Arpitania

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Arpitania (Arpitan and Italian: Arpitania, French: Arpitanie) refers to the lands where the Arpitanian language is spoken or used to be the prevalent idiom (in this sense, Lyonnais may also be included).

Arpitania and Arpitanian Language are retronyms. They were neologisms from the 20th century. It was initially used for the Alpine regions where Arpitan was spoken. The name was popularised by Mouvement Harpitanya, a left-wing political grouping in Aosta Valley in 1970s. In 1990s, the term lost its particular political context. However, the use of the word "Arpitania" indicates a common cultural heritage and a regional identity beyond linguistic limitations. This is also the base of the pursuit of an official recognition, spearheaded by organisations such as Aliance culturèla arpitana in Lausanne, which demand, for instance, a non-official document to be named "Arpitan passport", in order to underline the transnational identity of the region. In 2005, recognition of Arpitania as a Euroregion was raised as an issue.

Inhabitants of the region, whether they are actual speakers of the language or not, are named as Arpitans by circles who regularly point at the identity of the region as a distinct community or a "nation".