The Institut d'Estudis Occitans (Occitan pronunciation: [istiˈtyd desˈtyðiz utsiˈtas]), or IEO, or Occitan Studies Institute, or Institute for Occitan Studies, is a cultural association that was founded in 1945 by a group of Occitan and French writers including Jean Cassou, Tristan Tzara, Ismaël Girard, Max Roqueta, Renat Nelli, and Pierre Rouquette.[1] It aims at both maintaining and developing the language and influence of Occitania through the supervision, harmonization and normalization of everything dealing with the Occitan life and culture. The IEO is divided into regional and departmental sections and local circles that cover the whole of the country from the cities (called in vernacular language) of Lemòtges and Clarmont up north to Marselha, Tolosa or Bordèu down south. There is even one in Paris. What is the more, a number of carefully targeted activities are sponsored by groups and other associations affiliated with the Institute, or by members themselves. The IEO is the Occitan counterpart of the Institut d'Estudis Catalans. Its motto is La fe sens òbras mòrta es (see picture) (Dead is faith without art).
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A first Institute for Occitan Studies had been created around 1923 as a section of the League of Meridional Homeland (Ligue de la Patrie Méridionale), but had a short lifespan. In 1930, occitanists created the Society for Occitan Studies (SEO). At the end of World War II, as both the Felibrige and the SEO had been discredited by the involvement of some of their leaders in the collaboration, some occitanists decided to create a new institution, the IEO, with a clear message: the IEO is an offspring of the antinazi resistance.
| President | From | To |
|---|---|---|
| Jean Cassou | 1945 | 1952 |
| Max Roqueta | 1952 | 1957 |
| Pierre Azéma | 1957 | 1959 |
| Robèrt Lafont | 1959 | 1962 |
| Pierre Bec | 1962 | 1980 |
| Patrick Choffrut | 1980 | 1981 |
| Alain Giacomo | 1981 | 1986 |
| Robert Marty | 1986 | 1997 |
| Philippe Carbonne | 1997 | 2001 |
| David Grosclaude | 2001 | 2010 |
| Pierre Brechet | 2010 | Present |
Ostal d'Occitània
11, carrièra Malcosinat
F-31000 Tolosa
tel: 33 5 34 44 97 1
http://ieo.oc.free.fr/
33600 Pessac
Occitanie
France
19510 Mas Seren
Occitània
França
ieo.lemosin@free.fr
BP 4040
34545 Besièrs Cedex
Occitània
França
4, rue des Mésanges
30000 Nîmes
Occitanie
France
tel: +33 4 66 64 17 99
mtayac@aol.com
31, rue Vandrezanne
75013 Paris
France
Pargue Jordan
8 bis, avenguda Jules Ferry
13100 Ais de Provença
Occitània
França
http://c-oc.org/ieo/provenca
jrpi@club-internet.fr
IEO-Ideco: Ideco is the publishing house and distribution network of the Institut d'Estudis Occitans. It is based in Puèglaurenç.
EOE: the EOE or Escòla Occitana d'Estiu is the Occitan summer school. It is one-week long and takes place every year in august in Vilanuèva d'Òlt.
UOE: the UOE or Universitat Occitana d'Estiu is the Occitan summer university. It is one-week long and takes place every year in Nîmes.
The IEO went through a number of crises throughout its history, the most serious of which in the late 1970s and early '80s when two ideologies clashed: the populist view, Ives Roqueta's, and a more academic one, Robèrt Lafont's. This confrontation led to the eviction of Robèrt Lafont and his followers from the Institute, which nearly sealed the fate of all scientific projects at the IEO, with many researchers finding jobs in universities and the Associacion Internacionala d'Estudis Occitans (International Occitan Studies Association). Most linguists among them migrated also to the Gidilòc and the Conselh de la Lenga Occitana (Occitan Language Council). Nevertheless, the IEO has remained to the day the leading organization in the field of cultural life and by far the most popular body among Occitan activists.
