NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Languages of Spain

The Languages of Spain are the languages spoken or once spoken in the territory of the country of Spain. This article is about the international language known as Spanish. ... Catalan IPA: (catalÃ IPA: or []) is a Romance language, the national language of Andorra, and a co-official language in the Spanish autonomous communities of Balearic Islands, Catalonia and Valencia, and in the city of LAlguer in the Italian island of Sardinia. ... Basque (native name: euskara) is the language spoken by the Basque people who inhabit the Pyrenees in North-Central Spain and the adjoining region of South-Western France. ... Galician (Galician: galego, IPA: ) is a language of the Western Ibero-Romance branch, spoken in Galicia, an autonomous community with the constitutional status of historic nationality, located in northwestern Spain and small bordering zones in neighbouring autonomous communities of Asturias and Castilla y LeÃ³n. ... Aranese (aranÃ©s in Occitan/Gascon/Aranese) is a variety of Pyrenean Gascon (a dialect of the Occitan language), spoken in Val dAran, in northwestern Catalonia (Spain), where it is one of the three official languages besides Catalan and Spanish. ... Aragonese redirects here. ... Astur-Leonese is a Romance language group of the West Iberian group, spoken in the Spanish provinces of Asturias (Asturian Language, asturianu, or Bable), LeÃ³n, Zamora and Salamanca (Leonese language, LlÃ¯onÃ©s). ... Asturian, Leonese, Astur-Leonese or Bable (Asturianu in Asturian, LlÃ¯onÃ©s in Leonese) is a Romance language spoken in some parts of the provinces of Asturias, LeÃ³n, Zamora and Salamanca in Spain, and in the area of Miranda de Douro in Portugal (where it is officially recognized as... The Leonese language (LlÃ¯onÃ©s in Leonese) was developed from Vulgar Latin with contributions from the pre-Roman languages which were spoken in the territory of the Spanish provinces of LeÃ³n, Zamora, and Salamanca and in some villages in the District of BraganÃ§a, Portugal. ... Cantabrian language or Mountain language is the name received the language used in the West of Cantabria and some zones of the Valley of Pas and the Valley of Soba, in its Eastern zone. ... Extremaduran is a Romance language spoken by some thousands in Spain, most of them in the autonomous community of Extremadura and the province of Salamanca. ... Eonavian or Eonaviego is a term used to refer a set of dialects or falas whose linguistic dominion extends in the zone of Asturias between the Eo and Navia rivers (or more exactly Eo and Barayo rivers). ... Fala language (SIL Code: FAX; ISO 639-2 code: roa) is a Romance language from the Portuguese-Galician subgroup spoken in Spain by about 10,500 people, of which 5,500 live in a valley of the northwestern part of Extremadura near the border with Portugal. ... Maghrebi Arabic is a cover term for the dialects of Arabic spoken in the Maghreb, including Western Sahara, Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, and Libya. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ...

Modern

The most prominent of the languages of Spain is Spanish (Castilian, castellano), which nearly everyone in Spain can speak as a first or second language. Other languages figure prominently in many regions: Image File history File links Download high resolution version (814x631, 91 KB) // English Map of the languages of Spain (made from Image:Provinces of Spain (Blank map). ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (814x631, 91 KB) // English Map of the languages of Spain (made from Image:Provinces of Spain (Blank map). ... Catalan IPA: (catalÃ IPA: or []) is a Romance language, the national language of Andorra, and a co-official language in the Spanish autonomous communities of Balearic Islands, Catalonia and Valencia, and in the city of LAlguer in the Italian island of Sardinia. ... This page deals with language. ... Basque (native name: euskara) is the language spoken by the Basque people who inhabit the Pyrenees in North-Central Spain and the adjoining region of South-Western France. ... Galician (Galician: galego, IPA: ) is a language of the Western Ibero-Romance branch, spoken in Galicia, an autonomous community with the constitutional status of historic nationality, located in northwestern Spain and small bordering zones in neighbouring autonomous communities of Asturias and Castilla y LeÃ³n. ... Astur-Leonese is a Romance language group of the West Iberian group, spoken in the Spanish provinces of Asturias (Asturian Language, asturianu, or Bable), LeÃ³n, Zamora and Salamanca (Leonese language, LlÃ¯onÃ©s). ... Aragonese redirects here. ... Aranese (aranÃ©s in Occitan/Gascon/Aranese) is a variety of Pyrenean Gascon (a dialect of the Occitan language), spoken in Val dAran, in northwestern Catalonia (Spain), where it is one of the three official languages besides Catalan and Spanish. ... Occitan (IPA AmE: ), known also as Lenga dÃ²c or Langue doc (native name: occitan [1], lenga dÃ²c [2]; native nickname: la lenga nÃ²stra [3] i. ... Extremaduran is a Romance language spoken by some thousands in Spain, most of them in the autonomous community of Extremadura and the province of Salamanca. ... Fala language (SIL Code: FAX; ISO 639-2 code: roa) is a Romance language from the Portuguese-Galician subgroup spoken in Spain by about 10,500 people, of which 5,500 live in a valley of the northwestern part of Extremadura near the border with Portugal. ...

