Evolution of Catalonia and the Catalan language

Finding Catalonia

Catalonia is one of the constituent autonomous communities in Spain. It has a rich and complex history which is better understood by going back into the history of Spain. The theory is that the Visigoths may have given the name to this region. It was originally called ‘Gothlandaunia’ or the land of the Goths. This is considered by some experts as the source of the name Catalonia taken from the Iberian region. It is divided into 4 provinces namely Barcelona, Girona, Lleida and Tarragona. Catalonia has a very interesting geographical location. It is on the border between France and Andorra, with Aragon to the west and Valencia to the east. To the south it runs along with the Mediterranean Sea creating a 580 km of coastline. Its territory is historically the same as that of ancient Catalonia with Barcelona as its capital.

The bone of contention

Catalonia has a very interesting evolution over the years. It was colonized by the ancient Greeks, who built settlement around the Rosa area there. Both Greeks and the Carthaganians interacted with the Iberian substratum. After the defeat of the Carthaginians it became a part of the Roman Empire along with Hispania. After around three centuries of the collapse of the Roman Empire it came under the Visigoth rule. Then came the wave of Islamic conquerors and Catalonia was under their rule. Then the Franks defeated the Islamic rulers and they took up the land. In all this, the region of Catalonia was constantly under the influence of foreign cultures and changed in many ways. For some years before the Middle Ages the land served as a buffer state between the Umayyad Moors and the Frankish kingdom. The area was broken up to be divided into parts each taken up by a powerful ruler. Catalonia suffered the indignity of being broken up into small petty kingdoms.

Be hip, speak Catalan

The culture of Catalonia was profoundly influenced by all these outside influences. It changed in several ways from its original form and a new Catalan culture started to emerge in the middle ages. It emanated from the small kingdoms organized as small counties throughout the northern part of Catalonia. Catalonia has its own language called Catalan and it is one of the 3 official languages recognized by the government. It is indigenous to the land of Catalonia and differs from the languages of Spanish and Aranese. Spanish is the language spoken by the majority of people in Spain while Aranese is spoken in the Val d’Aran valley. The Spanish government has given Catalan a special status and has taken many measures to protect it. The evolution of the Catalan language is a template for the history of Catalonia people who are very emotionally attached to it. While Spanish is the language that the average man speaks and is popular outside Spain too, it is the Catalan language that is favorite child. Since 1983 there have been special laws introduced to protect and extend the use of the Catalan language. One cannot predict the future of the Catalan language but efforts are being made to popularize it.