61-504: The Ligne de Cerdagne , usually referred to as Le Petit Train Jaune (English: Little Yellow Train , Catalan : Tren Groc ), is a 1,000 mm ( 3 ft 3 + 3 ⁄ 8 in ) gauge railway that runs from Villefranche-de-Conflent to Latour-de-Carol - Enveitg in the French Pyrenees . The section of line between Villefranche-de-Conflent and Bourg-Madame
122-728: A 2011 study the total number of Catalan speakers was over 9.8 million, with 5.9 million residing in Catalonia. More than half of them spoke Catalan as a second language, with native speakers being about 4.4 million of those (more than 2.8 in Catalonia). Very few Catalan monoglots exist; virtually all of the Catalan speakers in Spain are bilingual speakers of Catalan and Spanish, with 99.7% of Catalan speakers in Catalonia able to speak Spanish and 99.9% able to understand it. In Roussillon , only
183-424: A denomination based on cultural affinity and common heritage, that has also had a subsequent political interpretation but no official status. Various interpretations of the term may include some or all of these regions. The number of people known to be fluent in Catalan varies depending on the sources used. A 2004 study did not count the total number of speakers, but estimated a total of 9–9.5 million by matching
244-521: A large number of Catalan colonies that today continue to maintain the Catalan language. They also founded many Catalan casals (associations). One classification of Catalan is given by Pèire Bèc : However, the ascription of Catalan to the Occitano-Romance branch of Gallo-Romance languages is not shared by all linguists and philologists, particularly among Spanish ones, such as Ramón Menéndez Pidal . Catalan bears varying degrees of similarity to
305-495: A minority of French Catalans speak Catalan nowadays, with French being the majority language for the inhabitants after a continued process of language shift . According to a 2019 survey by the Catalan government, 31.5% of the inhabitants of Catalonia predominantly spoke Catalan at home whereas 52.7% spoke Spanish, 2.8% both Catalan and Spanish and 10.8% other languages. Spanish was the most spoken language in Barcelona (according to
366-647: A network of community-run schools engaged in Catalan language immersion programs. In Alicante province , Catalan is being replaced by Spanish and in Alghero by Italian . There is also well ingrained diglossia in the Valencian Community , Ibiza , and to a lesser extent, in the rest of the Balearic islands . During the 20th century many Catalans emigrated or went into exile to Venezuela , Mexico , Cuba , Argentina , and other South American countries. They formed
427-1052: A shared history with the Western Romance innovative core, especially Occitan. Like all Romance languages, Catalan has a handful of native words which are unique to it, or rare elsewhere. These include: The Gothic superstrate produced different outcomes in Spanish and Catalan. For example, Catalan fang "mud" and rostir "to roast", of Germanic origin, contrast with Spanish lodo and asar , of Latin origin; whereas Catalan filosa "spinning wheel" and templa "temple", of Latin origin, contrast with Spanish rueca and sien , of Germanic origin. The same happens with Arabic loanwords. Thus, Catalan alfàbia "large earthenware jar" and rajola "tile", of Arabic origin, contrast with Spanish tinaja and teja , of Latin origin; whereas Catalan oli "oil" and oliva "olive", of Latin origin, contrast with Spanish aceite and aceituna . However,
488-513: A transition from Medieval to Renaissance values, something that can also be seen in Metge 's work. The first book produced with movable type in the Iberian Peninsula was printed in Catalan. With the union of the crowns of Castille and Aragon in 1479, the Spanish kings ruled over different kingdoms, each with its own cultural, linguistic and political particularities, and they had to swear by
549-570: Is attested a language name since at least 1652. The word Catalan can be pronounced in English as / ˈ k æ t ə l ə n , - æ n / KAT -ə-lən, -lan or / ˌ k æ t ə ˈ l æ n / KAT -ə- LAN . The endonym is pronounced [kətəˈla] in the Eastern Catalan dialects, and [kataˈla] in the Western dialects. In the Valencian Community and Carche ,
610-539: Is based mainly on the use of the "s" for pluralization, the weakening of some consonants and the pronunciation of " Soft C " as /t͡s/ (often later /s/) rather than /t͡ʃ/ as in Italian and Romanian. Based on mutual intelligibility , Dalby counts thirteen languages: Portuguese , Spanish , Asturleonese , Aragonese , Catalan , Gascon , Provençal , Gallo-Wallon , French , Franco-Provençal , Romansh , Ladin and Friulian . Some classifications include Italo-Dalmatian ;
