| Provençal | |
|---|---|
| prouvençau (mistralian norm) provençal/provençau (classical norm) | |
| Native to | France,Italy,Monaco |
Native speakers | (350,000 cited 1990)[1] |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | prv (retired); subsumed inoci |
| Glottolog | prov1235 |
| ELP | Provençal |
| IETF | oc-provenc[2] |
 Subdialects of the Provençal dialect with the exception of Gavòt in France and Cisalpine in Italy. | |
Provençal (/ˌprɒvɒ̃ˈsɑːl/,alsoUK:/-sæl/,[3]US:/ˌproʊ-,-vən-/,French:[pʁɔvɑ̃sal]ⓘ;Occitan:provençau orprouvençau[pʀuvenˈsaw]) is avariety ofOccitan,[4][5] spoken by people inProvence and parts ofDrôme andGard. The term Provençal used to refer to the entire Occitan language, but more recently it has referred only to the variety of Occitan spoken in Provence.[6][7] However, it can still be found being used to refer to Occitan as a whole,e.g.Merriam-Webster states that it can be used to refer to general Occitan, though this is going out of use.[8]
Provençal is also the customary name given to theolder version of the Occitan language used by thetroubadours ofmedievalliterature, whenOld French or thelangue d'oïl was limited to the northern areas of France. Thus, theISO 639-3 code for Old Occitan is [pro].
In 2007, all theISO 639-3 codes for Occitan dialects, including [prv] for Provençal, were retired and merged into [oci] Occitan. The old codes ([prv], [auv], [gsc], [lms], [lnc]) are no longer in active use, but still have the meaning assigned to them when they were established in the Standard.[9]
Some groups have called for Provençal's recognition as a full language, distinct from Occitan. The Regional Council of Provence has variously labelled Provençal as a dialect of Occitan or as a distinct language, depending on different lobbies and political majorities.
The main subdialects of Provençal are:
Gavòt (in FrenchGavot), spoken in the Western Occitan Alps, aroundDigne,Sisteron,Gap,Barcelonnette and the upperCounty of Nice, but also in a part of theArdèche, is not exactly a subdialect of Provençal, but rather a closely related Occitan dialect, also known asVivaro-Alpine. So is the dialect spoken in the upper valleys ofPiedmont,Italy (Val Maira,Val Varaita,Val Stura di Demonte,Entracque,Limone Piemonte,Vinadio,Sestriere).[10] Some people view Gavòt as a variety of Provençal since a part of the Gavot area (near Digne and Sisteron) belongs to historical Provence.
When written in the Mistralian norm ("normo mistralenco"), definite articles arelou in the masculine singular,la in the feminine singular andli in the masculine and feminine plural (lis before vowels). Nouns and adjectives usually drop the Latin masculine endings, but-e remains; the feminine ending is-o (this is the opposite of the neighbouringItalian masculine gender). Nouns do not inflect for number, but all adjectives ending in vowels (-e or-o) become-i, and all plural adjectives take-s before vowels.
When written in the classical norm ("nòrma classica"), definite articles are masculinelo [lu], femininela [la], and plurallei/leis [lej/lejz = li/liz]. Nouns and adjectives usually drop the Latin masculine endings, but-e [e] remains; the feminine ending is-a [ɔ]. Nouns inflect for number, all adjectives ending in vowels (-e or-a) become-ei/-eis [ej/ejz = i/iz] in some syntactic positions, and most plural adjectives take-s.
| English | Mistralian norm | Classical norm | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Singular | Masculine | the good friend | lou bon ami [luˌbɔnaˈmi] | lo bòn amic [luˌbɔnaˈmi] |
| Feminine | la bono amigo [laˌbɔnaˈmigɔ] | la bòna amiga [laˌbɔnaˈmigɔ] | ||
| Plural | Masculine | the good friends | li bons ami [lejˌbɔnzaˈmi] =[liˌbɔnzaˈmi] | lei bòns amics [lejˌbɔnzaˈmi] =[liˌbɔnzaˈmi] |
| Feminine | li bònis amigo [leiˈbɔnejzaˈmigɔ] =[liˈbɔnizaˈmigɔ] | lei bòneis amigas [leiˈbɔnejzaˈmigɔ] =[liˈbɔnizaˈmigɔ] | ||
Pronunciation remains the same in both norms (Mistralian and classical), which are only two different ways to write the same language.
TheIETF language tags registeroc-provenc-grmistr for the Mistralian orthography andoc-provenc-grclass for the classical one.[11]
ModernProvençal literature was given impetus by Nobel laureateFrédéric Mistral and the association,Félibrige, which he founded with other writers, such asThéodore Aubanel. The beginning of the 20th century saw other authors likeJoseph d'Arbaud,Batisto Bonnet andValère Bernard. It has been enhanced and modernized since the second half of the 20th century by writers such asRobèrt Lafont,Pierre Pessemesse,Claude Barsotti,Max-Philippe Delavouët [Wikidata],Philippe Gardy [Wikidata],Florian Vernet [Wikidata],Danielle Julien [Wikidata],Jòrgi Gròs [Wikidata],Sèrgi Bec [Wikidata],Bernat Giély, and many others.
Provençal phrasebook travel guide from Wikivoyage
