Spain's other languages
>
Despite Castilian (Or Espa?ol) being the main language of Spain there are also a number of other languages spoken throughout Spain - many are now recognised officially by the government and regulated by governing bodies to ensure that they remain a part of Spain's history and diversity.
Euskara Batua (unified Basque)
Definitely the most interesting language in Spain, Euskara is widely spoken throughout the Basque region of Northern Spain. The majority of Basque speakers live in Spain with a smaller percentage living over the border in Pyrenean France. The Basques are a fiercely proud people and have an extremely developed sense of regional identity.
Despite having a large amount of political and cultural autonomy, there is still a strong movement for complete independence from Spain and the terrorist group ETA have been terrorising the nation for 30 years in the hunt for complete self rule for the Basque country. The language itself has 600,000 speakers on both sides of the Franco-Spanish border with about 75% of those hailing from the Spanish side. The language has always proved to be something of a mystery to linguists as it has not been proven to be related to any other language.
Euskara bears no relationship to the indo-European family of languages which includes all of the other languages of Europe. Some linguists have started to propagate the theory that the language bears a similarity to the Georgian language from the Caucasus region but conclusive proof has yet to be uncovered. The language itself has been standardised over the past couple of decades - being mainly a rural language, Euskara is subject to several regional variations, however a standardised version, Euskara Batua, has been established for use in the media and in schools.
Catalan
A romance language, Catalan is spoken not only in Spain but also in parts of Andorra (where it is the national language), and also in isolated areas of France and Sardinia. There are roughly 4 million speakers worldwide who use it as their first language and probably about the same amount who use it as a second language.
As a language it is often said to resemble a cross between French and Spanish, although linguists point out that the language bears more in common with Italian in terms of grammar and syntax. Obviously spoken throughout Catalonia there are also several other dialects of Catalan, most notably Valencian. Many in the "Pai Valencia" still claim it is a separate language and this has been the source of much political and linguistic debate over recent years. [Please note that Babylon Idiomas teaches Castilian ("Spanish") in Barcelona and that all inhabitants of the city speak Spanish]
Galician
Lying in the extreme north western tip of Spain, Galicia is one of Spain's more isolated regions. Yet to be penetrated by mass tourism, the region is subject to some of Spain's worst weather and is also home to its third largest language. Galician is spoken by 3 million Spaniards in Galicia itself and also in the neighbouring regions of Asturias and Castille-L?on.
The language bears strong similarities to Portuguese, a factor that is explained by the close proximity of the region to Portugal. The Portuguese language did in fact develop originally in Galicia and Northern Portugal, before a political split in the 14 th century separated the two areas allowing the languages to develop and grow independently of each other.
The native Galician will be able to understand most Portuguese - similar vocabulary and word order can be seen across both languages and there is fierce debate once more as to whether they are languages in their own right, or dialects of the same language. Again much of it has to do with the perceived independence of the region that is, in many ways, symbolised by its language. Like Catalan and Euskara, Galician now has an official status and is taught in schools adding weight to the strong social movement to protect and preserve the language.
About the Author
Mike McDougall has five years experience working as a travel writer and marketeer. This article has been commissioned by Babylon Idiomas, a Spanish language school that offers courses to learn Spanish in Spain, Argentina and Costa Rica#BREAK#
Apartments Nerja News
Apartments Nerja Links
Apartments in Nerja Costa Del Sol : Private Villas Accommodation in Nerja Spain : RentInNerja.com accommodation areas include Torre del Mar, La Herradura, Almunecar, Torrox, Costa ...
Nerja Apartments, Pivately owned Burriana Beach apartment for rent in Nerja ... The Nerja (Costa del sol, Spain) apartment we have available for self catering holiday rentals is ...
Account suspended. Account for domain apartments-nerja.com has been suspended. Powered by H-Sphere
NerjaArpartment.net - providers of luxury apartments in Nerja Spain. Telephone: +353 21 4295649 ... All our properties are now Air Conditioned for your comfort. Our apartments are ...
Rentals in Nerja, Costa del Sol accommodation. Wide selection of holiday apartments and villas. Property listings with details, photos and prices
Dream Espana is one of the leading rental agencies offering you a large portfolio of holiday villas and Nerja apartments.
Nerja Villas and Apartments for Rent and rental in sunny Costa del Sol Spain, Nerja apartments and villas for holidays, long-term letting in Nerja, long lets in Frigiliana, long ...
Nerja- Boarding house in Nerja- Apartment in Nerja- Flat in Nerja- Attic in Nerja- Marries Rural in Nerja- Beaches in Nerja- Caves of Nerja- Beach of The Alberquillas- Beach of ...
At Rent In Nerja we specialise in self catering holiday accommodation to rent for holiday apartments in the Spanish resort of Nerja, Frigiliana, Torrox, Maro, Capistrano ...
Nerja Holiday Apartments Rentals two bedroom Villa Apartments for rent Costa del Sol Andalucian Holidays Private Owners Rentals Southern Spain Pool
Apartments Nerja Blogs
It is easy to book your private holiday apartments in Marbella Spain these days due to the excellent range of professional websites providing property owners with numerous opportunities to rent out their villas to holiday makers seeking to book a holiday. With package holiday firms finding it increasingly difficult to attract customers due to the perceived high profits being made by the likes of Thomson Holidays, Thomas Cook etc. The public are realising that web sites such as those specialisi
HOLIDAY RENTAL properties IN COSTA DEL SOL - APARTMENTS/VILLAS We can find holiday rental accommodation in Costa del Sol to suit you! Holiday let properties ranging from apartments, fincas, houses, villas, townhouses and more…..We have properties to rent in: Benalmadena Benahavis Calahonda Elviria Estepona Frigliana Fuengirola More info and photos…........ Air conditioning · Apartments · Area · Beach · Benahavis · Benalmadena · Calahonda · City Life · Coastal · Costa del Sol · Cou
[IMG 日本語 [Nihongo]] [IMG 中文(简体,1) [Zhongwen]] Home | All Inclusive | Hotel | Vacanze | Voli | Volo+Hotel Con ideatour.it è facile prenotare a prezzi scontati pacchetti Vacanze, camere d’albergo, noleggiare un veicolo e acquistare un biglietto aereo. Avete bisogno di un Affitto-Vacanze per tutta la famiglia? Possiamo fare anche questo! Da New York a Sidney, da Las Vegas a Roma, e tantissime altre destinazioni.
LONG TERM RENTALS ACROSS THE COSTA DEL SOL WE CAN FIND YOU LONG TERM LETS ACROSS THE COSTA DEL SOL - PLEASE ENQUIRE FOR UP TO DATE AVAILABILITY AND PRICES FOR YOUR DATES!WE COVER LONG TERM RENTALS IN: Benahavis La Cala de Mijas La Mairena Las Chapas Malaga Manilva Marbella Mijas/Mijas Costa Nerja Nueva Andalucia Puerto Banus Riviera del Sol San Pedro Sotogrande Torremolinos Benalmadena Cabopino Calahonda Casares Duquesa El Faro
Apartments Nerja Images
Navigation