671-426: Is especially the case for French, in widespread use throughout West Africa as a lingua franca . Gallo-Romance includes: Gallo-Romance can include: The Oïl languages, Arpitan and Rhaeto-Romance languages are sometimes called Gallo-Rhaetian, but it is difficult to exclude from this group Gallo-Italic, which according to several linguists forms a particular unity with Rhaeto-Romance. Iberian Romance languages of
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#1732891407878732-415: Is mandatory in all schools, but it is possible to use Spanish for studying in the public education system of Catalonia in two situations—if the teacher assigned to a class chooses to use Spanish, or during the learning process of one or more recently arrived immigrant students. There is also some intergenerational shift towards Catalan. More recently, several Spanish political forces have tried to increase
793-459: Is supplied by hydro-electric generators on the River Têt . The maximum speed of the train is 55 km/h (34 mph). Two types of train are used: ones using modern, entirely closed two-car multiple units , and others using old-style trailer carriages and powered carriages - most are enclosed, though open carriages are also used when the weather allows. The open carriages allow dramatic views as
854-550: Is the Tunnel du Pla de Llaurar with a length of 380 metres (1,250 ft), located at kilometre point 59.639. Amongst the various structures along the line are two viaducts over the River Têt classified as Historic Monuments because of their architectural and technical importance: The line is single-track with passing loops at, for example, Mont-Louis and Fontpédrouse-Saint-Thomas-les-Bains. The trains are powered by electricity at 850 volts DC , supplied by third rail . The power
915-534: The Països Catalans or "Catalan Countries". The language evolved from Vulgar Latin in the Middle Ages around the eastern Pyrenees . Nineteenth-century Spain saw a Catalan literary revival , culminating in the early 1900s. The word Catalan is derived from the territorial name of Catalonia , itself of disputed etymology. The main theory suggests that Catalunya ( Latin : Gathia Launia ) derives from
976-552: The Institut d'Estudis Catalans (IEC). (See also status of Valencian below). By the 9th century, Catalan had evolved from Vulgar Latin on both sides of the eastern end of the Pyrenees , as well as the territories of the Roman province of Hispania Tarraconensis to the south. From the 8th century onwards the Catalan counts extended their territory southwards and westwards at the expense of
1037-680: The Balearic Islands and the Valencian Community , where it is called Valencian ( valencià ). It has semi-official status in the Italian comune of Alghero , and it is spoken in the Pyrénées-Orientales department of France and in two further areas in eastern Spain: the eastern strip of Aragon and the Carche area in the Region of Murcia . The Catalan-speaking territories are often called
1098-722: The Crown of Aragon , and Catalan was present all over the Mediterranean world. During this period, the Royal Chancery propagated a highly standardized language. Catalan was widely used as an official language in Sicily until the 15th century, and in Sardinia until the 17th. During this period, the language was what Costa Carreras terms "one of the 'great languages' of medieval Europe". Martorell 's novel of chivalry Tirant lo Blanc (1490) shows
1159-463: The Gascon dialect ) is similar to the distance among different Occitan dialects. Catalan was considered a dialect of Occitan until the end of the 19th century and still today remains its closest relative. Catalan shares many traits with the other neighboring Romance languages (Occitan, French, Italian , Sardinian as well as Spanish and Portuguese among others). However, despite being spoken mostly on
1220-479: The Honor Award of Catalan Letters (1969). The first Catalan-language TV show was broadcast in 1964. At the same time, oppression of the Catalan language and identity was carried out in schools, through governmental bodies, and in religious centers. In addition to the loss of prestige for Catalan and its prohibition in schools, migration during the 1950s into Catalonia from other parts of Spain also contributed to