Spanish or Castilian is official throughout the country; the rest of these have co-official status in their respective regions and all are major enough to have numerous daily newspapers in these languages and (especially for Catalan, Basque and Galician) significant book publishing and media sectors. Many citizens in these regions consider their regional language as their primary language and Spanish, as secondary; these languages cover broad enough regions to have multiple distinct dialects. Spanish itself also has distinct dialects around the country, for example the Andalusian and Canarian dialects, each of these with their own subvarieties, some of them being partially closer to the Spanish of the Americas, which they heavily influenced at different degrees, depending on the regions or periods, and according to different and non-homogeneous migrating or colonization processes. Basque (native name: euskara) is the language spoken by the Basque people who inhabit the Pyrenees in North-Central Spain and the adjoining region of South-Western France. ... Pays Basque) see Northern Basque Country. ... â€œNavarraâ€ redirects here. ... Catalan IPA: (catalÃ IPA: or []) is a Romance language, the national language of Andorra, and a co-official language in the Spanish autonomous communities of Balearic Islands, Catalonia and Valencia, and in the city of LAlguer in the Italian island of Sardinia. ... This article is about the Spanish autonomous community. ... Language distribution in Aragon Map of Catalan Countries with current political borders Franja de Ponent (IPA: ; Catalan for Western Strip), Francha de LebÃ¡n (Aragonese for Eastern Strip), Franja de AragÃ³n, or simply La Franja, refers to four comarques in the east of the Autonomous Community of Aragon, which... Capital Palma de Mallorca Official language(s) Spanish and Catalan Area â€“ Total â€“ % of Spain Ranked 17th 4,992 kmÂ² 1. ... A dialect continuum is a range of dialects spoken across a large geographical area, differing only slightly between areas that are geographically close, and gradually decreasing in mutual intelligibility as the distances become greater. ... Valencian (valenciÃ ) is the historical, traditional, and official name used in the Valencian Community (Spain) to refer to the language spoken therein, also known as Catalan (catalÃ ) in the Spanish Autonomous Communities of Catalonia, Aragon and the Balearic Islands; in the country of Andorra; in the southern French region of... Capital Valencia Official languages Valencian (Catalan) and Castilian (Spanish) Area â€“ total â€“ % of Spain Ranked 8th 23,255 kmÂ² 4. ... Galician (Galician: galego, IPA: ) is a language of the Western Ibero-Romance branch, spoken in Galicia, an autonomous community with the constitutional status of historic nationality, located in northwestern Spain and small bordering zones in neighbouring autonomous communities of Asturias and Castilla y LeÃ³n. ... Galicia (Spain) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... A regional language is a language spoken in a part of a country, be it may be a small area, a federal state or province, or a wider area. ... The Andalusian dialect (also called andaluz) of European Spanish is spoken in Andalusia (including Gibraltar). ... State flag of the Autonomous Community of the Canary Islands, Spain. ... World map showing the Americas The Americas are the lands of the Western hemisphere historically considered to consist of the continents of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions. ...

In addition, there is strong and growing support for other regional languages, some of them in danger of extinction. These include :

