The second Sunday of May is Mother’s Day in Italy, known as La Festa della Mamma in Italian. In addition to being a celebration honouring the mothers (mamme) in our lives, it is also a time to commemorate motherhood, maternal bonds, and the significant influence of mothers in our society.
In recognition of this special holiday, we’ve decided to share some of our favourite Italian quotes about mothers with you today. Some are famous sayings that have been translated from other languages, whereas others are well-known Italian proverbs of both the serious and humorous variety. We hope you enjoy them! Speriamo che ti piacciano!
1. Amor di madre, amore senza limiti.
English meaning: A mother’s love has no limits.
2. Una buona mamma vale cento maestre.
English meaning: A good mother is worth a hundred teachers.
3. Mamma, mamma, chi l’ha la chiama e chi non l’ha la brama.
English meaning: Mother, mother, he who has her calls her and he who doesn’t yearns for her.
4. Chi è buona madre è anche buona moglie.
English meaning: A good mother is also a good wife.
5. Ognun dà pane ma non come mamma.
English meaning: Everyone gives bread but none does it like a mother.
6. La mamma dei cretini è sempre incinta.
English meaning: The mother of idiots is always pregnant.
7. Qual la madre, tal la figlia.
English meaning: Like mother, like daughter.
8. La madre pietosa, fa la figlia tignosa.
English meaning: If a mother is compassionate, her daughter will be stubborn.
9. Mamma mia sempre, ricca o povera che tu sia.
English meaning: My mother forever, no matter how rich or poor.
10. Tre figlie e una madre, quattro diavoli per un padre.
English meaning: Three daughters and a mother, four devils for the father.
Heather Broster is a graduate with honours in linguistics from the University of Western Ontario. She is an aspiring polyglot, proficient in English and Italian, as well as Japanese, Welsh, and French to varying degrees of fluency. Originally from Toronto, Heather has resided in various countries, notably Italy for a period of six years. Her primary focus lies in the fields of language acquisition, education, and bilingual instruction.