1281-479: The Iberian Peninsula , Catalan has marked differences with the Iberian Romance group ( Spanish and Portuguese ) in terms of pronunciation , grammar, and especially vocabulary; it shows instead its closest affinity with languages native to France and northern Italy, particularly Occitan and to a lesser extent Gallo-Romance ( Franco-Provençal , French , Gallo-Italian ). According to Ethnologue ,
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#17328914078781342-642: The Muslims , bringing their language with them. This process was given definitive impetus with the separation of the County of Barcelona from the Carolingian Empire in 988. In the 11th century, documents written in macaronic Latin begin to show Catalan elements, with texts written almost completely in Romance appearing by 1080. Old Catalan shared many features with Gallo-Romance , diverging from Old Occitan between
1403-504: The consul in Barcelona was also asked. He declared that Catalan "is taught in schools, it is printed and spoken, not only among the lower class, but also among people of first quality, also in social gatherings, as in visits and congresses", indicating that it was spoken everywhere "with the exception of the royal courts". He also indicated that Catalan was spoken "in the Kingdom of Valencia, in
1464-559: The laws of each territory before the respective parliaments . But after the War of the Spanish Succession , Spain became an absolute monarchy under Philip V , which led to the assimilation of the Crown of Aragon by the Crown of Castile through the Nueva Planta decrees , as a first step in the creation of the Spanish nation-state ; as in other contemporary European states, this meant
1525-600: The 11th and 14th centuries. During the 11th and 12th centuries the Catalan rulers expanded southward to the Ebro river , and in the 13th century they conquered the lands that would become the Kingdoms of Valencia and the Majorca . The city of Alghero in Sardinia was repopulated with Catalan speakers in the 14th century. The language also reached Murcia , which became Spanish-speaking in
1586-645: The 15th century. In the Low Middle Ages , Catalan went through a golden age, reaching a peak of maturity and cultural richness. Examples include the work of Majorcan polymath Ramon Llull (1232–1315), the Four Great Chronicles (13th–14th centuries), and the Valencian school of poetry culminating in Ausiàs March (1397–1459). By the 15th century, the city of Valencia had become the sociocultural center of
1647-454: The 19th century saw a Catalan literary revival ( Renaixença ), which has continued up to the present day. This period starts with Aribau 's Ode to the Homeland (1833); followed in the second half of the 19th century, and the early 20th by the work of Verdaguer (poetry), Oller (realist novel), and Guimerà (drama). In the 19th century, the region of Carche , in the province of Murcia
1708-465: The Arabic element is generally much more prevalent in Spanish. Situated between two large linguistic blocks (Iberian Romance and Gallo-Romance), Catalan has many unique lexical choices, such as enyorar "to miss somebody", apaivagar "to calm somebody down", and rebutjar "reject". Traditionally Catalan-speaking territories are sometimes called the Països Catalans (Catalan Countries),
1769-532: The Cerdagne and the rail link is now chiefly a tourist attraction. Though its long-term future was in doubt in 2017, 80 million euros was invested in the line between 2010 and 2023 by the agency 'Plan Rail'. In 1911, railway workers reported a fireball on the third rail between kilometres 28 and 40. A similar phenomenon occurred again when a train was hit by one of these fireballs during a thunderstorm . Lightning rods were installed where these events had occurred and
1830-582: The Spanish province of Alicante settled around Oran , while those from French Catalonia and Menorca migrated to Algiers . By 1911, there were around 100,000 speakers of Patuet , as their speech was called. After the Algerian declaration of independence in 1962, almost all the Pied-Noir Catalan speakers fled to Northern Catalonia or Alicante. The French government only recognizes French as an official language. Nevertheless, on 10 December 2007,
1891-419: The diminished use of the language. These migrants were often unaware of the existence of Catalan, and thus felt no need to learn or use it. Catalonia was the economic powerhouse of Spain, so these migrations continued to occur from all corners of the country. Employment opportunities were reduced for those who were not bilingual . Daily newspapers remained exclusively in Spanish until after Franco's death, when
