Thomas Tulipani wrote me, asking about an Italian song…
My paternal grandmother had a “rocking” song similar to the one on your blog site but not the same. She would sit us on her lap facing her and holding our hands. Singing the rhyme she would rock us back and forth and at the last line she would rock us all the way back onto her extended legs, simulating falling.
It started like the other rhyme:
Staccia (?) minaccia
But it only had two more lines. All I remember is a phonetic impression of my grandmother’s words that my mother (who never understood Italian) used when she performed the same game.
I asked Monique of Mama Lisa’s World en français if she was familiar with this song. Here’s what she wrote…
I found this one in Italian:
Staccia minaccia
il babbo è andato a caccia
a caccia del bubù
il bubù lo buttiamo giù?Here’s what I’ve been able to piece together in English…
Staccia = sieve, minaccia = threat
Daddy’s gone to hunt,
To hunt the scarecrow.
Do we throw the scarecrow away? (lit. down)
I really don’t know what this Staccia minaccia means, as I can’t figure out how you can sieve a threat, unless minaccia is only to rhyme with staccia and caccia.
Thanks for your help Monique!
I’m wondering if Staccia minaccia could be to get rid of (sift out) a threat, by hunting it down.
If anyone can shed further light on the meaning of this song, please comment below.
Thanks!
Lisa
This artilce was posted on Thursday, May 25th, 2006 at 9:56 pm and is filed under Children's Songs, Countries & Cultures, Italian, Italian Children's Songs, Italy, Languages, Questions, Staccia minaccia. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
October 5th, 2006 at 1:58 pm
Hi Lisa,
My mother and nona used to sing what would seem to be the same song and would rock us the same way as Thomas Tulipani explained. The words were a little different though. I don’t speak Italian, but I can give you the phonetic spelling of what they used to sing…
Staccia Sticola,
Pia (child’s name) e boothela foda
Ki la coy e da
Babo e mama che pensetta
The loose translation, from what I remember, was that the baby was crying all the time and the grandparents threw the baby out, but the mom and dad would bring the baby back in.
I’d like to know the correct Italian version and the correct translation also. If you can help, I’d really appreciate it.
Thanks!
Maria
October 25th, 2006 at 10:09 am
My Nana was born in Fano, Italy and came to America when she was 2. She used to sing this to her progeny. It brings back a lot of wonderful memories. I do this rocking song with my grandchild now, but I’ve had to reproduce it phoenetically. My Nana wasn’t sure what the poem meant but she thought Staccia Minnacia was the name of the hunter. I would love to learn more about this little rocking song! Sandra
January 20th, 2007 at 5:25 pm
I CANNOT beleive I found this blog on this song!!!!!!
My Grandmothers family is from Fano Italy. Bedini.
My grandmother sang me this song ALL the time. She sang it like this though (Phontically as others here have, becuase I have never studied Italian):
Staccia Menaccia
Papa (or baba) giuta caccia
complene none fige
fige nuncetta
boopa giuta ciaetta
Simliar story, my granddmother explained that the words loosely translated meant Daddys gone a hunting to catch a rabbit, but he doesn’t catch any rabbits, throw down hunting (forget about hunting?)
Maybe it was cultural to that specific geographic region…
Wow what a stroll down memory lane that was. I miss them both
:)
March 9th, 2007 at 7:32 pm
I can not believe I have stumbled upon this site. My paternal grandmother from Abruzzi, Italy use to sing a song to me and now I’m trying to find the words. I believe it started out as “Gadisa Gadisa Gomadre” She use to stand me in front of her while she was in her rocking chair and hold my hands and rock me in and out and sing this song and at the end of the song she use to sing it real fast and rock me real fast/ If anyone knows this song please contact me. I would love to sing this to my Grandson. Thank You.
December 31st, 2007 at 1:47 pm
I remember my grandmother singing the song Staccia Menaccia to me & it was explained to me when I grew older & had children of my own that it was a version of Bye Baby Bunting, Daddy’s gone a hunting. I sang this to my children when I rocked them & yes, you do lean them back on your knee at the end. I also learned another song from my grandmother. It was (phonetically) called Staccia Stacian, que manne farring el panne, faring la cresha dura, ye sbataring te mura, mura mura forte, le clave de lorte, le clave de le jardin, butan juoe ma cla fulingne. Has anyone heard this? Roughtly it translates: Staccia, Stacian that tomorrow we make cresha (bread) we make card cresha & throw it at the wall, the wall is so strong, the keys of the garden the keys of the little garden & we throw the child down.
