After the assassination of Charlie Kirk, unused bullet casings were found at the scene with meme references engraved on them. The bullets read: “If you read this, you are GAY Lmao,” “Hey fascist! CATCH!” and “O Bella ciao, Bella ciao, Bella ciao, Ciao, ciao!”
The last reference is to an old Italian folk song that has been covered many times in the past 100 years. It’s known for loads of things, including being used as a protest song, a football chant and an anthem for gamers.
So, what are Bella Ciao’s actual origins?
Source: WikiCommons
Bella Ciao became popular in 1940s Italy as a resistance song against the Nazis. Most evidence points to the song becoming popular after the war, and it continued to be associated with anti-fascism.
The actual origins for the song are murky, but one leading theory is that it’s based off a protest folk song which spread in the early 19th century among female field workers in Northern Italy, because of the harsh working conditions they had to put up with. These fields are referenced in the first verse of early lyrics for the song.
New lyrics were then added to tell the story of an Italian soldier during the Second World War.
What do the lyrics of Bella Ciao even mean?
The title Bella CIao is Italian for “Goodbye Beautiful,” or “Hello Beautiful”. This phrase repeats throughout the song. Here’s the full English translation of the most popular version:
Woke up one morning and there were soldiers
O bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao ciao ciao
Woke up one morning and there were soldiers
The invasion had begun
Lend me your shoulder, we stand together
O bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao ciao ciao
Lend me your shoulder, we stand together
But now I feel my time is done
And if I die here, in the resistance
O bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao ciao ciao
And if I die here, in the resistance
You must lay me in my grave
Among the flowers, upon the mountain
O bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao ciao ciao,
Among the flowers, upon the mountain
Let me rest among the brave
Some day people will pick the flowers
O bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao ciao ciao,
Some day people will pick the flowers
And they will remember me
This is the flower of resistance
O bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao ciao ciao
This is the flower of resistance
And those who died for liberty
Okay, but what does it stand for these days?
Source: Netflix
Bella Ciao has been used as a protest song for loads of modern movements, including most recently sung by Ukrainian soldiers in the Russia-Ukraine war and by Polish women protesting for their rights.
It’s also been used a lot as a sound on TikTok for discussions on social justice and political issues.
The Spanish Netflix show Money Heist is associated with Bella Ciao, as an iconic scene uses it. This scene has over 1000 million views on YouTube, and an official cover of the song is on the Money Heist soundtrack.
Far Cry 6, a first-person shooter video game also includes Bella Ciao in its soundtrack. A remix of the song is popular in the gaming community, and is used in lots of Twitch clips and edits.
Featured image by: Netflix, Utah Governor’s Office
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