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1952-552: The first one in Catalan since the end of the Civil War, Avui , began to be published in 1976. Since the Spanish transition to democracy (1975–1982), Catalan has been institutionalized as an official language, language of education, and language of mass media; all of which have contributed to its increased prestige. In Catalonia , there is an unparalleled large bilingual European non-state linguistic community. The teaching of Catalan
2013-472: The imposition of the political and cultural characteristics of the dominant groups. Since the political unification of 1714, Spanish assimilation policies towards national minorities have been a constant. The process of assimilation began with secret instructions to the corregidores of the Catalan territory: they "will take the utmost care to introduce the Castilian language, for which purpose he will give
2074-472: The islands of Mallorca, Menorca, Ibiza, Sardinia, Corsica and much of Sicily, in the Vall d "Aran and Cerdaña". The defeat of the pro-Habsburg coalition in the War of Spanish Succession (1714) initiated a series of laws which, among other centralizing measures, imposed the use of Spanish in legal documentation all over Spain. Because of this, use of the Catalan language declined into the 18th century. However,
2135-606: The language in features closer to Occitan (and French ). There is evidence that, at least from the 2nd century AD, the vocabulary and phonology of Roman Tarraconensis was different from the rest of Roman Hispania. Differentiation arose generally because Spanish, Asturian , and Galician-Portuguese share certain peripheral archaisms (Spanish hervir , Asturian and Portuguese ferver vs. Catalan bullir , Occitan bolir "to boil") and innovatory regionalisms (Spanish novillo , Asturian nuviellu vs. Catalan torell , Occitan taurèl "bullock"), while Catalan has
2196-617: The lexical similarity between Catalan and other Romance languages is: 87% with Italian; 85% with Portuguese and Spanish; 76% with Ladin and Romansh ; 75% with Sardinian; and 73% with Romanian. During much of its history, and especially during the Francoist dictatorship (1939–1975), the Catalan language was ridiculed as a mere dialect of Spanish . This view, based on political and ideological considerations, has no linguistic validity. Spanish and Catalan have important differences in their sound systems, lexicon, and grammatical features, placing
2257-480: The linguistic census held by the Government of Catalonia in 2013) and it is understood almost universally. According to 2013 census, Catalan was also very commonly spoken in the city of 1,501,262: it was understood by 95% of the population, while 72.3% over the age of two could speak it (1,137,816), 79% could read it (1,246.555), and 53% could write it (835,080). The share of Barcelona residents who could speak it (72.3%)
2318-456: The linguistic varieties subsumed under the cover term Occitan language (see also differences between Occitan and Catalan and Gallo-Romance languages ). Thus, as it should be expected from closely related languages, Catalan today shares many traits with other Romance languages. Some include Catalan in Occitan, as the linguistic distance between this language and some Occitan dialects (such as
2379-481: The most temperate and disguised measures so that the effect is achieved, without the care being noticed". From there, actions in the service of assimilation, discreet or aggressive, were continued, and reached to the last detail, such as, in 1799, the Royal Certificate forbidding anyone to "represent, sing and dance pieces that were not in Spanish". The use of Spanish gradually became more prestigious and marked
2440-519: The name Gothia or Gauthia ('Land of the Goths '), since the origins of the Catalan counts, lords and people were found in the March of Gothia , whence Gothland > Gothlandia > Gothalania > Catalonia theoretically derived. In English, the term referring to a person first appears in the mid 14th century as Catelaner , followed in the 15th century as Catellain (from Middle French ). It
2501-499: The other hand, there are several language shift processes currently taking place. In the Northern Catalonia area of France, Catalan has followed the same trend as the other minority languages of France, with most of its native speakers being 60 or older (as of 2004). Catalan is studied as a foreign language by 30% of the primary education students, and by 15% of the secondary. The cultural association La Bressola promotes
