London: A teenaged Moroccan belly dancer's dramatic statement of her having attended Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's Bunga Bunga sex parties has helped the phrase enter the country's lexicon.
Ever since belly dancer Karima Keyek claimed she had witnessed 'bunga bunga' sex sessions, the phrase 'bunga-bunga' has been dominating news bulletins, appearing in newspaper cartoons, and parodies on television shows.
It has also provided material for discussion among Italians, the Daily Telegraph reported.
The phrase 'Bunga Bunga' is said to come either from the punch-line to one of Berlusconi's favourite bawdy jokes, or it refers to an 'erotic ritual' that Berlusconi learned from his friend and Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.
The media report said that it has entered the Italian lexicon and inspired dozens of spoofs.
Italy of Values, an opposition party, has brought out a campaign poster titled 'Evolution of the species?'. It sports Berlusconi's three images. In one of them, he is dressed in a traditional North African robe worn by Gaddaffi, above the words 'bunga-bunga'.
Incidentally, when AC Milan, the team owned by Berlusconi, were beaten 2-1 by Juventus, La Gazzetta Sportiva ran the front page headline: 'Bunga Bunga Juve!'
Urbandictionary.com provides two meanings of 'Bunga Bunga'. The first is a savagely brutal anal gang-rape. Fabled punishment for trespassing on the tribal land of a fictitious African tribe. The second meaning is an erotic ritual which involves a powerful leader and several naked women.