I was born in the 1980s, to parents who love watching films about the world wars. Growing up in China in my generation, it was next to impossible to avoid films about WW1 and WW2. Some of these films were produced in China and some imported and dubbed in Chinese and subsequently into Uyghur. One of these films left a deep mark on me as a teenager, it was called The Bridge, produced in the former Yugoslavia.
It was not so much the plot of the story that spoke to me, but the theme song Bella Ciao towards the end of the film, when the partisans blow up the bridge to prevent the Nazis from crossing the border from Greece to Yugoslavia. I first heard the Uyghur version of the song, it goes something like this:
Ah dostlar xeyrixosh, (goodbye my friends)
Ah dostlar xeyrixosh, (goodbye my friends)
Ah dostlar xeyrixosh, xosh, xosh, xosh, (goodbye my friends, bye, bye, bye)
Qurban bolsam, eger urushta, (if I die in the battle)
Kömünglar méni igiz taghda. (bury me in the mountains)
Ah dostlar xeyrixosh, (goodbye my friends)
Ah dostlar xeyrixosh, (goodbye my friends)
Ah dostlar xeyrixosh, xosh, xosh, xosh, (goodbye my friends, bye, bye, bye)
Tupraq béshimdin otkende dostlar, (if you pass by my grave, my friend)
Chéchip qoysun xosh puraq güller. (scatter around some fragrant flowers)
(Substack does not accommodate right-to-left scripts very well so I used the Latin Uyghur script instead)
At the time I knew nothing about the origin of the song. It was only many years later that I learnt that it was a partisan song from Italy. The original song goes something like this:
I memorised the lyrics in Italian because they brought tears to my eyes. I was told that the song is somewhat controversial in Italy because it was widely used by the Italian communist party then subsequently the far right movements (correct me if I’m wrong, as I’m ignorant of Italian politics). However, I’m simply moved by how beautiful the tune and the lyrics are. I’m not here to debate politics, and I did not grow up in Italy, so forgive me if you’re Italian and offended. I remember the whole Italian football team dancing to and singing this song while celebrating winning the Euros in 2021.
This song is extremely popular all over the world, including where I grew up. While researching the topic, I came across this Youtube video of Bella Ciao in 70 languages! I don’t have the statistics, but this has got to be one of the most translated songs ever. The song is cheerful, the lyrics, especially the chorus, was catchy and it is hard to resist dancing to the song. It is probably also about what the song represents. It represents resistance, fighting for freedom and sacrificing for the country and/or a greater cause. When you have the tunes, the lyrics and symbolism right, it is impossible to stop it from going viral. My favourite versions are the original (I’m not 100% sure) and the version performed live by Goran Bergovic in Paris 2013.
I’m not sure what the song means to others, so I’ll stick to my experience of the song. When the Yugoslavian film was dubbed in Chinese, they decided to sing Bella Ciao in Chinese as well. Here are the lyrics in Chinese. It is a direct translation of the Italian original except in one place.
那一天早晨，从梦中醒来，
啊朋友再见吧、再见吧、再见吧！
一天早晨，从梦中醒来，
侵略者闯进我家乡；
啊游击队呀，快带我走吧，
啊朋友再见吧、再见吧、再见吧！
游击队呀，快带我走吧，
我实在不能再忍受；
啊如果我在，战斗中牺牲，
啊朋友再见吧、再见吧、再见吧！
如果我在，战斗中牺牲，你一定把我来埋葬；
请把我埋在，高高的山岗，
啊朋友再见吧、再见吧、再见吧！
把我埋在，高高的山岗，
再插上一朵美丽的花；
啊每当人们，从这里走过，
啊朋友再见吧、再见吧、再见吧！
每当人们从这里走过，
都说啊多么美丽的花；
啊这花属于，游击队战士，
啊朋友再见吧、再见吧、再见吧！
啊这花属于，游击队战士，
他为自由献出生命！
Instead of saying ‘Goodbye, my beautiful’, the Chinese version says 啊朋友再见 (Goodbye, my friend). While I don’t fully understand the reason behind this, my educated guess is that when the film was imported, it was during a conservative period of modern Chinese history. ‘My friend’ is a more appropriate symbol of partisan comradery than ‘my beautiful’, hence this decision. When I was still a kid, I remember that all grown-ups around me knew this song. Because of the Russian influence, Bella Ciao was often played at parties with an accordion. People at the party would all sing along to this song and I always enjoyed it as a little boy.
In Uyghur culture, Bella Ciao remains wildly popular till this day, but not for the reason you may have imagined. As a people, we are hospitable and go to great length to make sure our guests are well fed, happy and having a good time. We would never, I mean never, tell the guests it’s too late and kick them out of the house, even if they overstay their welcome. Instead, we would offer to make bed and have them stay for the night. Some would say this is a good trait to have while some others would think this is ridiculous, I know! This becomes a problem at wedding parties, because in Uyghur weddings there is a LOT of dancing and most people are often reluctant to leave. If you serve alcohol, you might as well make the bed for them in the wedding hall. As it’s rude to ask the guests to leave, Bella Ciao comes in to save the day. It is an unwritten rule in Uyghur culture that whenever you hear the band play Bella Ciao at a wedding party, it is cue for you to put your coat on and leave!
The song has definitely transcended culture and borders and remains one of my favourite songs. I made sure my daughter knows how to sing both the Italian and Uyghur version.
This is probably why I love translation as a profession. It’s never about rendering words from one language to an another, because we are human, we are emotional and resourceful. The song may mean one thing to you, but completely something else to me.
If you’d like to share, let me know in what language(s) you’ve heard the song, and your feelings about it. More importantly, if you’ve enjoyed reading this, don’t forget to like the post and subscribe.
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