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Post new topic| Topic: Mallorcan (Mallorquin) language |
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| admin 20.53 12-02-2009  Profile Edit Send private message Report this post! |
I've noticed some people have come to the website looking for an explanation as to the origins of the Mallorcan language, Mallorquin. Basically, Mallorquín is a the local variant of Catalan, a member of the Romance branch of the Indo-European language family, an Iberian language closely related to Provençal in France. Catalan is spoken in Cataluña in northeastern Spain, Valencia, the Balearic Islands, Andorra, a corner of southwestern France & the odd town on Sardinia. Catalan arrived on the island with the conquest of Mallorca by the Kingdom of Aragon in 1229 & the subsequent wave of settlers – mostly Cataln speakers, as evidenced from their surnames. In recent years, there has been an attempt from some quarters on the island to distance Mallorquin from Catalan, claiming it's a separate language, predating the Catalan-Aragonese conquest of the island. In other words, those who maintain this thesis claim that the language developed independently from the Latin brought to the Balearic islands by the Romans, then somehow survived intact ( remarkably like Medieval Catalan) throughout the Islamic period. Of course there are some differences between Catalan as spoken on the mainland & Mallorquin, but this is to be expected. After all, these were preliterate peasant societies, with limited contact with each other, who developed their own vocabulary for certain words, much in the way a farmer from Cornwall will have different words, especially for agricultural terms, from someone in, say, Yorkshire. Accent & certain words aside, if you speak Catalan you'll be able to converse with a Mallorcan. Likewise, if you speak Spanish, or Castellano, you'll have no trouble conversing with this commendably bilingual people. |
| admin 11.53 28-10-2009 ProfileEditSend private messageReport this post! |
There's a Spanish-language piece on the differences between Catalan and Mallorcan at this link: http://www.galeon.com/amanohashidate/mallorqui.htm It goes into quite some depth and laments that Mallorcan's unique features are quickly being buried beneath a new unified Catalan. It's a complaint all too frequently heard when one regional form of a language wins the prestige battle. These days written texts, the "cultivated" peninsular Catalan is preferred. Mallorcan tends to be more conservative and less open to peninsular influences (as would be expected given that it¡s an island) and has less Castellanoisms (words from Sopanish) than peninsular Catalan. Some Mallorcan's thus claim its an older, purer Catalan. Funnily, there weren't too many examples of differences in vocabulary, though I did notice that while Catalan had one word for "maybe" (potser), Mallorcan listed four! (potser/por êsser/per ventura/p'entura) Indecisive bunch! |
| admin 11.55 28-10-2009 ProfileEditSend private messageReport this post! |
Here's the same simple text three times in Spanish (castellano), Catalan (dominant peninsular variety) and Mallorcan (catalan). Castellano: Cada mañana me levanto bien pronto para ir a trabajar. Allá me encuentro con mis compañeros y juntos hacemos broma y nos reimos. Luego aprendemos las técnicas y herramientas que necesitamos para hacer bien nuestro trabajo y ganar nuestro dinero. A veces dudo que sirva de algo todo lo que nos dicen; puede ser, pero, como dicen, el saber no ocupa lugar. Luego vamos en coche a la montaña, y tras descargar las herramientas, cerca de allí, nos ponemos a trabajar. Al lado dicen que hay un convento, aunque nunca he visto a una sola monja, (será una leyenda urbana;)). Una vez hemos acabado todo, vamos de vuelta a casa. De camino hablan todos de la jornada, y yo miro por la ventanilla a las montañas, nevadas por la noche. Hoy me tocará barrer el aula en cuanto llegue del trabajo. Además, el perro de Teresa ha estado toda la mañana allá. La habrá dejado buena... Así es la vida... Catalán: Cada dia em llevo ben de matí per anar a treballar. Allà em trobo amb els meus companys i plegats fem broma i riem. Després aprenem les técniques i eines que necessitem per fer bé el nostre treball i guanyar els nostres diners. De vegades dubto que serveixi per quelcom tot el que ens diuen; potser, però, com diuen, el saber no ocupa lloc. Després anem en cotxe a la muntanya, i després de descarregar les eines, prop d'allà, ens posem a treballar. Al costat diuen que hi ha un convent, encara que mai he vist cap monja, (serà una llegenda urbana;)). Un cop hem acabat tot, tornem a casa. De camí tots parlen de la jornada, i jo miro per la finestreta a les muntanyes, nevades durant la nit. Avui em tocarà escombrar l'aula en quant arribi de la feina. A més, el gos de la Teresa hi ha estat tot el matí allà. L'haurà deixat bona.Així és la vida... Mallorquín: Cada dia m'aixec prest per anar a fer feina. Allà me trob amb sos meus companys i junts feim broma i reim. Després aprenem ses técniques i ses eines qu'hem menester per fer bé sa nostra feina i gonyar es nostros doblers. A vegades dubt que per ventura servesqui per qualque cosa tot lo que mos diuen; però, com diuen, es sebre no ocupa lloc. Després anam amb cotxo a sa muntanya, i en tenir descarregades ses einas, allà deçà, mos posam a fer feina. Devora diuen que ei ha un convent, encara que mai he vista cap monja (sirà una llegenda urbana;)). En haver acabat tot, tornam a ca-nostra. De camí tots xerren de sa jornada, i jo mir per sa finestreta ses muntanyes, nevades durant sa nit. Avui me tocarà granar s'aula en arribar de sa feina. Ademés, es ca de na Teresa ei és estat tot lo dia allà. L'haura deixada bona. Així és la vida... |
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