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| Mentonasc | |
|---|---|
| Mentonnais, Mentonasque, Mentonasco | |
| Native to | France,Italy |
| Region | Menton,Roquebrune(País Mentonasc) |
Native speakers | 4,000[citation needed] (2007) 3,000 in Menton & 1,000 in Roquebrune |
| Dialects | |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | – |
 Occitan: mentonasc | |
Mentonasc (Occitan pronunciation:[me(n)tuˈnaʃk];Mentonasco in Italian,Mentonnais[mɑ̃tɔnɛ] orMentonasque[mɑ̃tɔnask] in French) is a Romance dialect historically spoken in and aroundMenton,France. It is classified as a dialect ofOccitan and a sub-dialect ofVivaro-Alpine, with strong influence from the neighbouringIntemelianLigurian dialect spoken fromVentimiglia toSan Remo.[1]
Mentonasc is considered to be a transitional language; it is an intermediate language betweenOccitan andLigurian, which is why the classification of Mentonasc is often debated. However, it is traditionally assigned to theOccitan language but Italian nationalists consider it part of the Ligurian dialects.
The Mentonasc dialect bears strong similarities with the common alpine dialects, such as,Royasque orPignasque. It differs quite significantly especially in the ear from Ligurian coastal dialects (Northern Italian), like those ofVentimiglia (Intemelio dialect) orMonaco (Monégasque dialect).
When the area of Menton was part of theKingdom of Sardinia, Mentonasc was used in all of the coastal area between Monaco andVentimiglia, and in the hinterland.
In the 19th century Mentonasc was used in the territories of theFree Cities of Menton and Roquebrune[citation needed], an independent statelet created in connection with the ItalianRisorgimento.
WhenFrance annexed the Free Cities in 1861, Mentonasc began its decline, substituted by theFrench language.
The Mentonasc dialect is currently spoken by about 10% of the population inMenton,Roquebrune, and the surrounding villages (Castellar,Castillon,Gorbio,Sainte-Agnès,Moulinet andSospel) in an area called thePaís Mentonasc.[3] Now the language is being taught within theFrench educational system, as a variety ofNiçard (i.e.Provençal andOccitan), so this may change.
No countries currently have Mentonasc as an official language.
Below is a chart of some nouns and verbs found in French, translated into Mentonasc.
| French | Mentonasc |
|---|---|
| accôtement | bor dou camen, riba (n.f.) |
| accouchement | part (n.m.) |
| accoucher | partouri (v.) |
| accoucheuse | baila, couchusa, coumà (n.f.) |
| accouder | acoudâ, pountelâ (v.) |
| accoudoir | bras (n.m.) |
| accouplement | acoubiament (n.m.) |
| accoupler | acoubiâ (v.) |
| accourir | veni vitou (v.) |
| accoutrer | gimbrâ, arnesca (v.) |
| accoutumer | acousturiâ, abituâ (v.) |
| accrediter | acreditâ (v.) |
| accroc | set (n.m.), sgarahura(n.f.) (de langage) :sgarran (n.m.) |
| accrocher | acrouchâ, pendè, aganità (v.) |
| accroissement | creishament (n.m.) |
| accroitre | creishe (v.) |
| accroupir | acougounâ, cougounà (v.) |
| accueil | acueilh (n.m.) |
| accueillir | aculhi (v.) |
| acculer | aculà (v.) |
| accumulateur | acumulatoù (n.m.) |
| accumulation | amourounament, acumulacian (n.m.) |
| accumuler | amourounà, acumulà (v.) |
| accuser | acusà (v.) |
| acerbe | pougnent, aspre (adj.) |
| aceré | pounchû (adj.) |
| achalander | ashalandà (v.) |
| acharnement | acharnament (n.m.) |
| acharner | encagnâ, acharnâ (v.) |
| achat | acat (n.m.), coumpra (n.f.) |
| acheminer | encaminà, stradâ, adraiâ, enstradà (v.) |
| acheter | acatà, catà (v.) |
| achever | feni (v.) |
| acide | aigre (adj.) âchidou (n.m.; adj) |
| acidité | aigrou, aigrura, achidità (nf) |
| acolyte | coumpars (n.m.) |
| acompte | acuenti (n.m.) |
| acoquiner | s’acouquinà (v.) |
| acoustique | acoustica (n.f.), acousticou (adj.) |
| acquérir | catâ, aquistà (v.) |
| acquisition | aquîst (n.m.) |
| acquitter | aquitâ, pagà (v.) |
| âcre | àsperou (adj.) |
| acrobate | acroubat (n.m.) |
| acropole | acroupolà (n.f.) |
| acte | atou (n.m.) |
| acteur (trice) | atoû (n.m.), atrisse (n.f.) |
| actif | ativou (adj.) |
| action | assian (n.f.) |
| actionner | assiounâ (v.) |
| activité | atività (n.f.) |
| actualité | atualitâ (n.f.) |
There are some texts and songs that have been published recently inMenton (most from the twentieth century.)
Among the various publications:A Lambrusca de Paigran (la Vigne vierge de Grand-père) by Jean-Louis Caserio, illustrations by M. and F. Guglielmelli, SAHM, Menton, 1987.Brandi Mentounasc, Livret de Poésies Bilingue by Jean Ansaldi, 2010.Ou Mentounasc per ou Bachelerà, le Mentonasque au Baccalauréat, by JL Caserio, 5th edition, 2008., etc.
[1] Video of the Local Anthem of Menton being sung in Mentonasc
[2] Another video of the Local Anthem (Hymne de Menton) with words, accompanied by folk dancing.
[3] Video showcasing the Mentonasc language with the Ligurian orthographic spelling.
