When Spain Doesn't Speak Spanish
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- Опубліковано 9 лют 2025
- In France they speak French, in Japan they speak Japanese, and in Spain they speak??? Well... it's complicated!
Welcome to Learnabit's first-ever UA-cam video on the Languages and Politics of Spain!
Sources:
elpais.com/elp...
www.bloomberg....
www.euronews.c...
www.euronews.c...
Valencian and Catalan: www.ethnologue...
Astur-Leonese:
www.ethnologue...
Hammarström, Harald; Forkel, Robert; Haspelmath, Martin, eds. (2017). "Asturo-Leonese". Glottolog 3.0. Jena, Germany: Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History.
Aranese dialect: www.omniglot.c...
Images:
Resultado Electoral: www.abc.es/ele...
www.telegraph....
I see the Catalan/Valencian thing more a terminology issue than anything else. For the most part, both Catalans and Valencians tend to consider both as the same language, but Catalans prefer to call that same language "Catalan" and Valencians prefer to call it "Valencian". Interestingly, the people calling them different languages (for political reasons), are usually not Valencian speakers. Most Valencian speakers acknowledge them to be the same language, just with different names.
As someone born here in valencia, we definitely see it as the same language, except those who do not speak it but feel the right to define it. btw great view
Most of the time those who say that catalan and valencian are NOT the same language, say so due to the symbols division that there was during the 80s in the Valencian Comunity (Batalla de València) in an attempt to resolve whether Valencia was part of the "Catalan Countries" or not. Those who were not in favor of the Catalan Countries started saying that the dialects inside the Valencian Comunity were not part of the same language in Catalonia, in order to distance themselves from the Catalans.
While nowadays there's an incredible majority, of people who say that Catalan and Valencian are the same language, there's still a small group of Valencian Speakers who still think it's not, and have even created its own language norms (Normes del Puig) as opposed to the classical catalan rules for valencian speakers (Normes de Castelló). These few speakers are usually seen as a sort of conspiratorial group who thinks that catalans are trying to steal and make their's the typical valencian traditions.
@@xavieretsalva5106 In my experience, the people who say Catalan and Valencian are different languages speak Spanish 100% of the time
I learned in school and university by my professors that catalan is a language, one of the official languages of Spain and valencia is a dialect of catalan. Im catalan and my grandpa was valencia and he always explained that in his times in valencia, people always wanted to speak spanish instead of valencia and said valencia was spoken by the poor or countryside people. However, catalans always had respect for their language and tried to maintain it and teach it in schools. Nowadays it is cool to speak valencia in Valencia and many claim is a language lol
11:28
Why does everyone always ignore Portugal's role in the Spanish civil war?
Portugal sent more volunteers to fight for the Nationalists than Germany did. In fact, out of every country involved in foreign support in that war, Portugal sent the second largest force after Italy.
The reason why only a third of Catalonia's inhabitants are native Catalan speakers isn't Franco, but rather the huge immigration influx from other parts of Spain during 1960s, and also new immigrants from the 2000s. Aside from that, great video!
Your videos have high quality for someone starting out. Keep it coming, I'll keep watching
Thank you so much I really appreciate it a lot! I'll keep them coming and hopefully as I work at it they'll get better and better!
Valencian is a recognised dialect of catalan, but it's still the same language.
Man, yours is an underrated channel.
Thank you so much I really appreciate it a lot!
In France they speak French....
Basque, Catalan, Occitan, Breton, Corse, German....
Wow. I had no idea it was this layered. Thank you!
As a Catalan, well done
Indeed. Coming from an "outsider", a remarkable and accurate exposition of the subject.
Thank you for making this great video about our country. It is true that catalan is named valencian in Valencia, but in school they teach that it's the same language as catalan.
You’re absolutely welcome, my friend! I lived in Spain for a few months so it’s a country that’s very near and dear to my heart. That’s really fascinating I love hearing how people from Spain learn and think about the differences and similarities between the two
@Jorgete T in the Balearic Islands the official language is called catalan, nobody EVER refers to the language as "balear", they call it by the name of their island. And all political and official language institutions in Valencia agree on the fact that Valencià is the name valencians use for the whole language. That means that not only catalan and valencian are one and the same, but also that from the perspective of a valencian person, everyone, be it a Minorcan or a Pallarès person, speaks valencian.
