"''Oh mia bèla Madunina''" (

Classical Milanese orthography The classical Milanese orthography is the orthography used for the Western Lombard language, in particular for the Milanese dialect, by the major poets and writers of this literature, such as Carlo Porta, Carlo Maria Maggi, Delio Tessa, etc. It wa ...

: ' ; "Oh my beautiful little

Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...

" in

Milanese Milanese (endonym in traditional orthography , ') is the central variety of the Western dialect of the Lombard language spoken in Milan, the rest of its metropolitan city, and the northernmost part of the province of Pavia. Milanese, due to t ...

) is a song by

Giovanni D'Anzi Giovanni D'Anzi (1 January 1906 – 15 April 1974) was an Italian songwriter. Biography D'Anzi was born in Milan. In 1935 he wrote music and lyrics of " O mia bela Madonina" ("My beautiful little Madonna"), a song dedicated to his hometow ...

which is an unofficial city anthem of

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

. The title refers to the golden statue of the

Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother o ...

on the spire of

Milan Cathedral Milan Cathedral ( it, Duomo di Milano ; lmo, Domm de Milan ), or Metropolitan Cathedral-Basilica of the Nativity of Saint Mary ( it, Basilica cattedrale metropolitana di Santa Maria Nascente, links=no), is the cathedral church of Milan, Lombard ...

visible all over the city, namely the Madonnina (''Madunina'' in the Milanese dialect). The song was written and composed in 1934 by the Milan songwriter

(1906–1974). In the 1930s, many immigrants from the

Mezzogiorno Southern Italy ( it, Sud Italia or ) also known as ''Meridione'' or ''Mezzogiorno'' (), is a macroregion A macroregion is a geopolitical subdivision that encompasses several traditionally or politically defined regions or countries. The meaning ...

, especially from the region of

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

, came to Milan bringing with them their famous

Neapolitan songs Canzone napoletana (), sometimes referred to as Neapolitan song ( nap, canzona napulitana ), is a generic term for a traditional form of music sung in the Neapolitan language, ordinarily for the male voice singing solo, although well represented b ...

such as "

’O sole mio "O sole mio" () is a well-known Neapolitan song written in 1898. Its Neapolitan language lyrics were written by Giovanni Capurro and the music was composed by Eduardo di Capua (1865–1917) and Alfredo Mazzucchi (1878–1972).. The title transl ...

". D'Anzi thus decided to create a musical answer from Milan. The song became a hit in the city almost immediately, and in 1938 it topped the Italian hit parade. Musically, "Oh mia bela Madunina" has similarities to American ballads of the time. The lyrics give some praise to Neapolitan music but add that Milan also deserves a mention; they address the Madonna under whose domination Milan is vibrant with life and always busy. The lyrics end with an offer to shake hands because it is a small world, after all, but the closing verse ''ma Milan, l'è on gran Milan!'' ("but Milan is a great Milan!") reaffirms the Milanese pride. It is often sung by

AC Milan Associazione Calcio Milan (), commonly referred to as AC Milan or simply Milan, is a professional football club in Milan, Italy, founded in 1899. The club has spent its entire history, with the exception of the 1980–81 and 1982–83 seasons ...

and

Inter Milan Football Club Internazionale Milano, commonly referred to as Internazionale () or simply Inter, and colloquially known as Inter Milan in English-speaking countries, is an Football in Italy, Italian professional Association football, football ...

fans during the matches, in particular during the ''

Derby della Madonnina The Derby della Madonnina, also known as the Derby di Milano (Milan Derby, in English), is a derby football match between the two prominent Milanese clubs, Internazionale and A.C. Milan. It is called ''Derby della Madonnina'' in honour of one of ...

''.

References

Sources

* Giovanni D'Anzi, ''Le canzoni milanesi'', Curci, Milano 1961 {{Authority control 1934 songs Culture in Milan Italian songs Lombard language