Death of a Language, Birth of an Identity: Brittany and the Bretons  

Oleh:

Jones, Mari C.

Jenis: Article from Journal - ilmiah internasional
Dalam koleksi: Language Problems and Language Planning vol. 22 no. 2 (1998), page 129-142.

Ketersediaan

Perpustakaan PKBB Nomor Panggil: 405/LPL/22 Non-tandon: tidak ada Tandon: 1

Lihat Detail Induk

Isi artikel

The Dukedom of Brittany was officially united with France in 1532 and continues to be considered as a region to the present day. However, although foreign tourists may perceive Brittany as forming a territorial entity, the situation is somewhat anomalous in that on closer inspection, Brittany seems to form a unit in name alone. The country is divided linguistically into a Romance-speaking area and a Celtic-speaking area, the latter itself historically divided into four dioceses, boundaries which have been central to the linguistic division of the area into four main dialects, which many of the speakers find mutually unintelligible. For the dialect speakers, there is no such thing as a Breton identity. Indeed, many would think twice about even considering the diocese as the focal point of their allegiance. Traditionally, it seems to be the commune which is the seat of identity for most Bretons - it was the commune's variety of Breton which was spoken, its dances which were performed and its coiffe which was worn. The language's decline during the second half of this century, a result of many decades of the Jacobin policies of successive French governments, is having a noticeable effect on Breton identity. As campaigns are mounted to save the language, there is emerging the concept of a Breizh une et indivisible with its rallying point, the Breton flag, at its centre. The main champions of the Breton Cause are a new group of bretonnants, predominantly middle-class and from urban backgrounds, who speak a standardised, pan-Brittany variety of Breton, usually learnt via the education system. These speakers stand apart in many ways from the traditional dialect speakers and yet, somewhat paradoxically, they are playing an important role in creating the concept of a Breton identity.

Opini Anda

Klik untuk menuliskan opini Anda tentang koleksi ini!

Kembali