Three little sets of dialects are of difficult filiation: Fala, a variety of its own belonging to the Galician-Portuguese group; Eonavian, a dialect continuum between Asturian and Galician, closer to the latter according to several linguists; and Benasquese, a dialect continuum between Aragonese, Catalan and even Aranese, considered either as an extreme Eastern Aragonese dialect or as a transitional dialect of its own. Astur-Leonese is a Romance language group of the West Iberian group, spoken in the Spanish provinces of Asturias (Asturian Language, asturianu, or Bable), LeÃ³n, Zamora and Salamanca (Leonese language, LlÃ¯onÃ©s). ... Asturian, Leonese, Astur-Leonese or Bable (Asturianu in Asturian, LlÃ¯onÃ©s in Leonese) is a Romance language spoken in some parts of the provinces of Asturias, LeÃ³n, Zamora and Salamanca in Spain, and in the area of Miranda de Douro in Portugal (where it is officially recognized as... Anthem: Asturias, patria querida Capital Oviedo Official language(s) Spanish; Asturian has special status Area â€“ Total â€“ % of Spain Ranked 10th 10,604 kmÂ² 2. ... The Leonese language (LlÃ¯onÃ©s in Leonese) was developed from Vulgar Latin with contributions from the pre-Roman languages which were spoken in the territory of the Spanish provinces of LeÃ³n, Zamora, and Salamanca and in some villages in the District of BraganÃ§a, Portugal. ... Coat of arms Kingdom of LeÃ³n, 1030 Capital LeÃ³n Language(s) Mainly Latin and Astur-Leonese. ... Aragonese redirects here. ... Capital Zaragoza Official language(s) Spanish Area â€“ Total â€“ % of Spain Ranked 4th 47,719 kmÂ² 9. ... Aranese (aranÃ©s in Occitan/Gascon/Aranese) is a variety of Pyrenean Gascon (a dialect of the Occitan language), spoken in Val dAran, in northwestern Catalonia (Spain), where it is one of the three official languages besides Catalan and Spanish. ... Gascon (Gascon, ; French, ) is a dialect of the Occitan language. ... Occitan (IPA AmE: ), known also as Lenga dÃ²c or Langue doc (native name: occitan [1], lenga dÃ²c [2]; native nickname: la lenga nÃ²stra [3] i. ... Val dAran, a small valley (620. ... Pic de Bugatetin the NÃ©ouvielle Natural Reserve Central Pyrenees For the mountains in Victoria, Australia, see Pyrenees (Victoria). ... This article is about the Spanish autonomous community. ... The term public school has three distinct meanings: In the USA and Canada, elementary or secondary school supported and administered by state and local officials. ... Fala language (SIL Code: FAX; ISO 639-2 code: roa) is a Romance language from the Portuguese-Galician subgroup spoken in Spain by about 10,500 people, of which 5,500 live in a valley of the northwestern part of Extremadura near the border with Portugal. ... Eonavian or Eonaviego is a term used to refer a set of dialects or falas whose linguistic dominion extends in the zone of Asturias between the Eo and Navia rivers (or more exactly Eo and Barayo rivers). ...

With the exception of Basque, which appears to be a language isolate, all of these are Latin derived, that is, Romance languages. A language isolate, in the absolute sense, is a natural language with no demonstrable genealogical (or genetic) relationship with other living languages; that is, one that has not been demonstrated to descend from an ancestor common to any other language. ... The Romance languages (sometimes referred to as Romanic languages) are a branch of the Indo-European language family that comprises all the languages that descend from Latin, the language of the Roman Empire. ...

Arabic (including Ceuta Darija) or Berber (mainly Riffean) are spoken by the Muslim population of Ceuta and Melilla and by recent immigrants (mainly from Morocco and Algeria) elsewhere. Arabic redirects here. ... ... Afro-Asiatic - Berber The Berber languages (or Tamazight) are a group of closely related languages mainly spoken in Morocco and Algeria. ... Rifi redirects here, for the place that is called Rifi in Greece, see Rifi, Greece Tarifit is a Northern Berber language of the Zenati subgroup, spoken mainly in the Moroccan Rif by about 2 million people. ... Capital Ceuta City Official language(s) Spanish Area â€“ Total â€“ % of Spain Ranked 28 kmÂ² Population â€“ Total (2006) â€“ % of Spain â€“ Density Ranked 75,861 2,709. ... Capital Official language(s) Spanish Area â€“ Total â€“ % of Spain Ranked 20 kmÂ² Population â€“ Total (2006) â€“ % of Spain â€“ Density Ranked 66,871 3,343. ...

During the 1939–1975 dictatorship of General Francisco Franco, all languages except Spanish were banned from public use, as Franco wanted to create a united and uniform Spain and crush any forms or factors of separatism, especially the Basque, Catalan and (to a lesser extent) Galician movements. However, the pressure against these languages, and all repressive policies in general, loosened as time passed. (See Language politics in Spain under Franco.) â€œFrancoâ€ redirects here. ... Language politics in Francoist Spain centered on attempts in Spain under Franco to increase the dominance of the Castilian language over the other languages of Spain. ...

