Tradurre tutto il testo è un’impresa più titanica che per una canzoncina di Guccini, data la lunghezza e la verbosità, ma il tema è importante e l’idea dovrebbe passare già con quello che trovate sotto.

Buon ascolto con ritmo.

Treble-Don Rico-Terron Fabio-Nandu Popu

‘Rit.: Se nu te scierri mai delle radici ca tieni | If you never forget your roots
rispetti puru quiddre delli paisi lontani! | you will respect those from far away countries
Se nu te scierri mai de du ede ca ieni |if you never forget where you come from
dai chiu valore alla cultura ca tieni! | you give more value to your culture
Simu salentini dellu munnu cittadini, | We are from Salent, citizens of the world
radicati alli messapi cu li greci e bizantini, | related to the Messapi, with the Greeks and the Byzanytices
uniti intra stu stile osce cu li giammaicani, | today united with this style to the Jamaicans
dimme mo de du ede ca sta bieni! | now, you tell me where you come are coming from…

Rico

Egnu dellu salentu e quannu mpunnu parlu dialettu | I come from Salento and when I can I speak my dialect
e nu mbede filu no Ca l’italianu nu lu sacciu | but this is not because I don’t know Italian
ca se me mintu cu riflettu parlu lu jamaicanu strittu | and if I think hard I can speak Jamaican slang
perche l’importante e cu sai nu pocu de tuttu | ‘cos the main thing is to know a little bit of everything
anche se de tuttu a fiate me ne futtu | even though sometimes I don’t give a shit
ma se na cosa me interessa su capace puru me fissu | but if I find something interesting, I will really focus on it
se ete quiddhru ca oiu fazzu me mintu ddhrai e fazzu cè pozzu | and if it’s what I want, I try to do the best I can
perche addrhu bessere ieu ca decidu te mie stessu | because I need to be what I decide to be
ca la vera cultura è cu sai vivere | ‘cos the real culture is that you know how to live
cu biessi testu ma sempre sensibile | knowing how to be hard, but always sensitive
puru ca la vita ete dura è meiu sai amare | Even if life is hard, it’s best to know how to love
puru quannu te pare ca ete impossibile. | even when this seems impossible

Fabio

Me la difendu, la tegnu stritta cullu core | I defend it, I cling onto it with my heart
la cultura mia rappresenta quiddru ca é statau e ca ha benire | my culture represents what has been and what will be
Intra stu munnu, a du nu tene chiui valore | in this world, where no value is acknowledged
Ci parla diversu o de diversu ede culure! | to those who speak differently, or are of a different colour!
Te ne leanu tuttu puru la voglia de amare, | They get to take away all of your will to love
cussi ca tanta gente a pacciu modu stae a regire!| so that lots of people react in wild ways
Te ne leanu tuttu puru le ricchie pe sentire, | they even take away your ears, so you can no longer hear
ci chiange e chiede aiutu pe li torti ca stae a subire | those who cry and call for help, for the wrongs that they are receiving
Te ne leanu puru la terra de sutta li piedi, | they even take the ground from under your feet
se cattanu tuttu quiddru a cui tie nci tieni | they buy all that is important for you
Me dispiace pe tuttu quiddru ca ne sta gliati | I am sorry for all that they are taking away
Ma stamu ancoraa quai, de quai nu ne limu mai sciuti! | but we are still here, and we never left

Rit.

Nandu

E riu della terra a du nce sempre lu sule | I come from the land where the sun always shines
a du la gente cerca umbra ca la po defrescare. | where people look for some shade to stay cool
Stae scrittu sulle petre quiddru ca aggiu capire | what I need to understand is carved in the stones
su parole antiche percé l’uomu nu po cangiare! | they are ancient words, because mankind can’t change!
Memoria ede cultura e bede quistu ca ole: | memory is culture, and this is what it wants:
recorda ce ha successu cussì pueti capire | remember what happened, so you can understand
lu boia denta vittima puru dopu menz’ura | the executioner could become a victim in half an hour
ma la vittima denta boia se nu tene cultura! | but the victim becomes an executioner if he has no culture
Su ste radici nui stamu ben radicati | with these roots, we are well rooted
ni fannu amare populi mai canusciuti | they make us love people which we never knew
ni scosta de ci medita l’odiu e la guerra | it keeps us away from those who think about hatred and war
ma de sti criminali la mente mia nu se scerra!| but my mind doesn’t forget these criminals

Treble

Difendila! | Defend it
Quannu poi difendila! | when you can, defend it
E’ la terra toa, amala e difendila! | it’s your land, so love it and defend it!
Ntorna moi, difendila! |
Quannu poi difendila! ! when you can, defend it?
E’ la terra toa, amala e difendila! De cine? | it’s your land, so love it and defend it, from whom?
De ci ole cu specula e corrompe, difendila! | from those who want to speculate and corrupt us
De ci ole sfrutta l’ignoranza, difendila! | from those who want to exploit ignorance
De ci ole svende l’arte noscia, difendila! | from those who want to underselle our art
De ci nu bole crisca ancora, difendila!| from those who don’t want to grow more
Pe ci nu tene chiù speranza, difendila! | for those who lost all hope
Pe ci ha rimastu senza forza, difendila!| for those who ended up without strength
Pe ci nu pote ma nci crite, difendila! | for those who can’t but still believe
Pe ci nu te pote secutare, difendila! | for those who cannot follow you

Rit.

Rico

Egnu de lu salentu e quannu mpunnu parlu dialettu |I come from Salento and when I can I speak dialect
e nu bete pecce ca l’Italianu nullu sacciu | and not because I don’t know Italian
ca se buenu me recordu do parole de woolof africanu | and I even know a couple of words in African Wolof
chep gen è lu risu cullu pisce ca se mangia culle manu | chep gen is the rice with fish, that you eat with your hands
e “mu nu mu cu bbai” vuol dire nun ne pozzu fare a menu | and “mu nu mu cu bbai” means I can’t do without
e ”man gi dem man gi dem” vuol dire sciamu moi sciamu | and “man gi dem man gi dem” means let’s go
a du ete ca uei basta ca rispettu purtamu |
e ca ne facimu rispettare pe quiddhri ca simu | and that we ask others to respect us for what we are
ca la cultura vera è cu sai itere | ‘cos the real culture is when you are able to see
la realtà pe quiddhra ca ete sia ca è facile sia ca è difficile | reality for what it is, be it easy or be it hard
la cultura vera è cu sai capire | real culture is when you can understand
ci tene veramente besegnu ci ete lu chiu debole |who is really in need and who is the weakest

Fabio

Me la difendu, stritta e forte cullu core | I defend it, hard and strong with my heart
quista e’ la poesia ca crea sta terra cull’amore. | this is poetry that this land creates with love
Quiddra ca muti, tenenu modu te sentire |
grazie a ci la porta in giru oci a quai la po saggiare. |

Nandu

E riu della terra a du nce sempre lu sule | I come from the land where the sun always shines
e alla gente ca ria nci pensa sempre lu mare! | and people who come here always think of the sea!
A quai stae scrittu sulle petre ce aggiu capire | and I try to understand what is written on the stones
cercu cu te le spiegu, perché nu ta scerrare! |

Treble

Difendila!
Quannu poi difendila!
E’ la terra toa, amala e difendila!
Ntorna moi, difendila!
Quannu poi difendila!
E’ la terra toa, amala e difendila!

Rit.