Arpitania
Arpitania (Arpitan and Italian: Arpitania, French: Arpitanie) refers to the lands where the Arpitan language is spoken or used to be the prevalent idiom[1], but Arpitania is not a country or a nation.
Arpitania and Arpitan Language are retronyms. They were neologisms from the 20th century. It was initially used for the Alpine regions where Arpitan was spoken. The name was popularised by Mouvement Harpitanya, a left-wing political grouping in Aosta Valley in 1970s.[2] In 1990s, the term lost its particular political context[3]. However, the use of the word "Arpitania" indicates a common cultural heritage and a regional identity beyond linguistic limitations.[4]
Inhabitants of the region, whether they are actual speakers of the language or not, are named as Arpitans.[5][6]
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[edit] Geography
Arpitania is composed of:
- France (Savoy, Dauphiné, Isère, a big part of the Rhône département, southern Franche-Comté, a very small part of the Ain, Monts du Forez...).
- Italy (Aosta Valley, Arpitan-speaking valleys in the Piemont, Daunia/Arpitan Celle di San Vito, Foggia in the Apulia).
- Switzerland (Romandy, excluding the northern and western parts of Jura).
The northwesternmost salient (roughly a strip between Mâcon and Roanne) is seen linguistically transitional between Arpitan, Occitan and other Oïl languages.
[edit] Books
- Jozé Harrieta, La lingua arpitana, 1976.
- Mikael Bodlore-Penlaez, «Savoie et Aoste, coeur du peuple arpitan» in Atlas des nations sans état en Europe: Peuples minoritaires en quête de reconnaissance, Yoran Embanner 2010. ISBN 978-2914855716
[edit] References
- ^ "did you say arpitan?" on Arpitania.eu
- ^ "La nation arpitane"
- ^ Nos ancêtres les Arpitans, 24 Heures, Lausanne, 2 May 2009
- ^ Aliance Cultutèla Arpitana, Fribourg (Switzerland) and Rochetaillée (France), http://aca.arpitania.eu.
- ^ Les Alpes et leurs noms de lieux, 6000 ans d'histoire ? : Les appellations d'origine pré-indo-européenne., Paul-Louis Rousset, 1988, ISBN 2-901193-02-1
- ^ Les mots de la montagne autour du Mont-Blanc, Hubert Bessat et Claudette Germi, Ed. Ellug, Programme Rhône-Alpes, Recherches en Sciences Humaines, 1991, ISBN 2-902709-68-4.
[edit] External links
- Portal Arpitania.eu
- Babel Lexilogos (French)
- Harpitanya Movement Flag
- Listen to some audio documents in an Arpitan dialect.
Coordinates: 46°9′N 5°52′E / 46.15°N 5.867°E
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