December 31st, 2007 at 1:49 pm
The spelling mistake in my previous entry is cresha that is hard, not card cresha…sorry
January 1st, 2008 at 6:31 pm
The song was probably in a Machegane dielec and it probably meant Bye Baby Bunting. Would need someone that speaks the dielec to translate.
My grandmother that sang this song was from Lucrezia, just outside of Fano. Her married name was Tomassini. Does anyone know/speak Marchegane?
February 27th, 2008 at 12:43 pm
I am Italian, from Marche. First of all the same “filastrocca” would sound different depending on the dialects of different areas (region or even cities).
Besides in particular in this case, there are many versions of this “filastrocca”: look for “staccia minaccia”, staccia buratta” and “staccia stacciola” in http://www.filastrocche.it
July 3rd, 2008 at 10:52 pm
I remember my mom doing this with me and my children and could not remember all the wordsl so very glad i came across this…now i (nonnie) can pass it along to my new grandchild..thanks!!!!!!
February 16th, 2009 at 9:54 pm
the rhyme goes like this
Staccia Minaccia
Babbo andato a cacchia
a cacchia del bubu
buta la giu giu giu buta la for girl or buta lo for a boy. The story goes: father went hunting and he caught the boggy man. So he threw him away far away. I am not Italian but my husband is from Fano and this is how they translate this rhyme.
May 14th, 2011 at 11:49 pm
My Nonna was from Pisa, Italy (Vannucci family). She sang this song to me, also, when I was a small child. However, my recollection is different from most of the others in that the verses seem to have dealt with cats and dogs. Has anyone heard a rhyme similar to this:
Staccia minaccia
Gatino pela gato (Kitten and cat?)
La gato famulino (The cat is hungry?)
Ker loto, ker sale, ker peesho del cane (?)
Buta la buta la male (pr. mall-ay) – (This is where she would lay me back between extended legs.)
If you have a clue about this rhyme, I’d love to hear it. I’d like to share it with my own granddaughter if the lyrics are CLEAN!!!
March 23rd, 2012 at 8:05 pm
I’ve been singing a song my great grandma brought over. Of course its all phonectic as I don’t speak Italian, but I’m pretty sure it’s this staccia minaccia you’ve been refering too. Our version was Cacchia Manacchia and it went:
Cacchia Manacchia
Que ba bogeeta cacchia
cacchia del Boo boo
My (child’s name) bo ta shew (more like jew actually)
Anybody have any idea?
November 9th, 2012 at 5:21 pm
Like the others I can’t believe I found this site. My nonna also used to sing us a version of this song. But it started out Staccia stacciola, rocking throughout, and ended with the fall back combined with a repeat phrase while tickling. So adorable. And now I have grandchildren and do the same, only repeating phonetically as best I can. I don’t know that I ever knew the actual words. Phonetically, this is the best I can do -
Staccia stacciola,
butania ju da forta
ju da forta chal boo baw
Cordy, cordy, cordy, cordy (fall back and tickling now)
Mama chal boo baw
If anybody can help with this I’d love to know more. :)
March 15th, 2013 at 2:38 pm
My Nonna and Nonno used to sing this to me and then to my son. They were from Le Marche. Here is how our family sang it, the long version (please forgive some misspellings):
Staccia Minccia
butalo giu la piazza
la piazza delle mommoletta
mommoletta d’oro
d’oro e d’argento
pese cinquecento
cento e cinquanta
la gallina canta
canta gallina
fal ovo per serafina
serafina sulla finestra
con tre cavalli in testa
pass’a l’enfante
con tre cavalli bianchi
(forgotten part)
e butalo giu laggiu laggiu…
May 8th, 2013 at 10:36 am
Stephanie wrote asking for help with her mom
s version of this rhyme:
Hi
I know that my mom used to rock me and sing this song to me….when I was a little girl like this…of course these are the words I remember… Thanks Stephanie
Tacha
mina cha
pa pa gi
baca cha
la ca cha del bubu
ma stefiolina
badlejo badlejo badlejo
If anyone can help, please let us know. -Thanks!