| Istriot | |
|---|---|
| Eîstrioto, Lèngua Eîstriota Bumbar, Valìʃe, Ruvignìʃ, Faʃanìʃ, Siʃanìʃ, Galiʃaneʃ | |
| Native to | Croatia |
| Region | Istria |
Native speakers | 400 (2007)[1] L2 speakers: 900 (2007)[1] |
Indo-European
| |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | ist |
| Glottolog | istr1244 |
| ELP | Istriot |
| Linguasphere | 51-AAA-na |
 Istriot is classified as Severely Endangered by the UNESCOAtlas of the World's Languages in Danger | |
TheIstriot language (Lèngua Eîstriota) is aRomance language of theItalo-Dalmatian branch spoken by about 400 people in the southwestern part of theIstrian peninsula inCroatia, particularly inRovinj andVodnjan. It should not be confused with theIstrian dialect of theVenetian language or the more distantly relatedIstro-Romanian, a variety ofEastern Romance.
Istriot is a Romance language currently only found inIstria. Its classification has remained mostly unclear, various proposals for its affinity exist:
WhenIstria was a region of theKingdom of Italy, Istriot was considered by the authorities as a subdialect of Venetian.[6]
Historically, its speakers never referred to it as "Istriot"; it had six names after the six towns where it was spoken. InVodnjan it was named "Bumbaro", inBale "Valìʃe", in Rovinj "Ruvignìʃ", inŠišan "Siʃanìʃ", inFažana "Faʃanìʃ" and inGaližana "Galiʃaneʃ". The termIstriot was coined by the 19th-century Italian linguistGraziadio Isaia Ascoli.
This language is still spoken by some people in the Istriot communities inFertilia and Maristella, inSardinia.
There are about 400 speakers left, making it anendangered language.
Below is a comparison of Istriot with several closely related Romance languages andLatin:
| Latin | Italian | Istriot (Rovignìʃ) | Venetian | Bisiacco Venetian | English |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| clave(m) | chiave | ciàve | ciave | ciave | key |
| nocte(m) | notte | nuòto | note/not | note | night |
| cantare | cantare | cantà | caŋtar | caŋtar | to sing |
| capra(m) | capra | càpra, càvara | càvara | cavra | goat |
| lingua(m) | lingua | lèngua | lengua | lengua | language |
| platea(m) | piazza | piàsa | pia-sa | pia-sa | square |
| ponte(m) | ponte | pònto | poŋte/poŋt | poŋt | bridge |
| ecclesia(m) | chiesa | cièʃa | cexa | cesa | church |
| hospitale(m) | ospedale | uspadàl | ospedal | ospedal | hospital |
| caseu(m) lat.vulg.formaticu(m) | formaggio/cacio | furmàio | formajo | formai | cheese |
The phonology of the Istriot language:[7]
| Labial | Dental/ Alveolar | Post-alv./ Palatal | Velar | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nasal | m | n | ɲ | (ŋ) | |
| Stop | voiceless | p | t | t͡ʃ | k |
| voiced | b | d | d͡ʒ | ɡ | |
| Fricative | voiceless | f | s | ||
| voiced | v | z | |||
| Trill | r | ||||
| Approximant | central | j | w | ||
| lateral | l | (ʎ) | |||
| Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Close | i | u | |
| Close-mid | e | o | |
| Open-mid | ɛ | ɔ | |
| Open | a |
The Istriot alphabet is the following:
| Letter | Pronunciation (IPA) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| A, a | /a/ | à |
| B, b | /b/ | – |
| C, c | /k/,/tʃ/ | /k/ when followed by "a", "o", "u" or a consonant;/tʃ/ when followed by "e" or "i" |
| Ch, ch | /k/ | When followed by "e" or "i" |
| Ci, ci | /tʃ/ | When followed by "a", "o", "u" |
| D, d | /d/ | – |
| Dz, dz | /dz/ | – |
| E, e | /ɛ/,/e/ | è, é |
| F, f | /f/ | – |
| G, g | /ɡ/,/dʒ/ | /ɡ/ before "a", "o", "u" or a consonant,/dʒ/ before "e" and "i" |
| Gh, gh | /ɡ/ | When followed by "e" or "i" |
| Gi, gi | /dʒ/ | When followed by "a", "o", "u" |
| H, h | – | Used in [ch] and [gh] |
| I, i | /i/,/j/ | í, î |
| J, j | /j/ | – |
| L, l | /l/ | – |
| M, m | /m/ | – |
| N, n | /n/ | – |
| Nj, nj /Gn, gn | /ɲ/ | |
| O, o | /ɔ/,/o/ | ò, ó |
| P, p | /p/ | – |
| R, r | /r/ | – |
| S, s | /s/ | – |
| T, t | /t/ | – |
| Ts, ts | /ts/ | – |
| U, u | /u/,/w/ | ú, û |
| V, v | /v/ | – |
| Z, z | /z/ | – |
This is a poem called "Grièbani" by Ligio Zanini[8] in the dialect ofRovinj-Rovigno.
| Istriot | Italian |
|---|---|
La nostra zì oûna longa cal da griebani: | La nostra è una lunga strada irta di sassi: |
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