How would you say "my friends and I"?

Question

I feel that

i miei amici e io

is a bad translation.

What would be the grammatically correct way to say it?

"i miei amici e io" I think is the right translation. Why do you think it is bad? — WalterV, Oct 11, 2015 at 18:24
"I miei amici e io" is totally fine; mind that using the euphonic "d" before words starting with a vowel is usually preferred in order to articulate the two toghether with more ease (i.e. using "I miei amici ed io" as opposed to "I miei amici e io") : treccani.it/enciclopedia/d-eufonica_(La_grammatica_italiana). — kos, Oct 11, 2015 at 18:36
@egreg I don't see the ambiguity (perhaps you can point that out?), but the second point I'm sorry doesn't make sense at all, "I" is obviously a vowel. — kos, Oct 12, 2015 at 8:40
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user519user519 · Accepted Answer · 2015-10-11 18:25:25Z

5

"My friends and I" would be generally translated as "Io e i miei amici", " I miei amici ed io" is also correct.

Ngram Io e i miei amici vs I miei amici ed io

answered Oct 11, 2015 at 18:25

user519

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Andrea · Accepted Answer · 2015-10-12 09:52:21Z

3

"I miei amici ed io" is the better translation that you can do. Please, note two things:

"ed", instead of "e" has the final "d", which is better suited since the following letter is a vowel;
In Italian, it is better to put the first person at the last "place": putting it at the beginning ("io e i miei amici") sounds too "egocentric", and it should be avoided (see here also).

answered Oct 12, 2015 at 7:46

Andrea

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1

Very interesting link: as usual several grammars essentially say that “Io e te” is the form everybody uses, but that's incorrect. Which is silly.
– egreg ♦
Oct 12, 2015 at 7:58
@egreg: Yes, you are right. That's the reason why I'd wish to add this answer of mine. In fact, "io e te" is correct indeed, but it doesn't take into consideration the "bon ton" aspect of the communication...an aspect that, maybe, is sometimes ignored by "strict-grammar" books.
– Andrea
Oct 12, 2015 at 8:02
Grammars may take the “bon ton” into consideration, but if Italian speakers don't, grammars should adapt, not conversely.
– egreg ♦
Oct 12, 2015 at 8:30
Sadly enough, that's it...
– Andrea
Oct 12, 2015 at 10:03
1

To me it sounds more natural to say it the other way round, Ngram, for what it is worth, seems to confirm that.
– user519
Oct 12, 2015 at 12:50

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