The precise origins of “Bella Ciao” (goodbye beautiful) are unclear. Some say its melody comes from a Ukrainian ballad genre called klezmerinvented by Eastern European Jews, and in particular in a melody recorded by accordionist Mishka Zigganoff called “Oi oi di koilen”.
But also, it has been said that it arises from the women who worked in the rice fields in northern Italy in the 19th century and that songs like “Picchia alla porticella” (he knocks on the door) and “Flor di tomba” (flower de tumba) – which were popular at the time – have parts similar to those of this resistance song, which have adopted popular struggles from different parts of the world.
In those rice fields, full of mosquitoes, the women – known as the mondinas– they sang the first version of “Bella Ciao” to denounce exploitation and criticize the working conditions to which they were subjected. They worked barefoot, in water up to their knees, under an unbearable sun and had to stand with their backs upright for many hours; in order to receive one of those payments that makes you want to cry.
In the 20th century, in the midst of a fight against the Nazis, Italian partisans remembered that first version of “Bella Ciao” and began to sing it with modified lyrics. It was this version that, over the years, became an anthem of anti-fascist resistance.
Furthermore, over time it has been adopted by Italian rock and reggae musicians who speak of revolutionary causes in the lyrics of their songs. For example, Sud Sound System, Roy Paci (former trumpeter of Radio Bemba, the group that accompanied the singer-songwriter Manu Chao) and Banda Bassoti; They have all made their own versions of “Bella Ciao”.
The members of Banda Bassoti have been accused of being terrorists due to the revolutionary content of their songs, but years ago a group of fascists entered one of their concerts to stab their followers indiscriminately. That night there were dozens of injuries.
This is how “Bella Ciao” became an anthem of popular struggles
The version of the Italian partisans emerged in the midst of the country’s civil war. After Benito Mussolini was arrested in 1943 and later rescued by Adolf Hitler, he created a false state – which he could manage at will – called the Italian Social Republic.
This is how the defenders of fascism and the resistance movements, which sought peace with the Allies (led by the United States, the Soviet Union and Great Britain), entered into a civil war that lasted until 1945.
Northern and central Italy were occupied by the Nazis, so the Americans advanced from the southern part, which is why the bloody battles of Anzio and Monte Cassino occurred. In the north there was the armed resistance of the partisans.
Then, the partisans remember a song from the previous century that had been passed down, by oral tradition, from generation to generation and they begin to sing it, but it will be in the sixties when “Bella Ciao” becomes popular in the workers’ demonstrations and students.
As at that time there were popular struggles in various parts of the world, “Bella Ciao” did not take long to reach Latin America. In the seventies it was taken up again as a leftist battle cry, during the government of Salvador Allende, and even the Andean music group Quilapayún made its own version. During the Civic Strike of 1977, which was carried out as a protest against the government of Alfonso López Michelsen, it was also sung by Colombian workers.
That year, there were workers’ demonstrations in several public squares throughout the country, in which “Bella Ciao” was sung. The revolt, which began due to the former president’s failed economic policies, is today considered the second largest popular demonstration after the Bogotazo.
Currently “Bella Ciao” has thousands of different versions, several with modified lyrics. Even reggaton singer Becky G, who sang in “Mamii” with Karol G, has her own version of it.
Why do both the Colombian left and right sing “Bella Ciao” in their marches?
During the recent protests against the government of Gustavo Petro, the largest carried out by the country’s right wing since the march known as A million voices against the FARC (2008)–, The protesters sang “Bella Ciao.” The President responded with a trill in which he made it clear that, although he understood that the song was against him, it seemed very commendable that his opponents repudiated him by singing such an emblematic anthem for the international left.
There are two reasons why right-wing protesters might be taking up this song. The first, that they know their Jewish origin and that their religious identification with the State of Israel, in the midst of the war with Palestine, makes them feel this song as their own battle cry.
But it is also possible that they are simply singing it because they remember it as the battle hymn popularized in the famous series The Money Heist, which is also – with more than 600 million hours viewed – one of the fifteen most consumed in the history of Netflix. In this production, which tells the story of anti-capitalist bank robbers, “Bella Ciao” is sung as a symbol of struggle, resistance and unity.
In real life, the impact of the song was so powerful that Álvaro Morte himself, who plays one of the characters nicknamed The Professor, has explained that there are many Latin American countries where they have thanked him for reviving “Bella Ciao.” and for the impact that the song has once again had on popular demonstrations.
Exactly three years ago, during the 2021 National Strike, Colombian students and workers sang it as a protest against the government of Iván Duque: “Duque bye,” they chanted then. Meanwhile, protesters were losing their eyes, women were raped by some police forces and dozens of young people were disappearing around the country. On a cold night in Bogotá, we lost 12.
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