Languages in my country
Posted: Thu Oct 08, 2009 3:13 pmWhat languages are spoken in your country? Are there any minority languages? What, if anything, is done to protect the minority languages? What are your opinions on this?
The most prominent of the languages of Spain is Spanish, which nearly everyone in Spain can speak as either first or second language. But there are robust regional languages figuring prominently in a series of regions:
Basque in parts of the Basque Country and Navarre. Basque is the only non Romance language in mainland Spain.
Catalan in Catalonia, adjacent eastern Aragon, and the Balearic Islands and, as a distinct variant, Valencian in the Valencian Community.
Galician in Galicia and adjacent western parts of Asturias and Castilla y León.
Aranese in the Pyrenean comarca of the Aran Valley, in north-western Catalonia. It is a variety of Gascon, which in turn is a variety of the Occitan language.
Spanish is official throughout the country; the rest of these have co-official status in their respective regions, and (except Aranese) are widespread enough to have daily newspapers and significant book publishing and media presence in those regions. In the cases of Catalan and Galician, they are the main languages used by the Catalan and Galician regional governments and local administrations. A number of citizens in these regions consider their regional language as their primary language and Spanish as secondary.
The most prominent of the languages of Spain is Spanish, which nearly everyone in Spain can speak as either first or second language. But there are robust regional languages figuring prominently in a series of regions:
Basque in parts of the Basque Country and Navarre. Basque is the only non Romance language in mainland Spain.
Catalan in Catalonia, adjacent eastern Aragon, and the Balearic Islands and, as a distinct variant, Valencian in the Valencian Community.
Galician in Galicia and adjacent western parts of Asturias and Castilla y León.
Aranese in the Pyrenean comarca of the Aran Valley, in north-western Catalonia. It is a variety of Gascon, which in turn is a variety of the Occitan language.
Spanish is official throughout the country; the rest of these have co-official status in their respective regions, and (except Aranese) are widespread enough to have daily newspapers and significant book publishing and media presence in those regions. In the cases of Catalan and Galician, they are the main languages used by the Catalan and Galician regional governments and local administrations. A number of citizens in these regions consider their regional language as their primary language and Spanish as secondary.