LA LANGUAGE OF OC
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Val D’Aran was living one of the key moments of its history between the XIV and XV centuries. During the long years of disputes between the Spaniards and the Franks which culminated in the acknowledgement of the privileges which would respect its organizational autonomy (by means of different treaties and the Querimonia which was granted by James II), a language, that would be its symbol of distinction until today, was also being shaped: Aranes.
From the XIII century on, the Occitan language, language of Oc or language of the troubadours would evolve from Latin in a parallel way but separate from the language of Oil. From France, it would be relegated to the south until it reached the Iberian Peninsula where it took other paths and influences. In Val D’Aran, the influence of the Gascon branch of the Occitan language would remain and receive some influences from the languages of the old Basque language that were spoken in previous centuries from the Pyrenees to the Cerdanya.
Hence, it is not surprising that the first written documents of this branch of the Gascon Occitan are censual documents related to the businesses in the Valley during those centuries of constant changes and political pressures. It would not be until the work of the poet Monsén Condó Sambeat, at the end of the XIX century, when we would find an exact literary sample of this language that has survived with its own shape and form until today.
From the middle of the XX century on, Aranes literature will gather a special momentum with the arrival of Democracy and the boost given to literary awards such as the Monsén Condó Sambeat award and other literary prizes awarded every year during the festival of Aran on June 17th. Since then, a great number of authors of different ages have become authentic references of the Aranes language with works of great interest that range from essays about the history of the country to poetry, whose doors were opened by the above mentioned priest of the XIX century.
Many of the documents about the history of Val D’Aran that are written in a more primitive Occitan language can be found in the library of Les as well as in the archives of the Conselh Generau D’Aran in Arròs. Numerous works of Aranes authors, abounding with the novel genre, can be found in the libraries of Vielha and Salardú as well as translations from other author’s works into the Aranes language.
Similarly, the Aranes language has been gaining ground in the media and today the news can be listened to in Aranes on the Catalunya Informació radio station. There are also different periodic publications edited completely in Aranes or sharing space with Catalan and Spanish such as in magazines like Aran Nau, Aran Información, La Bofurra, or the Occitan supplement of the weekly magazine El Triangle with an online edition as well. Among the audiovisual media, a channel in Aranes has been created within TV3 and BTV televisions.