The Thousand and One Nights, Vol. I.: Commonly Called the Arabian Nights' Entertainments — Page 14
These pieces of poetry are not in general to be regarded as the compositions of the author or authors of the work: they appear to be mostly borrowed from others, and many of them are taken from the works of celebrated poets.
Questi brani poetici non devono in generale essere considerati come composizioni dell'autore o degli autori dell'opera: sembrano essere per lo più presi in prestito da altri, e molti di essi sono tratti dalle opere di poeti celebri.
--To avoid the tedious interruptions which occur in the original at the close of each Night, I have divided the translation into chapters, each of which consists of one tale, or of two or more tales connected one with another, and have merely mentioned the Night with which each chapter commences, and that with which it terminates.
--Per evitare le noiose interruzioni che si verificano nell'originale alla fine di ogni Notte, ho diviso la traduzione in capitoli, ciascuno dei quali consiste in un racconto, o in due o più racconti collegati l'uno all'altro, e ho semplicemente indicato la Notte con cui ciascun capitolo inizia e quella con cui termina.
"The original work being designed solely for the entertainment of Arabs, I add copious notes to the translation, to render it more intelligible and agreeable to the English reader.
"L'opera originale essendo destinata unicamente all'intrattenimento degli Arabi, aggiungo copiose note alla traduzione, per renderla più intelligibile e gradevole al lettore inglese.
These are entirely my own, except in those cases when I have stated otherwise;[4] and my general object in them has been to give such illustrations as may satisfy the general reader, without obliging him to consult other works.
Queste sono interamente mie, eccetto nei casi in cui ho dichiarato diversamente;[4] e il mio scopo generale in esse è stato quello di fornire illustrazioni tali da soddisfare il lettore comune, senza obbligarlo a consultare altre opere.
In many of them I endeavour to shew, by extracts from esteemed Arabic histories and scientific and other writings, chiefly drawn from MSS. in my possession, as well as by assertions and anecdotes that I have heard, and conduct that I have witnessed, during my intercourse with Arabs, that the most extravagant relations in this work are not in general regarded, even by the educated classes of that people, as of an incredible nature.
In molte di esse mi sforzo di dimostrare, attraverso estratti di stimati testi storici arabi e scritti scientifici e di altro genere, tratti principalmente da manoscritti in mio possesso, nonché attraverso affermazioni e aneddoti che ho sentito, e comportamenti di cui sono stato testimone, durante la mia frequentazione con gli Arabi, che le relazioni più stravaganti contenute in quest'opera non sono in generale considerate, neppure dalle classi istruite di quel popolo, come di natura incredibile.
Vocabulary
- Questi
- Plural demonstrative pronoun or adjective meaning 'these'
- brani
- Pieces or excerpts, especially of text or music
- poetici
- Adjective meaning 'poetic' or relating to poetry
- non
- Basic negation word meaning 'not'
- devono
- Third person plural of 'dovere'; they must or have to
- in
- Preposition meaning 'in' or 'into'
- generale
- Adjective or noun meaning 'general' or broadly applicable
- essere
- Infinitive of the verb 'to be'
- considerati
- Past participle of 'considerare'; regarded or considered
- come
- Conjunction or adverb meaning 'as' or 'how'
- composizioni
- Plural noun meaning 'compositions' or created works
- autore
- Noun meaning 'author' or creator of a work
- o
- Conjunction meaning 'or' connecting alternatives
- degli
- Contracted preposition 'di' plus plural article 'gli'
- autori
- Plural of 'autore'; authors or creators of works
- opera
- Noun meaning 'work', creative output, or opera
- sembrano
- Third person plural of 'sembrare'; they seem or appear
- per
- Preposition meaning 'for', 'through', or 'by'
- lo
- Definite article or direct object pronoun meaning 'it'
- più
- Adverb meaning 'more' or 'most' in comparisons
- presi
- Past participle plural of 'prendere'; taken or borrowed
- prestito
