O Sole Mio is one of the most well-known songs to emerge from Italy, along with the likes of Nel blu dipinto di blu and Caruso. Written in 1898 by Giovanni Capurro and Eduardo di Capua, it has been recorded by dozens of artists and translated into various languages, most famously Elvis Presley’s It’s Now or Never.
Note that I don’t call it an Italian song – this is because it is usually sung in the original Neapolitan language in which it was written!
Below you can watch the Italian operatic trio Il Volo perform O Sole Mio on YouTube. Be sure to refer to the lyrics as you listen, and if you are in doubt about the meaning, check out the English translation at the end of the article!
Il Volo – O Sole Mio – Listen on YouTube
O Sole Mio – Neapolitan Lyrics
Che bella cosa na jurnata ‘e sole,
n’aria serena doppo na tempesta!
Pe’ ll’aria fresca pare gia’ na festa
Che bella cosa na jurnata ‘e sole.
Ma n’atu sole
cchiu’ bello, oi ne’.
‘O sole mio
sta ‘nfronte a te!
‘O sole, ‘o sole mio
sta ‘nfronte a te,
sta ‘nfronte a te!
Lùcene ‘e llastre d”a fenesta toia;
‘na lavannara canta e se ne vanta
e pe’ tramente torce, spanne e canta
lùcene ‘e llastre d’a fenesta toia.
Ma n’atu sole
cchiu’ bello, oi ne’.
‘O sole mio
sta ‘nfronte a te!
Quanno fa notte e ‘o sole se ne scenne,
me vene quase ‘na malincunia;
sotto ‘a fenesta toia restarria
quanno fa notte e ‘o sole se ne scenne.
Ma n’atu sole
cchiu’ bello, oi ne’.
‘O sole mio
sta ‘nfronte a te!
O Sole Mio – Italian Translation
Che bella cosa una giornata di sole,
un’aria serena dopo la tempesta!
Per l’aria fresca pare già una festa
che bella cosa una giornata di sole!
Ma un altro sole
più bello c’è, o ragazza
il sole mio
sta in fronte a te
Il sole, il sole mio,
sta in fronte a te
sta in fronte a te
Luccicano i vetri della tua finestra,
una lavandaia canta e si vanta
mentre strizza, stende e canta.
luccicano i vetri della tua finestra!
Ma un altro sole
più bello c’è, o ragazza
il sole mio
sta in fronte a te
Quando fa sera e il sole se ne scende,
mi viene quasi una malinconia
Resterei sotto la tua finestra,
quando fa sera ed il sole se ne scende.
Ma un altro sole
più bello non c’è
il sole mio
sta in fronte a te
Source: Intralinea
O Sole Mio (My Own Sun) – English Translation
What a beautiful thing, a sunny day
The calm air after the storm!
The air is so fresh that it already feels like a celebration
What a beautiful thing, a sunny day!
But there’s no other sun
More beautiful, oh girl
My sun
Is upon your face
The sun, my sun,
Is upon your face
Is upon your face
Your windowpanes shine,
A washerwoman sings and brags
While she wrings, hangs the laundry and sings.
Your windowpanes gleam!
But there’s no other sun
More beautiful, oh girl
My sun
Is upon your face
When it gets dark and the sun sets,
I start to feel blue
I’d stay below your window,
When it gets dark and the sun sets.
But there’s no other sun
More beautiful
My sun
Is upon your face
The sun, my sun,
Is upon your face
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.
