PhillyMillie

Please note: These posters are available for purchase via digital download in green or white (sizes are 8.5x11 and 11x17), or physical posters (only in 11.17).

This poster was formed as most great things are formed (perhaps I’m overstepping my bounds by calling it “great”) – while watching The Sopranos. After hearing words like “salude,” “gabagool,” and “manigut” over and over again, I thought to myself, “I’d like to have a poster with those words in my kitchen.” After a quick search on Google, I realized that I couldn’t find exactly what I wanted. So I decided to create my own poster, with the words that I was brought up speaking.

This is dedicated to my grandparents – my mimi and poppy – who instilled these words in us at a young age. Our mimi would lovingly call us stunods when we were being stubborn, or chiacchieron (also known as a kyackyadon) when we were talking too much. It’s also dedicated to my mom, who makes a mean scudole soup.

Many of these words or variations can be heard throughout the East Coast in areas like Philly, New York and New Jersey. Throughout each area, we may say or spell these words differently, which is something I want to acknowledge. For this poster, I used the words that I was taught and used growing up in Delco – both Italian and “slang”. Hidden City Philly has a great piece on the Philly Italian dialect, as does Atlas Obscura, for you linguists out there. Lorraine Ranalli’s Gravy Wars also has a fantastic section detailing even more words.

I want to say “grazie mille” to my family and friends for their support and feedback as this poster came to be. These words evoke a sense of community, and putting this project together certainly felt like that.

These posters are printed through Rittenhouse Press Printing. I appreciate your patience and understanding as I embark on this new venture!