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Langues d'oïl

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The geographical spread of the Oïl languages (except French) can be seen in shades of green in this map

Langue d'oïl is the linguistic and historical designation of the Gallo-Romance languages originated in the northern territories of Roman Gaul now occupied by northern France, part of Belgium and the Channel Islands.

Meanings and disambiguation

Langue d'oïl (in the singular), Oïl dialects and Oïl languages (in the plural) refer to all the ancient northern Gallo-Romance languages as well as their modern-day descendants. They share many common linguistic features, one of them being the word oïl for yes (oc was and still is the southern word, hence langue d'oc or Occitan language). The most widely spoken modern Oïl language is French (oïl was pronounced [wil] or [wi], as in modern French oui).

Care should be taken to differentiate these two uses of the term oïl:

Langue d'oïl

In the singular, Langue d'oïl refers to the reciprocally intelligible linguistic variants of romana lingua spoken since the 9th century in territories now occupied by northern France and part of Belgium, as well as those spoken since the 10th century in the Channel Islands, and between the 11th and 14th centuries in England. Langue d'oïl has been used, in the singular, as far back as the 12th century to refer to this ancient linguistic grouping as a whole. Consequently, with this meaning, in the singular, it is somewhat used to refer to Old French (see History below).

Oïl dialects

In the plural, Oïl dialects refer the variants of the ancient langue d'oil.

Oïl languages

In the plural, Oïl languages refer to those modern-day descendants considered as having evolved in their own way and more separately from the variants of the ancient langue d'oïl. Consequently langues d'oïl is used to apply either to all the modern-day languages of this family except the French language, or to this family French included. Oïl dialects is also used to mean Oïl languages (except French) as some modern-day Oïl languages are very close to French. However, the term dialect is sometimes considered as not potically correct, and since the latter half of the 20th century the tendency in French has been to refer to these languages as langues d'oïl rather than dialects.

History

romana lingua

langue d'oïl

  • The term langue d'oïl was first used in the 12th century, and was taken in the 14th century by the Italian poet Dante to explain this designation. In his De vulgari eloquentia the poet wrote in Medieval Latin: "nam alii oc, alii si, alii vero dicunt oil" ("some say oc, others say si, others say oïl"), thereby classifying the Romance languages into three groups: oïl languages (in northern France); oc languages (in southern France) and si languages (in Italy and Iberia). Vulgar Latin developed different methods of signifying assent: hoc ille ("this (is) it") and hoc ("this"), which became the langues d'oïl and langue d'oc (or Occitan language), respectively. Subsequent development changed "oïl" into "oui" as in modern French. (Other Romance languages derive their word for yes from the Latin sic, "thus", such as the Spanish sí, Italian sì, or Portuguese sim.)
  • However, both lingua romana and langue d'oïl did not refer, at their respective time, to a one and only language but to reciprocally intelligible linguistic variants. In those times spoken languages were not codified (except Latin and Medieval Latin), people were far less numerous than today, and groups of people were more isolated from one to another. As a result reciprocally intelligible linguistic variants were referred to as one language.

French (Old French) or lingua Gallicana

  • In the 13th century these variants are recognized and referred to as dialects ("idioms") of a same language, the langue d'oïl. However, since the previous centuries a common literary and juridical "interdialectary" langue d'oïl had emerged, a kind of written koine. In the late 13th century this common langue d'oïl was named French (lingua Gallicana in Medieval Latin). Both aspects of "dialects of a same language" and "French as the common langue d'oïl" appear in a text of Roger Bacon, Opus maius, who wrote in Medieval Latin but translated hereafter: "Indeed, idioms of a same language vary amongst people, as it occurs in the French language which varies in an idiomatic manner amongst the French, Picards, Normans and Burgundians. And terms right to the Picards horrify the Burgundians as much as their closer neighbours the French".
  • As a result, in modern days the term langue d'oïl also refers to that Old French which was not named French yet but was already used before the late 13th century as a literary and juridical interdialectary language.
  • The term Francien is a linguistic neologism of the 19th century to refer to the hypothetical variant of Old French allegedly spoken in the ancient province of Pays de France, the then Paris region later called Île-de-France. This Francien, it is claimed, became the Medieval French language. Current linguistic thinking mostly discounts the Francien theory, although it is still often quoted in popular textbooks. The term francien was never used by the people supposed to speak it, but it could at least be used to refer to that specific 10th-11th century variant of langue d'oïl spoken in the Paris region which contributed to the koine, as both were called French at that time.

