Giuseppe Borrello

Giuseppe Borrello (1820–1894) was an Italian poet, who wrote mainly in Sicilian, and an Italian patriot.

Borrello was born and died in Catania. In 1837, at a time when Catania was experiencing a cholera epidemic, he was granted special emergency powers by the Bourbon government, but was relieved of his duties once his liberal views and attitudes became known.

He participated in the popular revolts of 1848, being one of the main provocateurs in Catania. During the Risorgimento of 1860 he became aligned with Garibaldi's forces and reached the rank of Major.

An anthology of his poems is simply entitled: Puisii Siciliani (Sicilian Poems).

Example

The following short poem pays homage to the renowned Chestnut Tree of One Hundred Horses:[1]

Sicilian	English
Un pedi di castagna	A chestnut tree
tantu grossu	was so large
ca ccu li rami so' forma un paracqua	that its branches formed a shelter
sutta di cui si riparò di l'acqua,	under which refuge was sought from the rain
di fùrmini, e saitti	from thunder bolts and flashes of lightning
la riggina Giuvanna	by Queen Joanne
ccu centu cavaleri,	with a hundred knights,
quannu ppi visitari Mungibeddu	when on her way to Mt Etna
vinni surprisa di lu timpurali.	was taken by surprise by a fierce storm.
D'allura si chiamò	From then on so was it named
st'àrvulu situatu 'ntra 'na valli	this tree nestled in a valley and its courses
lu gran castagnu d'i centu cavalli.	the great chestnut tree of one hundred horses.

References

1. "Poesie sul Castagno dei Cento Cavalli". (Sicilian) Catania Natura. Dipartimento di Botanica, University of Catania. Archived from the original on 2007-09-18. Retrieved 2006-12-22.