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2562-522: The percentage of speakers to the population of each area where Catalan is spoken. The web site of the Generalitat de Catalunya estimated that as of 2004 there were 9,118,882 speakers of Catalan. These figures only reflect potential speakers; today it is the native language of only 35.6% of the Catalan population. According to Ethnologue , Catalan had 4.1 million native speakers and 5.1 million second-language speakers in 2021. According to
2623-434: The phenomenon has not been reported since installation. 42°30′14″N 2°07′40″E / 42.50389°N 2.12778°E / 42.50389; 2.12778 Catalan language This is an accepted version of this page Catalan ( català ) is a Western Romance language . It is the official language of Andorra , and an official language of three autonomous communities in eastern Spain : Catalonia ,
2684-460: The population self-identifies with both Catalan and Spanish equally, 36.4% with Catalan and 47.5% only Spanish. In 2003 the same studies concluded no language preference for self-identification within the population above 15 years old: 5% self-identified with both languages, 44.3% with Catalan and 47.5% with Spanish. To promote use of Catalan, the Generalitat de Catalunya (Catalonia's official Autonomous government) spends part of its annual budget on
2745-404: The promotion of the use of Catalan in Catalonia and in other territories, with entities such as Consorci per a la Normalització Lingüística (Consortium for Linguistic Normalization). In Andorra , Catalan has always been the sole official language. Since the promulgation of the 1993 constitution , several policies favoring Catalan have been enforced, such as Catalan medium education. On
2806-586: The rest of the territories. (% of the population 15 years old and older). (% of the population 15 years old and older). Western Romance languages Western Romance languages are one of the two subdivisions of a proposed subdivision of the Romance languages based on the La Spezia–Rimini Line . They include the Ibero-Romance and Gallo-Romance . Gallo-Italic may also be included. The subdivision
2867-879: The resulting clade is generally called Italo-Western Romance . Other classifications place Italo-Dalmatian with Eastern Romance . Sardinian does not fit into either Western or Eastern Romance, having split off earlier than the two. Today the four most widely spoken standardized Western Romance languages are Spanish (c. 486 million native speakers, around 125 million second-language speakers), Portuguese (c. 220 million native, another 45 million or so second-language speakers, mainly in Lusophone Africa ), French (c. 80 million native speakers, another 70 million or so second-language speakers, mostly in Francophone Africa), and Catalan (c. 7.2 million native). Many of these languages have large numbers of non-native speakers; this
2928-555: The social level, including in schools and the University of Barcelona . The Catalan language and culture were still vibrant during the Spanish Civil War (1936–1939), but were crushed at an unprecedented level throughout the subsequent decades due to Francoist dictatorship (1939–1975), which abolished the official status of Catalan and imposed the use of Spanish in schools and in public administration in all of Spain , while banning
2989-592: The sole official language of the region. Shortly after the French Revolution (1789), the French First Republic prohibited official use of, and enacted discriminating policies against, the regional languages of France, such as Catalan, Alsatian , Breton , Occitan , Flemish , and Basque . After the French colony of Algeria was established in 1830, many Catalan-speaking settlers moved there. People from
3050-512: The start of the decline of Catalan. Starting in the 16th century, Catalan literature came under the influence of Spanish, and the nobles, part of the urban and literary classes became bilingual . With the Treaty of the Pyrenees (1659), Spain ceded the northern part of Catalonia to France , and soon thereafter the local Catalan varieties came under the influence of French , which in 1700 became
3111-551: The term valencià [valensiˈa] is frequently used instead. Thus, the name "Valencian", although often employed for referring to the varieties specific to the Valencian Community and Carche, is also used by Valencians as a name for the language as a whole, synonymous with "Catalan". Both uses of the term have their respective entries in the dictionaries by the Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua (AVL) and
