Lesson 1.2 Do you speak Italian

In the three examples below, what is the rule including or leaving out the definite article L' ? The phrases were extracted from Lesson 1.2.

Parli italiano?

Da quanto tempo studi l’italiano?

Studio l'italiano da un mese.

Ciao William,

Thank you for your excellent question about the use (or omission) of the definite article "l'" in the phrases from Lesson 1.2. Let’s break it down and clarify the rule for including or leaving out the definite article when referring to a language in Italian.

The General Rule:

In Italian, when talking about languages, the definite article is typically required (e.g., l'italiano, il francese, lo spagnolo). However, the article is often omitted in specific situations, particularly when a verb directly refers to the language, like parlare or studiare. Let’s go through your examples step by step:

   1. Parli italiano? (Do you speak Italian?)

• Why no "l'"?
  • When the verb parlare is followed by the name of a language, the definite article is usually omitted. So, parli italiano? is correct without the article.
  • Example: Parlo inglese e francese. (I speak English and French.)

   2. Da quanto tempo studi l’italiano? (How long have you been studying Italian?)

• Why "l'"?
  • When the verb studiare (to study) is used with a language, the article is optional but generally included to emphasize the formal nature of the sentence. Here, l'italiano includes the article to make the phrase more precise and formal.

   3. Studio l'italiano da un mese. (I have been studying Italian for one month.)

• Why "l'"?
  • Similar to the previous example, studiare allows the use of the article with a language. In this case, the article is included to give a more formal and structured tone to the sentence. Studio italiano da un mese would also be grammatically correct, but the inclusion of l' adds clarity.
  •  

Simplified Rule:

1. With "parlare": Omit the article when referring to a language. (Parlo italiano, Parli inglese?)
2. With "studiare" or similar verbs: Including the article (l'italiano, lo spagnolo) is optional, but it's more common and formal to include it.
3.  

I hope this explanation clears up any confusion! Feel free to reach out with any other questions.

A presto,
Enxhi