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Occitano-Romance languages
 
 
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The Occitano-Romance branch of Romance languages
Romance languages

The Romance languages are a branch of the Indo-European languages comprising all the languages that descend from Latin language, the language of ancient Rome....
 encompasses the dialects pertaining to the Occitan
Occitan language

Occitan , known also as Lenga d'?c or Langue d'oc is a Romance languages spoken in Occitania, that is, Southern France, the Occitan Valleys of Italy, Monaco and in the Aran Valley of Spain....
 and the Catalan
Catalan language

Catalan is a Romance languages, the national language and official language of Andorra, and a official language in the Autonomous Communities of Spain of the Balearic Islands, Catalonia and Valencian Community and in the city of Alghero in the Italy List of islands in the Mediterranean of Sardinia....
 languages situated in France
France

France , officially the French Republic , is a country whose Metropolitan France is located in Western Europe and that also comprises various Overseas departments and territories of France....
 (Occitania
Occitania

Occitania is the territory where Occitan language is the traditional language in use. This cultural area is mostly located in south France, includes Monaco, spans parts of Italy and Spain ....
, Northern Catalonia
Northern Catalonia

Northern Catalonia is a term which is sometimes used,particularly in Catalonia writings, to refer tothe territory ceded to France by Spain through the signing of the Treaty of the Pyrenees...
), Spain
Spain

Spain or the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in Southern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though Espa?a , Estado espa?ol and Naci?n espa?ola are used interchangeably....
 (Catalonia
Catalonia

Catalonia , is an Autonomous Community in northeast Spain.Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km? and has an official population of 7,210,508. It borders France and Andorra to the north, Aragon to the west, the Valencian Community to the south, and the Mediterranean Sea to the east ....
, Valencian Community, Balearic Islands
Balearic Islands

The Balearic Islands are an archipelago in the western Mediterranean Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula.The four largest islands are Majorca, Minorca, Ibiza, and Formentera....
, La Franja
La Franja

The term La Franja is a term that refers to the territory comprising the Catalan-speaking territories of Aragon bordering Catalonia . Usually La Franja is considered to be comprised by the municipalities of the following comarcas: Ribagorza, La Litera, Bajo Cinca, Bajo Aragon-Caspe, Bajo Aragon and Matarra?a....
, Carche
Carche

El Carche , is a mountainous, sparsely populated, area in Regi?n de Murcia, Spain, lying between the municipalities Jumilla and Yecla. The mountains reach an altitude of 1,371 metres at the Pico de la Madama and part of the region has the status of regional park ....
), Andorra
Andorra

Andorra , officially the Principality of Andorra , also called the Principality of the Valleys of Andorra, is a small landlocked country in western Europe, located in the eastern Pyrenees mountains and bordered by Spain and France....
, Monaco
Monaco

Monaco , officially the Principality of Monaco , is a small sovereign city-state located in South Western Europe . The territory lies on the northern coast of the Mediterranean Sea....
, parts of Italy
Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia....
 (Occitan Valleys
Occitan Valleys

The Occitan Valleys are the part of Occitania which is situated within the borders of Italy.It is a mountainous territory, situated in the southern Alps: most of its valleys are oriented eastward and descend toward the plains of Piedmont....
, Alghero
Alghero

Alghero , is a town of about 42,000 inhabitants in Italy. It lies in the Provinces of Italy of Province of Sassari in north-western Sardinia....
, Guardia Piemontese
Guardia Piemontese

Guardia Piemontese is a town and comune in the province of Cosenza in the Calabria region of southern Italy. Guardia is an Occitan language linguistic enclave ....
), and historically in the County of Tripoli
County of Tripoli

The County of Tripoli, Lebanon was the last Crusader state founded in the Levant, located in what today is known as northern Lebanon, where exists the modern city of Tripoli, Lebanon....
 and the possessions of the Crown of Aragon
Crown of Aragon

The Crown of Aragon was a permanent union of multiple titles and states in the hands of the King of Aragon.At the height of its power by the 14th and 15th centuries, the Crown of Aragon was a thalassocracy controlling a large portion of the present-day eastern Spain, Northern Catalonia, as well as some of the major islands and mainland...
. The existence of this group of languages is discussed both in linguistic and political basis.

According to certain linguists Occitan
Occitan language

Occitan , known also as Lenga d'?c or Langue d'oc is a Romance languages spoken in Occitania, that is, Southern France, the Occitan Valleys of Italy, Monaco and in the Aran Valley of Spain....
 should be included in Gallo-Romance, and according to others both Occitan
Occitan language

Occitan , known also as Lenga d'?c or Langue d'oc is a Romance languages spoken in Occitania, that is, Southern France, the Occitan Valleys of Italy, Monaco and in the Aran Valley of Spain....
 and the Catalan
Catalan language

Catalan is a Romance languages, the national language and official language of Andorra, and a official language in the Autonomous Communities of Spain of the Balearic Islands, Catalonia and Valencian Community and in the city of Alghero in the Italy List of islands in the Mediterranean of Sardinia....
 should be considered Gallo-Romance.