@Jorgete T I'm a catalan of valencian descend and I've lived for a year in the Balearic Islands. Don't try discrediting my "credentials" when you clearly have no idea that a language is a grouping of dialects. Furthermore, it's hilariously funny when people like you tell me a valencian and a catalan speak different languages, because that would mean me and my grandparents never understood each other, which I can tell you is absolutely not the case😂
@Jorgete T what are you talking about, I'm in the north of the Valencian Country right now and I've got zero problems with anyone regarding language matters. I even know a lot of valencians who are linguists and they would absolutely laugh at you. And maybe you should travel more if you think our cultures are very different, honestly.
@Jorgete T and we do say we speak valencian, only we call it catalan here traditionally for obvious reasons, but no catalan has any problem saying they speak valencian, because it is just another name for the same language we speak.
Valencian and Catalan are literally the same language tho, regardless of political ideology or inteligibility
I agree. I know people who speak Catalan, from Catalonia and Valencia and they argue with each other in Catalan over the fact that they speak a different language even though that they understand each other perfectly and are speaking the same language.
Yes, words are pronounced differently in Valencia and they might use words that catalans wouldn't use, but it's like if an American and an australian argued with each other in English that they speak two different languages.
Super informative and engaging! Wow, didn’t know this at ALL.
That Music you're playing in the back ground is NOT typical of SPAIN but LatinAmerica Lol
Minute 9'46". Unification of administrative languages: wrong.
The Spanish imposition was after Succession War in 1716 (Decree of New Plant, -new approach-).
Thanks for the correction!
@@Learnabit And it was still partial. Navarre and the rest of basque provinces mantained a high degree of autonomy (to the point that they had their own border customs) until the first carlist wars. In fact, the start of basque nationalism was heavily influenced by the lose of those "autonomies".
BTW, I don't know how are things in Catalonia, but in the Basque Autonomous community we don't get that mad about the name of "spanish/castillian" (although the therm "basque country" can be sometimes controversial, as depending on the context it could include Navarre or not).
Bonus fact: In basque , formally "castillian" ("gaztelera" in basque) is preferred but people informally use "erdara", which literally means "not basque" and its also used as a way to refer to french in the french basque country.
Most of the problems politically and socially in Spain and Spanish America come from that New Plant decree. During the Habsburg empire, Spain was basically a federation of kingdoms with 33 recognized official languages and their own laws, customs, taxes, etc. Castillian was just the language the emperor or kings of Spain wrote the directives to the kingdoms.
Then the borbons came, and with their idea of absolutism and centralization, wanted a common law and a single language… in 80 years we lost all of America, and we have been one after another civil war for 2 centuries… and well, we have the same tensions inside Spain, that to solve them basically little by little we are federalizing Spain again.
So the valencian-catalan unified dialect spoken from Tortosa (L) to Sagunt (CS) is two languages (depending on which side of the province border you are).
The nord-occidental dialectect of catalan is clearly the same language as valencian (unti Vall d'Aran and France's border).
Error: Tortosa is T (province of Tarragona), not L.
So is Catalan Spanish or not lol
I need to know cause above Portugal they have an awesome larping party where they dress as romans and celts
@@xanv8051 Catalan and Spanish/Castilian are different languages.
I really apreciate very much your effort to explain the linguistic situation in Spain. Indeed "Castilian" is the traditional name of the main language of Spain. Even its official dictionary was titled "Dictionary of Castilian language" in its 14 editions from 1780 until 1914, and the first edition titled "Dictionary of Spanish language" arrived in 1925. Really, there are examples of the use "Spanish" to call "Castilian" as far from the 13th century, but the movement for always calling "Spanish" the language is relatively recent, and it's tied to Spanish nationalism.
And unfortunately there are some mistakes:
2:50 Spanish Constitution only mentions one language, the Spanish or Castilian, and calls it Castilian. The other languages are really regulated in the statutes or laws of the different nationalities and regions: "Article 3
of Spanish Constitution: 1. Castilian is the official Spanish language of the State. All Spaniards have the duty to know it and the right to use it. 2. The other Spanish languages shall also be official in the respective Autonomous Communities in accordance with their Statutes. 3. The wealth of the different language modalities of Spain is a cultural heritage which shall be the object of special respect and protection."