Portuguese language in Spain

None of these situations are protected by the Spanish Government nor Regional Governments, and not even by some form of support from the Government of Portugal. Country Autonomous community Province CÃ¡ceres Municipality San MartÃn de Trevejo Area - City 23 kmÂ² (8. ... Country Autonomous community Province CÃ¡ceres Municipality Eljas Area - City 33 kmÂ² (12. ... Country Autonomous community Province CÃ¡ceres Municipality Valverde del Fresno Area - City 197 kmÂ² (76. ... CÃ¡ceres province CÃ¡ceres is a province of western Spain, in the northern part of the autonomous community of Extremadura. ... Fala language (SIL Code: FAX; ISO 639-2 code: roa) is a Romance language from the Portuguese-Galician subgroup spoken in Spain by about 10,500 people, of which 5,500 live in a valley of the northwestern part of Extremadura near the border with Portugal. ... Location Coordinates: , Country Autonomous Community Province Badajoz Government - Mayor Manuel Cayado RodrÃguez(PSOE) Area - City 750 kmÂ² (289. ... Badajoz is a province of western Spain, in the southern part of the autonomous community of Extremadura. ... Cedillo is a municipality located in the province of CÃ¡ceres, Extremadura, Spain. ... Country Autonomous community Province CÃ¡ceres Municipality Herrera de AlcÃ¡ntara Area - City 121 kmÂ² (46. ... Galicia (Spain) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... Chief of State King Juan Carlos I, since November 22, 1975. ... Autonomous communities of Spain. ... The Government is one of the four sovereignty organs of the Portuguese Republic. ...

Historically

Andalusi Arabic was a dialect of the Arabic language spoken in Al-Andalus, the regions of Spain under Muslim rule. ... The Celtic languages are the languages descended from Proto-Celtic, or Common Celtic, a branch of the greater Indo-European language family. ... Celtiberian (also Hispano-Celtic) is an extinct Celtic language spoken by the Celtiberians in northern Spain before and during the Roman Empire. ... The Lusitanian language (so named after the Lusitani or Lusitanians) was a paleo-Iberian Indo-European language known by five inscriptions and numerous names of places (toponyms) and of gods (theonyms). ... Afro-Asiatic - Berber - Guanche Guanche was a language spoken on the Canary Islands up to the 16th century. ... Galician-Portuguese (also known as galego-portuguÃªs or galaico-portuguÃªs in Portuguese and as galego-portuguÃ©s or galaico-portuguÃ©s in Galician) was a West Iberian Romance language spoken in the Middle Ages, in the northwest area of the Iberian Peninsula. ... Gothic is an extinct Germanic language that was spoken by the Goths. ... The Iberian language describes a linguistic group identified with the Iberian civilization (7th century BC â€“ 1st century BC), formed in the eastern and south-eastern regions of the Iberian peninsula. ... Latin was the language originally spoken in the region around Rome called Latium. ... Not to be confused with Ladin. ... Mozarabic was a continuum of closely related Iberian Romance dialects spoken in Muslim dominated areas of the Iberian Peninsula during the early stages of the Romance languages development in Iberia. ... Romany (or Romani) is the language of the Roma and Sinti, peoples often referred to in English as Gypsies. The Indo-Aryan Romany language should not be confused with either Romanian (spoken by Romanians), or Romansh (spoken in parts of southeastern Switzerland), both of which are Romance languages. ... The Tartessian language is seemingly unrelated to all other languages, including Indo-European or Iberian language families, and is therefore considered a language isolate. ...

Variants

There are also variants of these languages proper to Spain, either dialect, cants or pidgins:

Barallete was the name of an argot employed by the peripatetic knife-sharpeners and umbrella holders (afiladores y paraguerios) of the Galician city of Ourense. ... Bron is an argot spoken by itinerant coppersmiths and fabric merchants in Miranda de AvilÃ©s (a principality of Asturias, Spain), Fornela (LeÃ³n, Spain) and Auvergne, France. ... CalÃ³ may refer to: CalÃ³ (Chicano), argot or slang of Mexican American Spanish CalÃ³ (Spanish Romani), Spanish Romani, Spanish Roma language CalÃ³ is the name of: Miguel CalÃ³ This is a disambiguation page: a list of articles associated with the same title. ... A cheli is a native of the traditional working class and poor districts of Madrid, Spain, such as Lavapies and Atocha in the southern part of the old city. ... Fala dos arxinas or Verbo dos arginas (in Spanish, jerga de los canteros) (Galician, argot of stonecutters) is the name of an argot employed by stonecutters in the Spanish region of Galicia, particularly in the area of Pontevedra. ... GacerÃa (Basque for nonsense, cleverness[1]) is the name of a jerga or argot employed by the trilleros (or makers of the trillo, or harrow) and the briqueros (or makers of the brica, or sieve) in the village of Cantalejo, in the Spanish province of Segovia. ... GermanÃa or jerigonza is the Spanish term for the argot used by criminals or in jails. ... InglÃ©s de escalerilla (literally gangplank English) was a Spanish-English pidgin in use in Spanish Mediterranean seaports. ...

