Episode 13: VIA

VIA VIA (V-I-A), from Latin VIA, coming from the verb VEHERE, to transport. VIA is the Italian for the word STREET, or WAY. That’s the same root of WAY and the two words have, in fact, a lot of common uses.VIA (or VIALE, boulevard, when the street is bigger) is the way we call our streets. If you’ve ever been to Italy, you have read streets names like VIA NAZIONALEVIA TORNABUONIVIA DELLA STAZIONE VIA APPIA, the Appian Way, which was Rome’s and Europe's first super highway and possibly the oldest road still in existence that is largely intact today.We say VIA MAESTRA when we talk about a main road, literally the Master WayVIA can be STRETTA, LARGA, LUNGA, BREVE, DRITTA, TORTUOSA (windy)We use the expression FARE UNA VIA to say ‘follow a street’In the Purgatory, Dante writes “Maestro mio, diss’io, che via faremo?”There is this say in Italian : CHI LASCIA LA VIA VECCHIA PER QUELLA NUOVA, SA QUELLO CHE LASCIA MA NON SA QUELLO CHE TROVA, which I find it has a very cautious vibe, not surprising considering how Italians fear change!TORNARE SULLA RETTA VIA, to go back to the righteous wayNON C’È ALTRA VIA, there’s no other wayNON C’È VIA D’USCITA, there’s no way outVIA LATTEA is our beloved Milky Way (galaxìas cùclos in greek)VIA RADIO, VIA SATELLITE, VIA EMAIL, same way English speakers use the word VIA to say ‘by means of’ANDARE VIA, to leave, to go away — you can see how AWAY has way and therefore WAY in it!VAI VIA!!, go awayVIA VIA, with a calm tone, means little by littlebut VIA, VIA, means come on, let’s go