Aranese
| Aranese | |
|---|---|
| Aranés | |
| Native to | Catalonia |
| Region | Val d'Aran |
|
Native speakers
|
4,700 (2001) |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | – |
| Glottolog | aran1260 |
Aranese area in the Occitan-speaking territory
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Aranese (Occitan: Aranés) is a standardized form of the Pyrenean Gascon variety of the Occitan language spoken in the Val d'Aran, in northwestern Catalonia close to the Spanish border with France, where it is one of the three official languages beside Catalan and Spanish. In 2010, it was named the third official language of the whole of Catalonia by Parliament of Catalonia.
The official spellings of towns in Val d'Aran are Aranese; for example, the Aranese spelling Vielha is used on maps and road signs instead of the Catalan and Spanish Viella.
According to a 2001 linguistic census by the Aranese government, about 90% of the inhabitants of Val d'Aran can understand the language, with those between 25 and 34 years old having the lowest rate, at around 80% (excluding those under the age of 4). Between 60 and 65% of the population can speak it; however, only 26% reported being able to write in Aranese.
In 2008, the Generalitat of Catalonia surveyed the population (15 years old or older) in the Val d'Aran. The survey reported that 78.2% of the population could understand Aranese, 56.8% could speak it, 59.4% could read it, and 34.8% could write the language.
Once considered to be an endangered language spoken mainly by older people, it is now experiencing a renaissance; it enjoys co-official status with Catalan and Spanish within Val d'Aran, and since 1984 has been taught bilingually alongside Castilian in schools. Students in the Val d'Aran are required to have 2 hours of each Spanish, Catalan, and Aranese each week. At some levels of education, a foreign language is added to the three official languages—usually French due to proximity—and sometimes even 2 additional hours of English.
General Gascon characteristics:
Specific Aranese characteristics:
Notes:
Notes:
Aranese orthography denotes where two consecutive vowels do not diphthongize, but rather form a hiatus.
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