Milanese — ungrateful — a proverb that Milanese say about themselves. Milan absorbs immigrants, uses their talent to build its wealth, and is slow to acknowledge the debt.
Milan has been a city of immigration for centuries. In the twentieth century alone, hundreds of thousands of workers from Veneto, then from the south — Calabria, Sicily, Campania — came to build the Milan of Pirelli, Alfa-Fiat, Breda, and the textile industry. They built the city and were not always welcomed. The proverb captures this tensión honestly: Milan takes everything from everyone and rarely says thank you. But the saying is also used in a more personal register, about individuals who forget a favour, a loan of money, a recommendation. The Milanese quote it about themselves with the directness that characterises their culture: they know they are not the warmest people in Italy and have no illusions about it. It is a form of self-knowledge that Italians from other regions sometimes find disconcerting.
A proverb Milanese say about themselves. Reflects the city's complex relationship with the immigrants who built it and the transactional nature of urban northern life.
A Calabrian worker reflecting on his years in Milan
Ho costruito questa città per trent'anni. Milanesi ingrati — ma devo ammettere che mi ha dato tutto quello che ho.
Construí esta ciudad durante treinta años. Milaneses ingratos — pero debo admitir que me dio todo lo que tengo.
A Milanese businessman who forgot a favour
— Non ti ha nemmeno ringraziato? — Milanesi ingrati. Ci siamo abituati. L'importante è che l'affare sia andato bene.
— ¿Ni siquiera te dio las gracias? — Milaneses ingratos. Ya nos hemos acostumbrado. Lo importante es que el negocio salió bien.
A sociologist writing about urban migration
La storia di Milano è la storia dei suoi immigrati. Milanesi ingrati — ma anche straordinariamente capaci di integrare chi arriva.
La historia de Milán es la historia de sus inmigrantes. Milaneses ingratos — pero también extraordinariamente capaces de integrar a quienes llegan.
A native Milanese to a newcomer
— Come mai nessuno mi saluta nel mio palazzo? — Milanesi ingrati. È normale. Tra sei mesi ti salutano.
— ¿Por qué nadie me saluda en mi edificio? — Milaneses ingratos. Es normal. En seis meses te saludarán.