Escuela de Idiomas Nerja
05/04/2009
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Development of the Romanic Languages in Spain
Vulgar Latin was the first Spanish to be spoken, around the year 218 B.C. In 409 the Germanic started the invasions by the Pyrenees, around VII century, Latin was already spoken, but they contribute to break its unity as a language. Spanish Latin adopted thus numerous words of a Germanic origin such as; adrede or agasajar. The invasion of the Arabs started in 711, and then started the Reconquest that lasted up to 1492. This way Latin undertook a diversification that ended up into different Romanic Languages, depending on the different peninsular kingdom, such as; gallego, leonés, castellano, navarro-aragonés y catalán. These Languages expanded and developed their own characteristics. Those Spaniards who were in the territories dominated by Arabs were called mozárabes. Among them, a lot conserved their romance language to which many Arabic words were incorporated creating this way a new and very rich language, different from the original language.
Castilian:
Originated in Cantabria, Castilian expanded to the south thanks to the Reconquest. Literature in Castilian achieved very soon a great development. It expands rapidly through which is now Leon, La Rioja, Navarra and Aragon. Conquerors imposed it in America and The Philippines. Jews took it with them and still they maintain it; sefardí. During the SXVI and XVII centuries, Castilian Literature achieves its maximum splendor. From the end of the Middle Ages onwards, Castilian will be named Spanish as well as Castilian.
Dialects and Languages in Spain
Historic Dialects:
Leonés: It is spoken in Asturias, the occidental region of Santander, some provinces of León, Zamora, Salamanca and a part of Cáceres. Its frontier with Galician and Portuguese is not clear: some villages of León and Zamora speak Galician; and some of Salamanca and Cáceres do speak Portuguese. On the contrary, some of the Portuguese regions speak Leones language.
Aragonés: Its is spoken within the Pyrenean valleys of Anso, Hacho, Lanuza, Biescas, Sobrabe and Ribagorza.
Characteristics: Aversion for proparoxytone, predilection for ‘ico’ suffix, and abundance of metathesis.
Andalusian
In Andalusia the linguistic modality is called andaluz, although it is also known as habla andaluza.
Andaluz comes from the Castilian brought by the conquerors from the XIII to the XVI centuries.
Different ways of habla andaluza can be found within two areas (occidental y Oriental), with transition zones.
ANDALUSIAN CHARACTERISTIC FEATURES
The characteristic phenomena of the habla andaluza affect to three linguistic levels: phonetic, grammatical y lexical.
- Phonetic level is the most important. Andalusian pronunciation is very particular, overall because of features like the ceceo-seseo or the aspiration of the ending –s.
-Vocalic Features:
- The pronunciation of the stressed vowels is made with more articulation tension which produces a lengthening in its duration.
- Widening of the bell in the five vocalic phonemes.
- In the oriental Andalusian, aspiration of the last consonant, tending to the opening of the ending vowel: la casa / lah casA
In occidental Andalusian the ending –s is aspirated or disappears completely: galgos / galgoh
It has to be refused the consideration of Andalusian as a defective Language, because it is not a bad spoken Castilian but a Spanish Linguistic Variety.
Extremeño
It is spoken in Extremadura y its frontiers, it has some characteristics of Leones, as well as some features of the southern Castilian.
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