Rise of French vs. Oïl languages

  • For obvious political reasons it was in Paris and Ile-de-France that this koine developped from a written language to a spoken language. Already in the 12th century Conon de Béthune reported about the French court who blamed him for using words of Artois.
  • By the late 13th century the written koine had achieved to turn into a spoken and written standard language, and was named French. Since then French started to impose itself on the other oïl dialects as well as on the territories of langue d'oc.
  • However, Oïl dialects and langue d'oc kept on providing words to the standard language.
  • In the 16th century the French language imposed itself even more by the Ordinance of Villers-Cotterêts to replace Latin in judgments and official acts and deeds (although French had always been the language spoken in justice courts). It is argued that the Ordinance of Villers-Cotterêts was not intended to make French a national language, merely a chancery language for law and administration. Although there were competing literary standards among the Oïl languages in the mediaeval period, the centralisation of the French kingdom and its influence even outside its formal borders sent most of the Oïl languages into comparative obscurity for several centuries. The development of literature in this new language encouraged writers to use French rather than their own regional languages. This led to the decline of vernacular literature.
  • It was the French Revolution which imposed French on the people as the official language in all the territory.
  • However, until the First World War, the regional languages of France were still the languages most used in the home and in the fields. This was also generally the case in areas where Oïl languages were spoken.

Linguistics

  • History of phonology, orthography, syntax and morphology : see History of the French language.
  • Modern linguistics uses the following terms :
    • Old French for the period 9th-13th centuries.
    • Middle French for the period 14th-15th centuries.
    • 16th century : "français Renaissance" (Renaissance French language).
    • Then the terms français du 17e siècle, du 18e siècle, etc.

Literature

The Oïl languages have literary traditions, as for example seen in this 19th century collection of Jèrriais short stories

Besides the influence of French literature, small-scale literature has survived in the other Oïl languages. Theatrical writing is most notable in Picard and Poitevin-Saintongeais. Oral performance (story-telling) is a feature of Gallo, for example, while Norman and Walloon literature, especially from the early 19th century tends to focus on written texts and poetry (see, for example, Wace and Jèrriais literature).

There are some regional magazines, such as Ch'lanchron (Picard), Le Viquet (Norman), and El Bourdon (Walloon), which are published either wholely in the respective Oïl language or bilingually with French. These provide a platform for literary writing.

Status

Bilingual street sign for market square in French and Walloon

Apart from French, an official language in many countries, the Oïl languages have enjoyed little status.

Currently Walloon, Lorrain (under the local name of Gaumais) and Champenois have the status of regional languages of Wallonia.

The languages of the Channel Islands enjoy a certain status under the governments of their Bailiwicks and within the regional and lesser-used language framework of the British-Irish Council.

The French government recognises the Oïl languages as Languages of France but has been constitutionally barred from ratifying the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages.

Influence

Signage in Gallo in the metro of Rennes

The English language was heavily influenced by contact with Norman following the Norman Conquest and much of the adopted vocabulary shows typically Norman features.

Further information: Anglo-Norman language

The French spoken in Belgium shows some influence from Walloon.

The langues d'oïl were more or less influenced by the native languages of the conquering Germanic tribes, notably the Franks.

The development of French in North America was influenced by the speech of settlers originating from north-western France, many of whom introduced features of their Oïl varieties into the French they spoke. (See also French in the United States, French in Canada)

List of modern-days Oïl languages

Modern linguists still divide the languages spoken in France (especially Medieval France) into three geographical subgroups: Langue d'oïl and Langue d'oc are the two major groups; the third group, Franco-Provençal, is considered a transitional language between the two other groups.

The Oïl languages in their range from Belgium across northern and central France and the Channel Islands form a dialect continuum :

Creoles derived from French

Creole languages and pidgins developed from a basis of French are sometimes included among the Oïl languages.

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