Further information

Aragonese redirects here. ... Astur-Leonese is a Romance language group of the West Iberian group, spoken in the Spanish provinces of Asturias (Asturian Language, asturianu, or Bable), LeÃ³n, Zamora and Salamanca (Leonese language, LlÃ¯onÃ©s). ... Asturian, Leonese, Astur-Leonese or Bable (Asturianu in Asturian, LlÃ¯onÃ©s in Leonese) is a Romance language spoken in some parts of the provinces of Asturias, LeÃ³n, Zamora and Salamanca in Spain, and in the area of Miranda de Douro in Portugal (where it is officially recognized as... Extremaduran is a Romance language spoken by some thousands in Spain, most of them in the autonomous community of Extremadura and the province of Salamanca. ... The Leonese language (LlÃ¯onÃ©s in Leonese) was developed from Vulgar Latin with contributions from the pre-Roman languages which were spoken in the territory of the Spanish provinces of LeÃ³n, Zamora, and Salamanca and in some villages in the District of BraganÃ§a, Portugal. ... Cantabrian language or Mountain language is the name received the language used in the West of Cantabria and some zones of the Valley of Pas and the Valley of Soba, in its Eastern zone. ... Basque (native name: euskara) is the language spoken by the Basque people who inhabit the Pyrenees in North-Central Spain and the adjoining region of South-Western France. ... Catalan IPA: (catalÃ IPA: or []) is a Romance language, the national language of Andorra, and a co-official language in the Spanish autonomous communities of Balearic Islands, Catalonia and Valencia, and in the city of LAlguer in the Italian island of Sardinia. ... Valencian (valenciÃ ) is the historical, traditional, and official name used in the Valencian Community (Spain) to refer to the language spoken therein, also known as Catalan (catalÃ ) in the Spanish Autonomous Communities of Catalonia, Aragon and the Balearic Islands; in the country of Andorra; in the southern French region of... Fala language (SIL Code: FAX; ISO 639-2 code: roa) is a Romance language from the Portuguese-Galician subgroup spoken in Spain by about 10,500 people, of which 5,500 live in a valley of the northwestern part of Extremadura near the border with Portugal. ... Galician (Galician: galego, IPA: ) is a language of the Western Ibero-Romance branch, spoken in Galicia, an autonomous community with the constitutional status of historic nationality, located in northwestern Spain and small bordering zones in neighbouring autonomous communities of Asturias and Castilla y LeÃ³n. ... Gascon (Gascon, ; French, ) is a dialect of the Occitan language. ... Aranese (aranÃ©s in Occitan/Gascon/Aranese) is a variety of Pyrenean Gascon (a dialect of the Occitan language), spoken in Val dAran, in northwestern Catalonia (Spain), where it is one of the three official languages besides Catalan and Spanish. ... Not to be confused with Ladin. ... Occitan (IPA AmE: ), known also as Lenga dÃ²c or Langue doc (native name: occitan [1], lenga dÃ²c [2]; native nickname: la lenga nÃ²stra [3] i. ... This article is about the international language known as Spanish. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Two sign language Intepreters working as a team for a school. ... Spanish Sign language (Lengua de signos o seÃ±as espaÃ±ola)is a language used mainly by deaf-mute people in Spain and the people who live with them. ... Llengua de Signes Catalana in Catalan, Lengua de seÃ±as o signos catalana in Spanish, Catalan Sign Language, Catalonian Sign language or LSC is a Sign language used by 32,000 signers (7000 deaf) in Catalonia. ... Valencian Sign Language (LSCV or LSPV) is a sign language used by people with hearing impairments in Valencia. ... Language politics in Francoist Spain centered on attempts in Spain under Franco to increase the dominance of Castilian (castellano), the most widely used Spanish language, over the other languages of Spain. ...

Contents

Modern

Portuguese language in Spain

Historically

Variants

Further information

See also

External links