Languages of Spain

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The Languages of Spain are the languages spoken or once spoken in the territory of the country of Spain.

Contents 1 Modern 2 The Situation of the Portuguese Language in Spain 3 Historically 4 Variants 5 Further information 6 See also 7 External links

[edit] Modern

The most prominent of the languages of Spain is Castilian (also called and more internationally known as Spanish), which nearly everyone in Spain can speak and is called in Spain and Hispanic America both español ("Spanish"), and castellano ("Castilian"). Other languages figure prominently in many regions: Basque (Vasco or Euskara) in the Basque Country and Navarre; Catalan in Catalonia and the Balearic Islands and (in the same dialect continuum), as variant of this first, Valencian, in Valencia; and Galician in Galicia (which also forms a dialectal continuum with Portuguese at one and other side of Douro river). Spanish or Castilian is official throughout the country; the rest of these have co-official status in their respective regions and all are major enough that there are numerous daily newspapers in these languages and (especially for Catalan, Basque and Galician) a significant book publishing and mediatic industry. Many citizens in these regions consider their regional language as their primary language and Spanish, or Castilian, as secondary; these languages cover broad enough regions to have multiple distinct dialects. (Spanish itself also has distinct dialects around the country, with the Andalusian and Canarian dialects, each of these with their own subvarieties, some of them being partially closer to the Spanish of the Americas, which they heavily influenced at different degrees, depending on the regions or periods, and according to different and non-homogeneous migrating or colonization processes.)

In addition, there is strong and growing support for other regional languages, some of them in danger of extinction. These include Astur-Leonese: Asturian in Asturias and Leonese in the former Kingdom of León, Aragonese in Aragon, and Aranese, a variety of Pyrenean Gascon (a dialect of the Occitan language) spoken only in the tiny Val d'Aran, into Catalonia, but enough of a live language to be co-official and used in the public schools there.

With the exception of Basque, which appears to be a language isolate, all of these are latin derived, Romance languages.

Arabic or Berber are spoken by the Muslim population of Ceuta and Melilla and by recent immigrants (mainly from Morocco and Algeria) elsewhere.

During the 1939–1975 dictatorship of General Francisco Franco, all languages except Castilian were largely banned, as Franco wanted to create a united and uniform Spain and crush any forms or factors of separatism, especially the Basque, Catalan and (to a lesser extent) Galician movements. (See Language politics in Spain under Franco.)

[edit] The Situation of the Portuguese Language in Spain

Also, Portuguese is spoken in:

• San Martín de Trevejo (Sa Martin de Trevellu), Eljas (As Elhas) and Valverde del Fresno (Valverdi du Fresnu), in the Valley of Jálama (Val de Xálima), (Cáceres Province) (in the dialect called A Fala).
• Olivenza (Badajoz Province) - Although disapearing since the Spanish take over.
• Cedillo or Cedilho horn (including Herrera de Alcántara or Ferreira de Alcântara).
• Various villages in the Galician border with Portugal.

None of these situations are protected by the Spanish Government nor Regional Governments, and not even by some form of support from the Government of Portugal. The use of Portuguese, the language of some of the ancestors of these places, is discouraged by the Castilian dominated society.

[edit] Historically

Other languages have been extensively spoken in the territory of modern Spain:

• Andalusi Arabic
• Celtic languages
  • Celtiberian language
  • Gallaecian language
• Lusitanian language
• Guanche
• Galician-Portuguese
• Gothic language
• Iberian language
• Judeo-Catalan
• Latin language
• Ladino
• Mozarabic languages
• Romany language
• Tartessian language

[edit] Variants

There are also variants of these languages proper to Spain, either dialect, cants or pidgins:

• Barallete
• Bron
• Caló
• Cheli
• Fala dos arxinas
• Gacería
• Germanía
• Inglés de escalerilla
• Mingaña

[edit] Further information

• Aragonese language
• Astur-Leonese language
  • Asturian language
  • Extremaduran language
  • Leonese language
  • Cantabrian language
• Basque language (Euskara)
• Catalan language
  • Valencian
• Fala language
• Galician (Galego)
• Gascon language
  • Aranese language
• Ladino (Judaeo-Spanish, Sefardi, etc.)
• Occitan language
• Spanish language (castellano)
  • Names given to the Spanish language
• Signed languages
  • Spanish Sign Language (Lengua de Signos Española, LSE).
  • Catalan Sign Language (Llengua de Signes Catalana, LSC).
  • Valencian Sign Language (Llengua de Signes de la Comunitat Valenciana, LSCV).
• Language politics in Francoist Spain

[edit] See also

• Iberian languages
• Languages of Portugal
• Iberian Romance languages

[edit] External links

• Detailed Ethno-Linguistic map of Pre-Roman Iberia (around 200 BC)
• Detailed linguistic map of Spain