- Noun meaning 'loan'; 'in prestito' means 'borrowed'
- da
- Preposition meaning 'from', 'by', or 'since'
- altri
- Plural of 'altro'; others or other people
- molti
- Adjective or pronoun meaning 'many' or 'a lot'
- di
- Very common preposition meaning 'of' or 'from'
- essi
- Third person plural pronoun meaning 'they' or 'them'
- sono
- First person singular or third person plural of 'essere'
- tratti
- Past participle plural of 'trarre'; drawn or extracted from
- dalle
- Contraction of 'da' plus 'le'; from the (feminine plural)
- opere
- Plural of 'opera'; works, especially literary or artistic
- poeti
- Plural of 'poeta'; poets or writers of verse
- celebri
- Adjective meaning 'celebrated', 'famous', or well-known
- Per
- Preposition used here to introduce purpose meaning 'to'
- evitare
- Infinitive meaning 'to avoid' or to prevent something
- le
- Feminine plural definite article or indirect pronoun 'her'
- noiose
- Adjective meaning 'boring', 'tedious', or annoying
- interruzioni
- Plural noun meaning 'interruptions' or breaks in flow
- che
- Conjunction or relative pronoun meaning 'that' or 'which'
- si
- Reflexive or impersonal pronoun used with verbs
- verificano
- Third person plural of 'verificarsi'; they occur or happen
- originale
- Adjective or noun meaning 'original' or initial version
- alla
- Contraction of preposition 'a' and article 'la'
- fine
- Noun meaning 'end' or adjective meaning 'fine'
- ogni
- Adjective meaning 'every' or 'each' individual item
- Notte
- Noun meaning 'night'; here referring to tale nights
- ho
- First person singular of 'avere'; I have (auxiliary)
- diviso
- Past participle of 'dividere'; divided or split into parts
- la
- Feminine singular definite article meaning 'the'
- traduzione
- Noun meaning 'translation' of a text into another language
- capitoli
- Plural of 'capitolo'; chapters in a book or text
- ciascuno
- Indefinite pronoun or adjective meaning 'each one'
- dei
- Contraction of 'di' plus 'i'; of the (masculine plural)
- quali
- Relative pronoun meaning 'which' used after prepositions
- consiste
- Third person singular of 'consistere'; it consists of
- un
- Indefinite article meaning 'a' or 'one' (masculine)
- racconto
- Noun meaning 'story', 'tale', or short narrative
- due
- Number meaning 'two'
- racconti
- Plural of 'racconto'; stories or short narrative tales
- collegati
- Past participle plural of 'collegare'; connected or linked
- uno
- Indefinite pronoun or number meaning 'one'
- altro
- Pronoun or adjective meaning 'other' or 'another'
- semplicemente
- Adverb meaning 'simply' or in a straightforward manner
- indicato
- Past participle of 'indicare'; indicated or pointed out
- con
- Preposition meaning 'with' indicating accompaniment
- cui
- Relative pronoun meaning 'which' or 'whom' after preposition
- ciascun
- Shortened form of 'ciascuno' before masculine nouns
- capitolo
- Noun meaning 'chapter' in a book or document
- inizia
- Third person singular of 'iniziare'; it begins or starts
- quella
- Feminine singular demonstrative pronoun meaning 'that one'
- termina
- Third person singular of 'terminare'; it ends or concludes
- essendo
- Gerund of 'essere'; being, as a participial phrase opener
- destinata
- Past participle of 'destinare'; intended or destined for
- unicamente
- Adverb meaning 'solely', 'only', or exclusively
- intrattenimento
- Noun meaning 'entertainment' or amusement for an audience
- Arabi
- Plural noun or adjective meaning 'Arabs' or 'Arabic people'
- aggiungo
- First person singular of 'aggiungere'; I add or append
- copiose
- Adjective meaning 'copious', 'abundant', or numerous
- note
- Plural of 'nota'; notes or annotations in a text
- renderla
- Infinitive 'rendere' plus pronoun; to make it (something)
- intelligibile
- Adjective meaning 'intelligible' or easily understandable
- gradevole
- Adjective meaning 'pleasant', 'agreeable', or enjoyable
- al
- Contraction of 'a' plus 'il'; to the (masculine singular)
- lettore
- Noun meaning 'reader' or person who reads a text
- inglese
- Adjective or noun meaning 'English' (language or person)
- Queste
- Feminine plural demonstrative adjective meaning 'these'
- interamente
- Adverb meaning 'entirely', 'wholly', or completely
- mie
