia'': graffiti in [[Turin]], January 2017]]
As one of the most spoken languages of Italy, Sicilian has notably influenced the Italian lexicon. In fact, there are several Sicilian words that are now part of the Italian language and usually refer to things closely associated to Sicilian culture, with some notable exceptions:{{sfn|Zingarelli|2006}}
* {{lang|it|[[arancini|arancino]]}} (from {{lang|scn|arancinu}}): a Sicilian cuisine specialty;
* {{lang|it|babbiare}} (from {{lang|scn|babbiari}}): to joke;
* {{lang|it|[[canestrato]]}} (from {{lang|scn|ncannistratu}}): a cheese typical of Sicily;
* {{lang|it|[[cannoli|cannolo]]}} (from {{lang|scn|cannolu}}): a Sicilian pastry;
* {{lang|it|cannolicchio}} (from {{lang|scn|cannulicchiu}}): [[razor clam]];
* {{lang|it|carnezzeria}} (from {{lang|scn|carnizzaria}}): butcher's shop;
* {{lang|it|caruso}} (from {{lang|scn|carusu}}): boy, especially a Sicilian one;
* {{lang|it|[[cassata]]}}: a Sicilian pastry;
* {{lang|it|[[Cirneco dell'Etna|cirneco]]}} (from {{lang|scn|cirnecu}}): a small breed of dogs common in Sicily;
* {{lang|it|[[cosca]]}}: a small group of criminals affiliated to the Sicilian mafia;
* {{lang|it|curatolo}} (from {{lang|scn|curàtulu}}): watchman in a farm, with a yearly contract;
* {{lang|it|dammuso}} (from {{lang|scn|dammusu}}): stony habitation typical of the island of [[Pantelleria]];
* {{lang|it|intrallazzo}} (from {{lang|scn|ntrallazzu}}): illegal exchange of goods or favours, but in a wider sense also cheat, intrigue;
* {{lang|it|marranzano}} (from {{lang|scn|marranzanu}}): [[Jew's harp]];
* {{lang|it|marrobbio}} (from {{lang|scn|marrubbiu}}): quick variation of sea level produced by a store of water in the coasts as a consequence of either wind action or an atmospheric depression;
* {{lang|it|minchia}}: penis in its original meaning, but also stupid person; is also widely used as interjection to show either astonishment or rage;
* {{lang|it|picciotto}} (from {{lang|scn|picciottu}}): young man, but also the lowest grade in the Mafia hierarchy;
* {{lang|it|[[pizzino]]}} (from {{lang|scn|pizzinu}}): small piece of paper, especially used for secret criminal communications;
* {{lang|it|[[pizzo (extortion)|pizzo]]}} (from {{lang|scn|pizzu}}, literally meaning "beak", from the saying {{lang|scn|fari vagnari a pizzu}} "to wet one's beak"): protection money paid to the Mafia;
* {{lang|it|quaquaraquà}} (onomatopoeia?; "the duck wants a say"): person devoid of value, nonentity;
* {{lang|it|scasare}} (from {{lang|scn|scasari}}, literally "to move home"): to leave en masse;
* {{lang|it|[[stidda]]}} (equivalent to Italian {{lang|it|stella}}): lower Mafia organization.

== Use today ==
=== Sicily ===
Sicilian is estimated to have 5,000,000 speakers.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.unesco.org/culture/languages-atlas/en/atlasmap/language-id-1023.html|title=UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in danger|work=unesco.org}}</ref> However, it remains very much a home language that is spoken among peers and close associates. [[Regional Italian]] has encroached on Sicilian, most evidently in the speech of the younger generations.<ref name=Ruffino108>{{harvnb|Ruffino|2001|pages=108–112}}</ref>

In terms of the written language, it is mainly restricted to poetry and theatre in Sicily. The education system does not support the language, despite recent legislative changes, as mentioned previously. Local universities either carry courses in Sicilian or describe it as {{lang|it|[[dialectology|dialettologia]]}}, the study of dialects.

=== Calabria ===
The dialect of [[Reggio Calabria]] is spoken by some 260,000 speakers in the [[Reggio Calabria metropolitan area]].<ref>[http://www.consiglioregionale.calabria.it/pl8/142.1.htm] cfr art. 1 comma 2</ref> It is recognised, along with the other Calabrian dialects, by the regional government of [[Calabria]] by a law promulgated in 2012 that protects Calabria's linguistic heritage.<ref name="Consiglio Regionale">{{Cite web|url=http://www.consiglioregionale.calabria.it/pl9/309.pdf|title=Consiglio Regionale della Calabria}}</ref>

=== Diaspora ===
Outside Sicily and Southern Calabria, there is an extensive Sicilian-speaking diaspora living in several major cities across South and North America and in other parts of Europe and Australia, where Sicilian has been preserved to varying degrees.