3:09 Everybody knows and accepts Aranese is an Occitan dialect, although is called Aranese.
6:35 A 52% of Valencians thought Catalan and Valencian were different languages according to a 2014 survey, although the opinion were very different deppending of the level of education, and a 58% of graduated ones declared Valencian and Catalan were the same language
6:35 (bis) The official academy for Valencian language "Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua" created in 1998 has always stated Valencian and Catalan are the same language
11:15 The Spanish Second Republic was not "in complete dissarray". It had serious problems, as well as the most of European countries, but nothing can justify the "coup d'etat" from the Army.
13:43 The current minoritization of Catalan was not only caused by Francoist politics to forbid the language, but also by the arrival of a huge immigration of Castilian speakers from all Spain all along the 20th century, and recently from other countries. Now, more than half of Catalan population have roots from abroad. We are proud of them, but a lot of people coming from this immigration are mainly Castilian speakers.
(I apologize for the lengthy comment)
I haven't even finished the video but i just came to say that valencian and catalan are literally the same language, call it valencia, call it catalan, call it balearic if you won't, but it's the fucking same
Sorry, i had to get it off my chest, you may proceed
catalan and valencian are the same language
WOW, this was your first video?! No cringe at all, man, you did a terrific job! Well done, keep the good work! 👏👏👏
Los españoles entendemos casi siempre lo que dicen los portugueses y gallegos, mientras que ambos nos entienden perfectamente a los castellanoparlantes
En mi experiencia de lusoparlante muchas veces es el opuesto. Claro, si uno se quiere hacer entender no es difícil para los castellanoparlantes, pero el portugués hablado en velocidad normal es casi ininteligible para la mayoría de castellanoparlantes, yo creo.
Por supuesto, también hay diferencias entre las variedades de castellano. El castellano hablado por un mexicano es más fácil de comprender para un lusoparlante que el castellano hablado por un andaluz o un chileno, por ejemplo.
@@rafaelhsouza Quieres decir el (gallego) portugués hablado en Portugal, el hablado em Galiza y Brasil es más fácil de entender por los españoles.
Me who is a Catalan: IntEreStINg
però té raó, no?! :p
@@christopherb.2986 be,es va poner el català,València i balear com llengües diferents,però si passem això per alt,si,te rao
Excellent and informative video! Why do Cueta and Melilla get their own deputies though? What’s their relationship to the rest of Spain?
Autónomous cities,have the same prestations as communities,except having other cities inside for...obvious reasons
Ceuta and Melilla, as well as the Canary Islands, have been an integral part of Spain since five to six centuries ago. Longer than many existing “nations” or countries have existed. They never were “colonies” or “overseas territories”. Therefore, they are represented in both chambers of the parliament, as they always were in the past.
I recently won a literary award in Valencia being myself Catalan and writing in Catalan. They considered it writen in Valencian. Two names, one language. Being there, I spoke my Lleidatan Catalan, which is in fact nearer to Valencian than to Barcelonian Catalan, for example. They spoke to me in Valencian. That was the natural way for us.
First time watcher, loved it!
Thank you so much I really appreciate it!!
Hey!
As a Basque, I only want to share something in the discussion of dialects and languages.
In my experience, most people claim things like "yeah, we also have dialects, I cant understand I thing they say!" Or things of the sort.
Now, it is also my experience, that the less variety of dialects you hear, the more acute the differences appear to you. This is not to bash anyone, but I want to share what basques have to deal with in terms of dialects.