- Feminine plural possessive adjective meaning 'my'
- eccetto
- Preposition meaning 'except' or with the exception of
- nei
- Contraction of 'in' plus 'i'; in the (masculine plural)
- casi
- Plural of 'caso'; cases, situations, or instances
- dichiarato
- Past participle of 'dichiarare'; declared or stated otherwise
- diversamente
- Adverb meaning 'differently' or in another manner
- il
- Masculine singular definite article meaning 'the'
- mio
- Masculine singular possessive adjective meaning 'my'
- scopo
- Noun meaning 'purpose', 'aim', or goal of an action
- esse
- Third person feminine plural pronoun meaning 'they' or 'them'
- è
- Third person singular of 'essere'; is (to be)
- stato
- Past participle of 'essere'; been; also means 'state'
- quello
- Masculine singular demonstrative pronoun meaning 'that one'
- fornire
- Infinitive meaning 'to provide' or supply something needed
- illustrazioni
- Plural noun meaning 'illustrations' or explanatory examples
- tali
- Adjective or pronoun meaning 'such' or of that kind
- soddisfare
- Infinitive meaning 'to satisfy' or to meet expectations
- comune
- Adjective meaning 'common' or shared; noun means 'municipality'
- senza
- Preposition meaning 'without' indicating absence or lack
- obbligarlo
- Infinitive 'obbligare' plus pronoun; to oblige or force him
- a
- Preposition meaning 'to', 'at', or 'in' (location/direction)
- consultare
- Infinitive meaning 'to consult' or to look something up
- altre
- Feminine plural of 'altro'; other (things, sources, works)
- In
- Preposition meaning 'in' introducing location or context
- molte
- Feminine plural of 'molto'; many (feminine nouns)
- mi
- First person singular reflexive or object pronoun 'myself'
- sforzo
- Noun meaning 'effort' or 'attempt'; also first person singular
- dimostrare
- Infinitive meaning 'to demonstrate' or prove something clearly
- attraverso
- Preposition meaning 'through' or by means of something
- estratti
- Plural noun meaning 'extracts' or excerpts from texts
- stimati
- Past participle plural of 'stimare'; esteemed or highly regarded
- testi
- Plural of 'testo'; texts, written sources, or documents
- storici
- Plural adjective or noun meaning 'historical' or historians
- arabi
- Plural adjective or noun meaning 'Arabic' or Arab people
- scritti
- Plural noun or past participle meaning 'writings' or written works
- scientifici
- Plural adjective meaning 'scientific' or relating to science
- genere
- Noun meaning 'type', 'genre', or 'gender'
- principalmente
- Adverb meaning 'mainly', 'principally', or above all
- manoscritti
- Plural noun meaning 'manuscripts' or handwritten documents
- possesso
- Noun meaning 'possession' or ownership of something
- nonché
- Conjunction meaning 'as well as' or 'and also'
- affermazioni
- Plural noun meaning 'statements', 'assertions', or claims
- aneddoti
- Plural of 'aneddoto'; anecdotes or brief illustrative stories
- sentito
- Past participle of 'sentire'; heard or felt firsthand
- comportamenti
- Plural of 'comportamento'; behaviors or ways of acting
- testimone
- Noun meaning 'witness' to an event or situation
- durante
- Preposition meaning 'during' a period of time
- mia
- Feminine singular possessive adjective meaning 'my'
- frequentazione
- Noun meaning 'association' or regular contact with people
- gli
- Masculine plural article or indirect pronoun meaning 'him'
- relazioni
- Plural of 'relazione'; relations, reports, or accounts
- stravaganti
- Plural adjective meaning 'extravagant', 'bizarre', or eccentric
- contenute
- Past participle plural of 'contenere'; contained or included within
- considerate
- Past participle plural feminine of 'considerare'; considered or regarded
- neppure
- Adverb meaning 'not even' or 'neither' in negation
- classi
- Plural of 'classe'; classes, groups, or social categories
- istruite
- Past participle plural of 'istruire'; educated or well-instructed
- quel
- Shortened masculine singular demonstrative adjective meaning 'that'
- popolo
- Noun meaning 'people' or a nation as a collective group
- natura
- Noun meaning 'nature' or the inherent character of something
- incredibile
- Adjective meaning 'incredible' or impossible to believe
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