Italian horn, and another question.

[QuestionSleep]

Hey, sorry if this is a little pointless, but does anyone else have an Italian horn? I have my great grandfathers, I wear it all the time. I was actually surprised to see sombody else in my school with one! (I live in Maine, so the Italian population is pretty low)
and is it ture that you can only get them in Italy?


Oh yeah. Sadly, I'm not very eduacate on Italy itself, so sory if this is a ignorant question:
I have heard that Northern and Southern Italians have a very different appearence, and differnt culture, is this true? and what are the differences?

[nuccia]

I live in Toronto where there is a high Italian population...everyonehas a horn. All my kids were given one at birth as well...actually, they have all three hope, faith and charity.

I'm a Southern Italian and have olive skin tone and dark hair as most southerns have. I believe the Northeners are fairer and yes, we have some different traditions...

Nuccia

[Marisa6]

When I was younger I used to wear my horn and my cross together. Hmm - I wonder what the church has to say about that

There are quite a few difference between the northerners and southerners. I don't know if that is still true in Italy today, but to an extent, immigrant communities are almost a sort of microcosm of what Italian attitudes were like many many years ago. In short, they have kept the values of the ancestors who left perhaps 100 years ago, and there was then suspicion between the groups. In Scotland, there are many Italians from north and south - BUT they tend to marry within their own groups. There is very little intermixing. Is that true elsewhere anyone

Marisa

[QuestionSleep]

I live in Toronto where there is a high Italian population...everyonehas a horn. All my kids were given one at birth as well...actually, they have all three hope, faith and charity.

I'm a Southern Italian and have olive skin tone and dark hair as most southerns have. I believe the Northeners are fairer and yes, we have some different traditions...

Nuccia

What do you mean all three? are there different meanings to them or something?

[nuccia]

No, there is one horn..one anchor and a heart (I can't remember for sure)..the horn can be worn separately and often is...or can be worn as a trio..they stand for hope, faith and charity...

The horn is also worn to ward off evil...

Nuccia

[QuestionSleep]

No, there is one horn..one anchor and a heart (I can't remember for sure)..the horn can be worn separately and often is...or can be worn as a trio..they stand for hope, faith and charity...

The horn is also worn to ward off evil...

Nuccia

Oh, I see, thats pretty cool.

[QuestionSleep]

So it has come to my attention that the Italian horn...looks like a sperm.... to put it bluntly. I knew it did, but it never bothered me because hey its my culture, and my great grandfathers, so its like a memory of him--and obviously its not a replica of a sperm. But today, and recently many people have wondered why I am 'wearing a sperm charm'
So anyways, I am going to continue to wear it, BUT are there any other good luck symbols (sayings too I guess) just for future refernce if wanted to get a tattoo or something...?

[nuccia]

I messed up...it's a heart, and anchor and a cross.

As for the "sperm charm" people are either just being silly or really don't know. Explain it once if you wish and then forget about it!

As for other good luck charms you might try this site..

http://www.luckymojo.com/charmbracelets.html

Nuccia

[acman319]

I messed up...it's a heart, and anchor and a cross.

As for the "sperm charm" people are either just being silly or really don't know. Explain it once if you wish and then forget about it!

As for other good luck charms you might try this site..

http://www.luckymojo.com/charmbracelets.html

Nuccia

What happened to the horn charm? You just said the trio was a heart, an anchor, and a cross.

[nuccia]

Just saw this...I did say I messed up...

The horn is separate and can be worn separately but could be worn with the hope faith and charity charms.

Now, just as a side note...has anyone ever seen the old Archie Bunker episode where Archie's Italian neighbor gives him the mal'occhio (corni, hex,) for picking on his wife...?? Rerun was on last night. Just priceless!

[suanj]

the horn, in Italy, have same meaning, in north and in south...... it is a superstition about the envy.. so .......to make the horns with hand it means "to cross" ... "to eliminate" the envy... another gesture, similar and with same meaning is to touch the "intimate parts"... better if male's parts... suanj

[james442]

Hey, sorry if this is a little pointless, but does anyone else have an Italian horn? I have my great grandfathers, I wear it all the time. I was actually surprised to see sombody else in my school with one! (I live in Maine, so the Italian population is pretty low)
and is it ture that you can only get them in Italy?

[joetucciarone]

My grandpa, whose family is from Campobasso, wore what he said was (I'm rephrasing this for gentility) the private part of a male racoon.

[adneycandy]

BUT they tend to marry within their own groups. There is very little intermixing. Is that true elsewhere anyone

[BrownEyedGirl]

Horns are quite common in my area. I live in the Northeastern United States. You could go into any local jewelry store and buy one. A lot of people wear horns with their crosses.

Italians from the North and South are said to look differently. My mother is of Italian descent. She and her sister were very blonde babies. They were all light. As a matter of fact, extremely light. My beloved grandmother and her father had dark hair and dark eyes but light skin. My great grandmother had auburn hair, snow-white skin, and hazel eyes. My beloved grandfather, his father and siblings had natural blond hair, hazel or blue eyes, and they were over six feet tall. And they were all from Campania so I don't know about that stereotype.