=== Media ===
The Sicilian-American organization [[Arba Sicula]] publishes stories, poems and essays, in Sicilian with English translations, in an effort to preserve the Sicilian language, in ''Arba Sicula'', its bi-lingual annual journal (latest issue: 2017), and in a biennial newsletter entitled ''Sicilia Parra''.

The movie ''[[La Terra Trema]]'' (1948) is entirely in Sicilian and uses many local amateur actors.

The nonprofit organisation [[Cademia Siciliana]] publishes a Sicilian version of a quarterly magazine, "[[UNESCO Courier]]".

== Sample words and phrases ==
{| class="wikitable"
! English
! Sicilian
|-
| to make a good impression
| {{lang|scn|fà[ci]ri na beḍḍa fi[g]ùra}}
|-
| wine
| {{lang|scn|vinu}}
|-
| man
| {{lang|scn|masculu}}
|-
| woman
| {{lang|scn|fìmmina}}
|-
| the other side
| {{lang|scn|ḍḍabbanna}}
|-
| also, too
| {{lang|scn|mirè}}
|-
| there
| {{lang|scn|ḍḍa}}
|-
| right there
| {{lang|scn|ḍḍocu}}
|-
| where
| {{lang|scn|unni}}
|-
| you {{small|(formal)}}
| {{lang|scn|vossìa}}
|-
| be careful!
| {{lang|scn|accura!}}
|-
| he, him
| {{lang|scn|iḍḍu}}
|-
| she, her
| {{lang|scn|iḍḍa}}
|-
| once, formerly
| {{lang|scn|tannu}}
|-
| he who pays before seeing the goods gets cheated<br>{{small|(literally "who pays before, eats smelly fish")}}
| {{lang|scn|cu paja prima, mancia li pisci fitùsi}}
|}

== See also ==
{{Portal|Italy|Languages}}
* [[Arba Sicula]]
* [[Baccagghju]]
* [[Cademia Siciliana]]
* [[Centro di studi filologici e linguistici siciliani]]
* [[Griko language|Griko]]
* [[Magna Graecia]]
* [[Sicilian School]]
* [[Siculo-Arabic]]
* [[Sicily (theme)|Theme of Sicily]]
<!--Please do not add links to foreign-language Wikipedias here; they do not serve any purpose at all for readers of the English Wikipedia.-->

