Bella Ciao Lyrics in English Banda Bassotti

Below, I translated the lyrics of the song Bella Ciao by Banda Bassotti from Italian to English.
These lyrics have verified word for word translations. Click any lyric word to see the translation and hear the pronunciation!
Verse 1
This morning I got up
Oh beautiful bye, beautiful bye, beautiful bye bye bye
This morning I got up
And I found the invader
This is a political song about war, and the invaders at that time were the German troops
Verse 2
Oh partisan take me away
Partisan means a member of an armed group formed to fight secretly against an occupying force
Oh beautiful bye, beautiful bye, beautiful bye bye bye
Partisan take me away
Partisan in this song specifically refers to a member of the Italian Resistance against the Nazi-Fascists during World War II
Because I feel like dying
Or: Because I feel as if I'm going to die
Verse 3
And if I die a partisan
If I die (as) a partisan
Oh beautiful bye, beautiful bye, beautiful bye bye bye
And if I die a partisan
You shall bury me
Verse 4
And bury up there in the mountain
And bury (me) up there in (the) mountain(s)
Oh beautiful bye, beautiful bye, beautiful bye bye bye
Bury up there in the mountain
Under the shadow of a beautiful flower
Verse 5
All the people who will pass
Oh beautiful bye, beautiful bye, beautiful bye bye bye
And the people who will pass
They'll tell me what a beautiful flower
Verse 6
And this is the flower of the partisan
Oh beautiful bye, beautiful bye, beautiful bye bye bye
This is the flower of the partisan
He died for freedom
Lyrics and Translations Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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SONG MEANING

Bella Ciao is more than a catchy chorus—it is a rallying cry that echoes through Italian history. In Banda Bassotti’s energetic alternative take, we wake up at dawn right beside the singer, only to discover that an enemy has invaded. The narrator calls on a brave partigiano (partisan) to whisk him away to the resistance because he feels he might die. Yet the mood is not gloomy; the song’s bright "ciao ciao ciao" pulses with hope, turning fear into courage.

By the second half, the lyrics imagine the singer’s possible death for freedom and describe being buried high in the mountains under a beautiful flower. Passers-by will see that bloom and say, “What a lovely flower!”—a living symbol of every fighter who fell for liberty. In just a few lines, the track ties together sacrifice, nature, and collective memory, making it an enduring anthem for standing up against oppression.

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