The Mouth of the Wolf
While doing the typical cramming before my Business Management exam Liliana, my lovely Italian friend, expressed “in bocca al lupo!” to wish me luck and instructed me to respond “crepi.” When I asked for the meaning she said that “in bocca al lupo” means “into the mouth of the wolf.” When I respond with “crepi” I am saying “may it die.” How is becoming a canine doggy treat good luck I hear you ask? Well the expression is synonymous to “break a leg” and after some searching around for the origins of it, I found a mailing list thread where someone recalls Tito Gobbi, the famous Italian baritone, explaining “in olden days, when men gathered in taverns for drink and comradery, as each departed late at night it was customary for their friends to caution each other to ‘beware of the mouth of the wolf’ (in bocca al lupo) on their journey home, to which they boldly replied: ‘crepi lupo’ or simply ‘crepi’.”
I quite like the defiant attitude when faced with a challenge and this cool expression is a great way to show it, especially before an exam.
February 9th, 2007 at 11:41 am
Thats like Passing the exam before you write it! I like it!
I think there are some SA Oscar winners that feel the same *snigger*
February 10th, 2007 at 12:05 pm
In this case Good Luck with those exams.
More on topic however, its rather interesting, too see how different people have different sayings. I find it interesting how different cultures express themselves, so once again to you my friend, “Crepi”
February 13th, 2007 at 6:29 am
Alfling, I think this constitutes more as bravado than cheating
Afflict, thanks. I share your interest in how different cultures express themselves and the origins of those expressions. Some can even be incredibly subtle whiles others quite shocking.