== Explanatory notes ==
{{Notelist}}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== General and cited references ==
{{Refbegin|2}}
* {{citation|last=Abulafia|first=David|author-link=David Abulafia|title=The end of Muslim Sicily|ref=none}}
* {{citation|last=Alio|first=Jacqueline|title=Sicilian Studies: A Guide and Syllabus for Educators|publisher=Trinacria|year=2018|isbn=978-1943-63918-2|ref=none}}
* {{citation|title=Arba Sicula|volume=II|year=1980|language=en,scn|ref={{harvid|Arba Sicula|1980}} }}
* {{citation|last=Bonner|first=J. K. "Kirk"|title=Introduction to Sicilian Grammar|publisher=Legas|location=[[Ottawa]]|year= 2001|isbn=1-881901-41-6}}
* {{citation|last=Camilleri|first=Salvatore |title=Vocabolario Italiano Siciliano|publisher=Edizioni Greco|location=[[Catania]]|year=1998}}
* {{citation|publisher=Centro di Studi Filologici e Linguistici Siciliani|orig-year=1977|year=2002|title=Vocabolario Siciliano|language=it,scn|first=Giorgio|last=Piccitto|location=Catania-[[Palermo]]}} (the orthography used in this article is substantially based on the Piccitto volumes)
* {{citation|last=Cipolla|first=Gaetano|author-link=Gaetano Cipolla|year=2004|title=U sicilianu è na lingua o un dialettu? / Is Sicilian a Language?|language=en,scn|journal=Arba Sicula|volume=XXV|issue=1&2}}
* {{citation|last=Cipolla|first=Gaetano|title=The Sound of Sicilian: A Pronunciation Guide|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ssY2nwEACAAJ|year=2005|publisher=Legas|location=Ottawa|isbn=978-1-881901-51-8}}
* {{citation|last=Giarrizzo|first=Salvatore|title=Dizionario etimologico siciliano|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4a0dAQAAIAAJ|year=1989|publisher=Herbita|location=Palermo|language=it}}
* {{citation|last=Hughes|first=Robert|author-link=Robert Hughes (critic)|title=Barcelona|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mgKonzUWye8C&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false|year=2011|publisher=Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group|isbn=978-0-307-76461-4}}
* {{citation|last=Hull|first=Geoffrey|author-link=Geoffrey Hull|title=Polyglot Italy: Languages, Dialects, Peoples|publisher=Legas|location=Ottawa|year= 2001|isbn=0-949919-61-6|ref=none}}
* {{Cite book |last=Ledgeway |first=Adam |title=The Oxford guide to the Romance languages |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2016 |editor-last=Ledgeway |editor-first=Adam |pages=246–69 |chapter=The dialects of Southern Italy |editor-last2=Maiden |editor-first2=Martin}}
* {{citation|last=Martoglio|first=Nino|author-link=Nino Martoglio|title=The Poetry of Nino Martoglio|publisher=Legas|location=Ottawa|year=1993|isbn=1-881901-03-3|language=en,scn|editor-first=Gaetano|editor-last=Cipolla|translator-first=Gaetano|translator-last=Cipolla}}
* {{citation|last=Meli|first=Giovanni|author-link=Giovanni Meli|title=Moral Fables and Other Poems: A Bilingual (Sicilian/English) Anthology|language=en,scn|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nU_XAAAAMAAJ|year=1995|publisher=Legas|location=Ottawa|isbn=978-1-881901-07-5}}
* {{citation|last=Mendola|first=Louis|title=Sicily's Rebellion against King Charles: The story of the Sicilian Vespers|location=New York City|year=2015|isbn=9781943639038|ref=none}}
* {{citation|first=Annliese|last=Nef|language=fr|chapter=Géographie religieuse et continuité temporelle dans la Sicile normande (XIe-XIIe siècles): le cas des évêchés|editor-last=Henriet|editor-first=Patrick|title=À la recherche de légitimités chrétiennes – Représentations de l'espace et du temps dans l'Espagne médiévale (IXe-XIIIe siècles)|place=[[Madrid]]|orig-year=2001|publication-place=[[Lyon]]|year=2003|ref=none}}
* {{citation|last=Norwich|first=John Julius|author-link=John Julius Norwich|title=The Kingdom in the Sun|publisher=[[Penguin Books]]|location=[[London]]|year=1992|isbn=1-881901-41-6 }}
* {{citation|last=Pitrè|first=Giuseppe|author-link=Giuseppe Pitrè|title=Grammatica siciliana: un saggio completo del dialetto e delle parlate siciliane : in appendice approfondimenti letterari|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KrodAQAAIAAJ|year=2002|orig-year=1875|publisher=Brancato|isbn=9788880315049|language=it}}
* {{citation|last=Privitera|first=Joseph|year=2001|title=I Nurmanni in Sicilia Pt II / The Normans in Sicily Pt II |journal=Arba Sicula|language=en,scn|volume=XXII|issue=1&2|pages=148–157|ref=none}}
* {{citation|last=Privitera|first=Joseph Frederic|title=Sicilian: The Oldest Romance Language|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UMbjAAAAMAAJ|year=2004|publisher=Legas|location=Ottawa|isbn=978-1-881901-41-9|ref=none}}
* {{citation|last=Ruffino|first=Giovanni|title=Sicilia|publisher=Laterza|location=[[Bari]]|language=it|year=2001|isbn=88-421-0582-1}}
* {{citation|last=Runciman|first=Steven|author-link=Steven Runciman|title=The Sicilian Vespers|year=1958|isbn=0-521-43774-1|publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]]|location=[[Cambridge]]}}
* {{citation|last=Zingarelli|first=Nicola|author-link=Nicola Zingarelli|title=Lo Zingarelli 2007. Vocabolario della lingua italiana. Con CD-ROM|publisher=Zanichelli|language=it|year=2006|isbn=88-08-04229-4}}
{{Refend}}

== External links ==
{{interWiki|code=scn}}
{{commons category}}
* [https://cademiasiciliana.org/ Cademia Siciliana] – a non-profit organization that promotes education, research and activism regarding the Sicilian language, as well as an orthographic standard
* [https://arbasicula.org/ Arba Sicula] – a non-profit organization that promotes the language and culture of Sicily
* [https://www.napizia.com/ Napizia] – Dictionary of the Sicilian Language
* [https://translate.napizia.com/ Sicilian Translator]
* {{in lang|scn}} [http://www.linguasiciliana.org/ www.linguasiciliana.org]

{{Languages of Sicily|state=expanded}}
{{Languages of Italy}}
{{Romance languages}}
{{Sicily}}

[[Category:Sicilian language| ]]
[[Category:Italo-Dalmatian languages]]
[[Category:Languages of Sicily]]
[[Category:Languages of Calabria]]
[[Category:Languages of Apulia]]
[[Category:Subject–object–verb languages]]
[[Category:Articles containing video clips]]