Catalan: Presentation And History
A language derived from Latin, Catalan is spoken by nearly 10 million people in Europe. We invite you to discover the history and geographical spread of this language.
Presentation
Catalan, which is derived from Latin, is a Romance language just like Spanish, Italian, French, or Portuguese.
The Catalan language belongs to the large family of Indo-European languages and shares common features with Occitan, French (or more precisely Old French), Rhaeto-Romance, and Castilian.
History
Catalan derives from the Vulgar Latin spoken in the Catalan Pyrenees.
Emerging around the year 900, it was influenced by Castilian from the 15th century onward. However, it is incorrect to present the Catalan language as a dialect of Spanish, as these two languages have distinct origins.
Although its use was banned in public under Franco, this dialect continued to be spoken in Spain. In 1978, it once again became an official language in Catalonia, the Balearic Islands, and the Valencian Community (under the name Valencian).
In France, the General Council of the Pyrénées-Orientales committed to promoting, developing, and disseminating the Catalan language and culture through a "Charter for Catalan" in December 2007. This department also features bilingual road signs on all departmental roads.
Catalan Country
Catalan has nearly 10 million speakers in Europe. It is spoken in four European Union countries: France, Andorra, Spain, and Italy.
The Catalan linguistic area includes:
• most of the Pyrénées-Orientales in France (Perpignan region)
• the Principality of Andorra
• Catalonia (Barcelona region in Spain)
• the Valencian Community (around Valencia in Spain)
• a small part of Aragon: La Franja de Ponent
• the Balearic Islands
• the city of Alghero in Sardinia.
Note: The variant of Catalan spoken in France is called "Northern Catalan" or "Roussillonais"; this French regional language is spoken in part of the Pyrénées-Orientales department sometimes referred to as "Northern Catalonia."
The Principality of Andorra is the only independent state where Catalan is the official language. The first speech in Catalan at the United Nations was delivered by Òscar Ribas Reig in 1993, during the admission of the Principality of Andorra to the UN.
Today, it is possible to use this language in European Union institutions and at the UN, although it is not an official language.