Here you have only three examples of dialects in Basque
Lapurtera
"Alabainan Jainkoak altean du mundua maithatu, non bere Seme bekharra eman baitu, hunen baithan sinhesten duen nihor ez dadien gal, aitzitik izan dezan bethiko bizitzea"
Zuberera
"Zeren Jinkoak hain du maithatü mundia, nun eman beitü bere Seme bekhotxa, amorekatik hartan sinhesten dian gizoneratik batere eztadin gal, bena ükhen dezan bethiereko bizitzia"
Gipuzkera
"Zergatik aiñ maite izan du Jaungoikoak mundua, non eman duen bere Seme Bakarra beragan fedea duan guzia galdu ez dedin, baizik izan dezan betiko bizia"
My own local dialect
"Zeba maiteizandu Jangoikuak ainbeste mundua, nun bere seme bakarra beai fedia dakan guztiya galdueztadin emantzun, biziya betiko eukitzeko.
So...
Yes, most of the words are similar, and some constructions but well... If these are considered dialects, what is a language!?
Seriously I just wanted to share with you this amazing thing we have here.
BTW I think you steered very well around politics and such, well done!
Asturian speaker here! IMO Asturian and Leonese are definitely dialectal variations within the same linguistic domain. This is also the case for Mirandese, although since they have taken Portuguese as reference for their writing system, it looks very different from Asturian and Leonese.
Nun creo,a mí paezme que tien les diferencies suficientes pa ser la só propia llingua
What is the relationship between Portugal and Spain historically with the languages?
I only got a chance to hint at it because the video was getting long, but Galician is actually something like a “parent” language to Portuguese! During the early Reconquista they were the same language called Galician-Portuguese. But they drifted apart over the years as they became separated politically. Galicia became part of the Kingdom of Leon which in turn became part of Castile and Leon, which merged with Aragon to form Spain. Galician has a bit more Castilian influence while the Portuguese have continuously fought both politically and linguistically to be distinct from Spain.
@@Learnabit What was the role of Portugal and Andorra during the second world war and Franco's rule? Were either of those in his plans?
For us the hispanic the portugueses people are brother same ethnic diferent language but same people amd the language is equal to spanish, is because much people like unite the spanish and portugueses conutries.... considere french and italian and ruman diferent culture and in the language is dficult to underestand for us
Good video, yes, a Lot of people in Spain wants to kill you now,hahaha, what an issue, really complex, indeed valencian and catalán are the same, but a Lot of valencians hate the catalans and they dont Accept that is the same language and then they say nonsenses, but is a Matter of polític, the other half of valencians they know It is the same language. Everybody Who is not a peanut brain knows It.
While the aragoneses Crown, we were both part of that kingdom, but when Spain started, we had a Lot of problems. A Lot of people in Spain wants only the spanish, nothing else, specially the followers of Franco, almost half of the country, lt is the way It is, Spain is different. We are still in the times of profranco and antifranco, The portugueses did well, they are not anymore in that neverending embroglio
Catalan and Valencian are the same language.
I SAID THAT MUSIC IN THE BACK GROUND IS NOT FROM SPAIN COÑO BUT LATINAMERICA'S PUÑETA- YOU DANM IT
I don't think the Queen's name was ever "Isabella".
So it’s very interesting, when I was writing I was wondering whether to use their Castilian names or their English names, and eventually I went with the English names. I’m not sure why but even though in English we also have the name Isabelle, Queen Isabel I is usually Anglicized as Isabella I. But you’re absolutely right her name was Isabel
@@Learnabit The names of European Royalty are always translated to the language being spoken, as is the name of the Pope. So, you did right by using the English translation.
valencian is not a language is a dialect of catalan
Spain derives from "Hispania" which was the name the Romans gave to the Iberian Peninsula (including Portugal)...The marriage between Isabella of Castile and Ferdinand of Aragon was a dynastic union, never a "national" union. The concept of Hispanic was synonim of Spanish well until the modern era. It was a geographical term, not a political-cultural term, thus Castillian was always the name of the language (Castile), same as English is the name (England) and not British, irrespective of where is spoken. If Castile were as recognised a nation as England maybe it wouldn't sound so strange for people outside Spain to name the language like that.
