The most common one you hear? “Potato”!
If you want to get the attention of someone who’s dear to you, you can call them over with, “Hey, potato!” It sounds a little derogatory to a Japanese ear, but in Italy it’s the number-one term of endearment. It’s not the only one, though—another affectionate way to refer to someone is ciccia—which is the word for “fat” or “flab”. The Italians are an interesting bunch, right? They don’t get mad when you call them “potato,” and they look happy when you call them “flab”!
The first time I heard someone admire a woman who was “as beautiful as gnocchi,” the person had to explain to me, looking confused, that it was a compliment, since gnocchi are so chewy, round, and delicious. But I still couldn’t make the connection between a little rolled ball of potato and wheat flour on one hand and a lovely woman on the other…
What about if you call a woman a “mussel”? Mussels are shells that live on rocks and other hard surfaces, so you might think it means a woman who’s tenacious or stubborn. They also have little threads that come out of them that look like beards, so maybe a hairy woman? Even for bivalves, mussels are particularly long and asymmetrical, so maybe a woman whose proportions are off? No matter how you look at it, calling a woman a mussel when commenting on her appearance is apparently a way to say she’s ugly. Pretty harsh.
Italians are also fond of saying that a person is “as good as bread.” That one I sort of get. I also heard an Italian mutter once, “That guy is parsley,” and it got me thinking for a while. Parsley is a green, slightly bitter leaf that you chop up and add to food for a pop of flavor. I didn’t think it could mean that the person looked greenish or pale… and even though parsley’s a little bitter, using it to call someone bitter didn’t seem to hit the mark either. Parsley’s kind of a pain—you’ve got to chop it up fine and it turns your cutting board green, so maybe someone who’s needy or a pain in the butt? Nope. Parsley’s like a weed and grows anywhere, so it’s an annoying person who’s always butting into everyone’s conversation. That makes sense.
What about if a woman excitedly shouts out, “That guy’s a fig!”? Maybe something to do with the story of Adam and Eve covering themselves with a fig leaf? Figs are delicate fruits with a surface that bruises easily, so maybe it’s a man who’s naïve? It’s also full of tiny little grits, so maybe someone who gripes all the time? Nope. It’s a term for a handsome guy.
Are there any handsome “figs” around you? How about some beautiful “gnocchi”?
