·        OCCITÀNIA IS AN INTERNATIONAL EUROPEAN  TERRITORY

 

 

It covers:

 

-          The Southern half of France: the « midi » as it is called by the locals, without Corsica

 

More precisely, it comprises the regions of:

·                      

·                     - Aquitaine : down to Bayonne, after which the Basque country begins (Euskal Herria)

·                     - Auvergne : up to the North of Montluçon

·                     - Centre (a tiny part) : canton of Sainte Sévère le Château (South of Indre)

·                     - Languedoc-Roussillon : except Roussillon,  which is North Catalonia (Catalunya)

·                     - Limousin

·                     - Midi- Pyrénées

·                     - Poitou- Charente (a tiny part) : the Confolens area

·                     - Provence- Alpes- Côte d’Azur : as far as Menton

·                     - Rhône-Alpes : departments of Ardèche, Drôme  and the South of Isère

 

- an Alpine part of Italy: twelve alpine valleys of the Piedmont region west of a Coni (Cuneo) and Taurin (Turin) line with Draonier (Dronero) as urban centre.

 

-  a part of Spain in the Pyrenees (in the region of Catalonia): the Val d'Aran, where the Garonne has its source with Vielha as urban centre

 

 

 

·        FIGURES & STATISTICS

 

- 190 000 square kilometres

 

- Biggest stateless nation in the European Union.

 

- 15 million inhabitants

 

- 2 million native speakers who use the language everyday (admittedly mainly among the people who were born before 1950). The language passed down by the family is still spoken by young people in the Béarn, Pays Niçard, Cévennes, Périgord, cisalpine valleys, Val d’Aran... Not counting a few state schools thanks to the dedication of some teachers, but associations are the most effective medium with the Calandretas (practically without state support).

Bibliographical reference on the use of Occitan in Languedoc-Roussillon (1991 and 1997 surveys, and the survey conducted in Aquitaine in 1997 in GARDY Ph., & HAMMEL E., L'occitan en Languedoc-Roussillon, (Perpignan, El Trabucayre, 1994)

 

- 1 romance language derived from Latin like Portuguese, French (or Oïl language), Catalan... and seven regional variations

 

- Historically 1 Diaspora in Germany: around Heil-Bronn (Bade- Württemberg), Southern Italy: La Gàrdia (Calabria), United States of America: Valdese (North Carolina), Montpelier (Vermont), Montpelier (Idaho), Arnaudville (Louisiana), Monett (Missouri)..., in Argentina: Pigüé (Pampa)

 

 

·        LEGAL SITUATION OF OCCITAN

 

 

- FRANCE:

after the repeal of the Deixonne Act, no law recognizes the Oc language. Officially there are neither national minorities nor statuses.

Article 2 of the French Constitution states that:

"The language of the Republic shall be French."

France refuses to ratify the European Charter of Regional or Minority Languages and never signed (still less ratified) the Convention- framework for the protection of national minorities (just like Byelorussia)... But internationally France supports cultural diversity and “the French exception”, in Quebec for example...

 

- ITALY:

Article 6 of the Italian Constitution states that:

«The Republic protects linguistic minorities thanks to special measures»

The November1991 Act states that: «The Republic protects the Albanian, Catalan, German, Greek, Slavonic and Romany languages and cultures of origin as well as Latin, French, Franco-provençal and Occitan "

 

Towns like La Ròcha/ Roccabruna have bilingual roadsigns and signals in Tuscan/Occitan.

 

- SPAIN:

 

Article 3 of the Spanish Constitution states that:

1- Castilian is the official language of the state. It is the duty of all Spanish people to know it and it is their right to use it.

2-The other Spanish languages will also be official in the respective autonomous communities in conformity with their statuses.

3- The linguistic riches of Spain is a cultural heritage that should be respected and paid particular attention to.

and

Home rule status of the Generalitat of Catalunya 33.2:

l16/1990 law special arrangements for the  Val d'Aran, article 2:

"The language of Aran, a variety of the Occitan and specific of the Val d’Aran, is official in the Val d’Aran. Catalan and Castilian are also official."

 

Road-signs and markings in this territory are bilingual: Castilian/ Occitan (or Catalan/ Occitan). In the town of Vielha, all the signposts, and the shop signs are bilingual (Catalan/Occitan).

 

 

- In the other EU countries: Britain (Gaelic, Welsh), Belgium (French, Dutch, German), Germany (Sorbs)... the linguistic rights of various nationalities are recognized.