The problem with the statement is that the language is not Spanish but castellano
correcto. el idoma oficial es el Castellano. No existe un idioma español. Existe un pais que se llama Espana, sus habitantes - en conjunto - son los Españoles. Pero el idioma dominante es el Castellano. Si bien recuerdo, la Constitución de Espana lo dice : el dioma oficial es el Castellano. SUIZA tiene el mismo sistema : no existe un idioma Suizo. Existe el pais Suiza ( Confoederatio Helvetica en Latin, de ahi el logo CH) y los habitantes - en conjunto -son los Suizos. PERO Suiza tiene 4 idiomas nacionales y oficiales : ALEMAN ( es decir el alemán escrito pues los Suizos Alemanes hablan Suizo Aleman, no el Alemán de Alemana!) FRANCES, ITALIANO Y RHETO ROMANICO O ROMANSH
Mas sin embargo, hay una buena cantidad de países que consideran el “español” como su lengua oficial. No mencionan al castellano.
Pero de acuerdo con ustedes. Debería llamarse castellano en todas partes, no español.
@@agomezjunco si. Deberia. En muchos paises de America Latina que conozco muy bien en su totalidad desde 1966 por negocios y donde me radique definitivamente en 1992 se utiliza mucho el termino castellano en vez de español para el idioma. Y es correcto.
@@agomezjunco si pero es porque no conocen la historia de España.
And of course Galician and Portuguese are the same language as much as Valencian is a Catalan dialect....In both Galicia and Valencia though the overpowering influence of Spanish (Castilian-speaking) media and elites have greatly influenced the varieties of both Galician-Portuguese and Catalan spoken in these territories as well as notably undermined their sense of national identity..
Great video! Keep them coming =]
Thank you so much! I definitely will, I’ve got a couple more in the works right now!
as a Native Spanish speaker, Valencian is more easy to understand than Catalonian for me
Great video!
First video in English I've ever seen where they pronounced "Navarre" correctly.
Hahaha thanks pronouncing things incorrectly is usually my thing so it’s great to know I got something right for once!
@@Learnabit No, actually your pronunciation was a perfect balance between how things are said in the original language and standard English pronunciations. I'm a grad student in Iberian studies and you said everything the way literal professionals do. I wish I had found this video in January when I was TAing a class on the history and cultures of Spain. My only gripe is calling the PNV "separatist" when their biggest goal is to just maintain the status quo with them as the dominant force in Euskadi. Also, the regional politics of Navarre are super interesting, since their regional party is basically a wing of the PP. Navarrese identity is super weird, because literally everyone sees themselves as special: Either they're the teacher's pet of Spanish nationalism/conservatism or hardcore Basque nationalists who think Navarre is the *real* heart of the Basque nation. For 4 years Navarre was governed by a bizarre coalition of left wing parties and Basque nationalist parties (both leftist and Christian democrat), but generally the conservative pro-Spain forces are in charge.
Got to say im familure enough with Catalunia, and Valencia, and it always surprises me that Catalunia has many Catalunia flags, everywhere you go, where Valencia has Spanish flags everywhere, and ive only ever seen the Valencian flag on official buildings. But plenty of Spanish flags on peoples homes. Theyre both very distinct despite the fact many people lump them together
Having the same language doesn't makes people to have the same feeling about what is "home"
@@W.Gaster I fully understand that, the reason I said the above, is outsiders often lump them both in together, and many don't make a distinction. Hence me expressing what I expressed. Living outside of Spain (as I do part of the year) you would think they're one united region, but they aren't.
the best example would be Croatia and Serbia: both speak the same language/share the same ethnicity but they are clearly different nations and, sometimes, they've had very opposed political views of the shared nation (former Yugoslavia).
Spaniard here, little advice, do not talk about this with Spaniards 🤣👌
Very very good advice 😂 I did some research for university in Spain actually where I had to ask people on the street about this, and we got some interesting answers!
Great content thank you
Thank you so much! Hope you enjoyed!
I can understand Italian without having learn it, but Italian is not the same language as Spanish
You lie im hispanic and italian is like french don uderestan nothing, perhaps understand more than french.... the portugues is more easy for spanish native because 90% of the Word is spanish
Not true, if you don't study Italian you are not going to understand it as a castillian speaker
One could argue that they are all dialects of Latin.
@@65fhd4d6h5 totally true, it is so in fact
@@chinchanchou thats what you may think, but as a spaniard that lived with random portuguese housemates, I couldn't barely understand a thing when they were speaking each other xD
Tío lo sé 😂😂😂 ¡Y sí hablo Castellano!