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#17328914078783172-826: The then General Council of the Pyrénées-Orientales officially recognized Catalan as one of the départment's languages and seeks to further promote it in public life and education. In 1807, the Statistics Office of the French Ministry of the Interior asked the prefects for an official survey on the limits of the French language . The survey found that in Roussillon , almost only Catalan was spoken, and since Napoleon wanted to incorporate Catalonia into France, as happened in 1812,
3233-469: The train traverses the twisting route and are popular with tourists . Line maintenance vehicles are stored at Villefranche-de-Conflent. It is named after its yellow and red colours, derived from the Catalan flag . The line was constructed to provide an all-weather route from the high Cerdagne valley to the coast but, as the adjacent N116 road has been progressively improved, there has been population loss in
3294-403: The use of Catalan in them. Between 1939 and 1943 newspapers and book printing in Catalan almost disappeared. Francisco Franco's desire for a homogeneous Spanish population resonated with some Catalans in favor of his regime, primarily members of the upper class, who began to reject the use of Catalan. Despite all of these hardships, Catalan continued to be used privately within households, and it
3355-588: The use of Spanish in the Catalan educational system. As a result, in May 2022 the Spanish Supreme Court urged the Catalan regional government to enforce a measure by which 25% of all lessons must be taught in Spanish. According to the Statistical Institute of Catalonia , in 2013 the Catalan language is the second most commonly used in Catalonia, after Spanish , as a native or self-defining language: 7% of
3416-498: Was able to survive Franco's dictatorship. At the end of World War II , however, some of the harsh measures began to be lifted and, while Spanish language remained the sole promoted one, limited number of Catalan literature began to be tolerated. Several prominent Catalan authors resisted the suppression through literature. Private initiative contests were created to reward works in Catalan, among them Joan Martorell prize (1947), Víctor Català prize (1953) Carles Riba award (1950), or
3477-415: Was approved on 23 March 1914 to extend the railway from Bourg-Madame to the 'French frontier station' of the transpyrenean line from Ax les Thermes to Ripoll, although the present station name at the terminus of Latour de Carol Enveitg was not mentioned. The declaration of public utility for this section of the line was confirmed on 4 September 1922. Construction started in 1903 and the section to Mont-Louis
3538-461: Was completed in 1910, followed by the extension to Latour-de-Carol in 1927. The line is 63 kilometres (39 mi) long and climbs to 1,593 metres (5,226 ft) at Bolquère-Eyne , the highest railway station in France. The line serves 22 stations, fourteen of which are "request stops" (i.e., the train only stops when specifically requested by passengers). There are 19 tunnels , the longest of which
3599-540: Was declared a public utility by law on 4 March 1903. This same law approved the granting of a concession for the line, signed on 5 December 1902, between the Minister of Public Works and the Compagnie des Chemins de Fer du Midi et du Canal Latéral à la Garonne. The law also superseded an earlier proposed standard gauge railway which had been authorised between Villefranche-de-Conflent and Olette, but never built. A second law
3660-471: Was lower than that of the overall Catalan population, of whom 81.2% over the age of 15 spoke the language. Knowledge of Catalan has increased significantly in recent decades thanks to a language immersion educational system. An important social characteristic of the Catalan language is that all the areas where it is spoken are bilingual in practice: together with French in Roussillon, with Italian in Alghero, with Spanish and French in Andorra, and with Spanish in
3721-459: Was repopulated with Valencian speakers. Catalan spelling was standardized in 1913 and the language became official during the Second Spanish Republic (1931–1939). The Second Spanish Republic saw a brief period of tolerance, with most restrictions against Catalan lifted. The Generalitat (the autonomous government of Catalonia, established during the Republic in 1931) made a normal use of Catalan in its administration and put efforts to promote it at
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