Although Catalan, Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese and many other European languages have their origins in Latin these are known as Romance languages , each has evolved in its own way.
However, despite mostly being spoken in present-day Spain, Catalan actually shares many more similarities with the language of neighbouring France. Spanish as we know it was profoundly influenced by Arabic, as a result of the 8th-century Moorish conquest. As a result, many words used in Spanish today are imported directly from Arabic, or have been heavily influenced by it. However, not only is Catalan a fully fledged language in its own right, it can also be broken down into six dialects of its own, broadly divided between two groups: Eastern and Western Catalan.
The six dialects correspond to specific areas, from west to east: Valencian spoken in Valencia , Northwestern Catalan spoken around Lleida, parts of Tarragona and La Franja , Central Catalan spoken around Barcelona and Girona , Rousellonese spoken in the Roussillon area of France , Balearic in the Balearic Islands and Alguerese in the city of Alghero.
After the War of Spanish Succession — during which Catalonia lost its independence to King Philip V and the crown of Castille, Catalan culture underwent a period of decline, exacerbated by new laws insisting on the use of the Spanish language. However, the beginning of the 19th century saw the emergence of a wave of artists, authors and playwrights who wished to revive the Catalan language.
In an attempt to promote a universal Spanish nationality, General Franco banned all languages other than Spanish from being used in Spain. Also, taking part in excursions after class in which the sights are described in Spanish will be a good training. Catalan belongs to the Romance languages. Its origins go back to the 8th and 9th Century in the counties of the Spanish march.
In the 12th and 13th Century the language spread down south. With the ending of Jaume I, the Catalan language area was defined. See also history of Barcelona. Approximately 11 million people live in the Catalan language area.
In comparison: Portugal has around 9. Catalan is spoken in different dialects. From , during the period of military dictatorship under Franco, Catalan was banned. Even telephone calls had to be carried out in Spanish. Meanwhile, the language was cultivated in the monastery of Montserrat. In , Catalan was accepted as an individual language and became the official language in Catalonia. In , a law was passed which made it possible to teach Catalan at schools and universities.
Even if classes are given in Spanish and Catalan in universities, it is Catalan which is adapted as the institutional language and used in administrative affairs. You are therefore advised, for all the above reasons, to learn Catalan if you are thinking of living in Barcelona. Spanish , for its part, is one of the most commonly spoken mother-tongue languages in the world and extensively used in Barcelona. If you speak it you will be able to communicate with locals as soon as you arrive.
In other words, knowing the local languages will make it easier for you to integrate into Catalan society. If you're keen to learn Catalan and Spanish, note that they are both Romance languages and therefore related languages. Barcelona offers you a huge number of centres for learning its languages, including schools and private centres, as well as universities. Another option is to learn autonomously using the language's self-learning resources offered by the public libraries of Barcelona.
In the specific case of Catalan, there are several organisations that offer free beginner's courses, in the classroom and online. Another resource is the Parla. However, this revival was short-lived. The fascist regime that emerged triumphant from the civil war in did everything in its power to stamp out the official and private use of Catalan. Harsh penalties were imposed for speaking it. The arrival of hundreds of thousands of immigrants from Spain's impoverished south further consolidated the use of Spanish as the lingua franca of Catalonia.
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