14:24 Man, what a coincidence! I was also living/studying in Salamanca too when they took down Franco's medallion. The People's Party in control of the local government kept it for a decade despite being completely illegal, until it was forced to remove the thing by the Supreme Court. I stayed in Salamanca for a few years before that and I could see people at night throwing eggs and red paint, and even vandalising Franco's figure with hammers. The City Hall would swiftly clean, repair and even replace the medallion every time. What a SHAME!
Why are there only 165 subscribers? Is there a glitch or what
Nope! I’m a pretty small channel still but I’m just really enjoying making videos for however many people wanna watch! Hope you enjoyed!
As a student of Latin American Spanish and Portuguese - to me, Galician sounds like European Portuguese spoken with a European Spanish accent.
WHAT you only have 228 subs?!!
"I have no position in any of those political issues (except supporting the breakup of Spain and France and the unification of the former crown of Aragon with Languedoc under an anarchist revolutionary republic)".
Hmmmm should I sub? Idk say i like your video but it gets dry maybe crack a few bad puns and jokes like half as interesting please still high quality but I like more friendly vids if that makes sense
For sure! Thanks for the feedback!
I wouldnt call it ironic that Franco spoke Galician, just say that he wasnt a hypocrit. Which isnt to speak fondly or compliment him. He was bad, fascism was/is bad, and the other side was bad (there was no good guys)
As a Galician I can tell you that Galician is a variety of Portuguese. Same language different accent. Officially they force the Spanish orthography instead of ours the Portuguese. It's all POLITICS. ONLY POLITICS.
@@manugarcia9935 Got to say you look very young in your profile picture, and you write English flawlessly. I've been learning Spanish for years and I'm still struggling, and I look a lot older :P
@@nicosmind3 you are right!! It is not me!! I am retired!!! Thank you.
Che sho soy de Argentina 🇦🇷 y sho amo y mi casteshano che
Even Castilian is not same. Watch someone from Madrid or Castille La Mancha try and follow a Gaditano (from Cadiz) - its very funny. I can follow the News even watch Narcos without subtitles and follow it. No idea what my father in law is taling about 80% of the time. Gaditano's.............
Hasn't the European Union further emphasized regional languages and identities at the expense of national languages and identities?
and we love it :)
Regional languages should be emphasised
For good luck,yes
Sorry but the constitution sais the galician, catalonian and basque are cooficial....
I really dont understand Why we dont study at least the basics of all the cooficial lenguages all arround spain.
As a Valencian. i am glad you started the video by saying that Valencian IS A LANGUAGE. And later explaining that it is considered by most linguistics a dialect of catalan.
HOWEVER, the valencian language was created BEFORE catalan, which leads me to believe that Catalan is a dialect of Valencian and not the other way around.
valencian and catalan are both dialects from the same language, as balearic. a dialect isn’t a low degree of a language, is just a variety. everybody speak a specific dialect in no matter which language. it is stupid to think that a dialect is less valid than another one. as valencian you probably also speak spanish, and you can perfectly understand spanish speakers from south america because you speak the same language. the same happens with catalan. call it as you want: valencian, catalan, balearic, mallorquín, menorquín… but please, stop using the language as a politic weapon.
@@sanhemoto Understood.
@@sanhemoto Actually the borders of what is considered a dialect and what is considered a language are very thin.
@@davideoshace a language is a group of dialects. there isn’t a language which has its dialects, the language itself is a group of dialects. the problem is that people often use the word dialect to say that a variant is less important or prestigious than another one (the standard one), but that’s wrong. each one has their own dialect (idiolect) and then each linguistic community inside the big linguistic community of a language speak its own dialect.
@@sanhemoto Not exactly.
Dialect.
1. m. A variety of a language that does not attain the social status of a language.
Language.
2. f. A system of verbal communication specific to a human community and which generally has a written form.
By these definitions I could say that for example Andalusian is a language instead of a dialect.
There are no real borders between what is and what isn't a language, therefore languages have been used as something from politics rather than a real classification.
That's why some linguists say that the real difference is if that dialect is written or not.
they speak castellan because Spanish didn't exist,