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The Occitano-Romance branch of Romance languages
Romance languages

The Romance languages are a branch of the Indo-European languages comprising all the languages that descend from Latin language, the language of ancient Rome....
 encompasses the dialects pertaining to the Occitan
Occitan language

Occitan , known also as Lenga d'?c or Langue d'oc is a Romance languages spoken in Occitania, that is, Southern France, the Occitan Valleys of Italy, Monaco and in the Aran Valley of Spain....
 and the Catalan
Catalan language

Catalan is a Romance languages, the national language and official language of Andorra, and a official language in the Autonomous Communities of Spain of the Balearic Islands, Catalonia and Valencian Community and in the city of Alghero in the Italy List of islands in the Mediterranean of Sardinia....
 languages situated in France
France

France , officially the French Republic , is a country whose Metropolitan France is located in Western Europe and that also comprises various Overseas departments and territories of France....
 (Occitania
Occitania

Occitania is the territory where Occitan language is the traditional language in use. This cultural area is mostly located in south France, includes Monaco, spans parts of Italy and Spain ....
, Northern Catalonia
Northern Catalonia

Northern Catalonia is a term which is sometimes used,particularly in Catalonia writings, to refer tothe territory ceded to France by Spain through the signing of the Treaty of the Pyrenees...
), Spain
Spain

Spain or the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in Southern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though Espa?a , Estado espa?ol and Naci?n espa?ola are used interchangeably....
 (Catalonia
Catalonia

Catalonia , is an Autonomous Community in northeast Spain.Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km? and has an official population of 7,210,508. It borders France and Andorra to the north, Aragon to the west, the Valencian Community to the south, and the Mediterranean Sea to the east ....
, Valencian Community, Balearic Islands
Balearic Islands

The Balearic Islands are an archipelago in the western Mediterranean Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula.The four largest islands are Majorca, Minorca, Ibiza, and Formentera....
, La Franja
La Franja

The term La Franja is a term that refers to the territory comprising the Catalan-speaking territories of Aragon bordering Catalonia . Usually La Franja is considered to be comprised by the municipalities of the following comarcas: Ribagorza, La Litera, Bajo Cinca, Bajo Aragon-Caspe, Bajo Aragon and Matarra?a....
, Carche
Carche

El Carche , is a mountainous, sparsely populated, area in Regi?n de Murcia, Spain, lying between the municipalities Jumilla and Yecla. The mountains reach an altitude of 1,371 metres at the Pico de la Madama and part of the region has the status of regional park ....
), Andorra
Andorra

Andorra , officially the Principality of Andorra , also called the Principality of the Valleys of Andorra, is a small landlocked country in western Europe, located in the eastern Pyrenees mountains and bordered by Spain and France....
, Monaco
Monaco

Monaco , officially the Principality of Monaco , is a small sovereign city-state located in South Western Europe . The territory lies on the northern coast of the Mediterranean Sea....
, parts of Italy
Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia....
 (Occitan Valleys
Occitan Valleys

The Occitan Valleys are the part of Occitania which is situated within the borders of Italy.It is a mountainous territory, situated in the southern Alps: most of its valleys are oriented eastward and descend toward the plains of Piedmont....
, Alghero
Alghero

Alghero , is a town of about 42,000 inhabitants in Italy. It lies in the Provinces of Italy of Province of Sassari in north-western Sardinia....
, Guardia Piemontese
Guardia Piemontese

Guardia Piemontese is a town and comune in the province of Cosenza in the Calabria region of southern Italy. Guardia is an Occitan language linguistic enclave ....
), and historically in the County of Tripoli
County of Tripoli

The County of Tripoli, Lebanon was the last Crusader state founded in the Levant, located in what today is known as northern Lebanon, where exists the modern city of Tripoli, Lebanon....
 and the possessions of the Crown of Aragon
Crown of Aragon

The Crown of Aragon was a permanent union of multiple titles and states in the hands of the King of Aragon.At the height of its power by the 14th and 15th centuries, the Crown of Aragon was a thalassocracy controlling a large portion of the present-day eastern Spain, Northern Catalonia, as well as some of the major islands and mainland...
. The existence of this group of languages is discussed both in linguistic and political basis.

According to certain linguists Occitan
Occitan language

Occitan , known also as Lenga d'?c or Langue d'oc is a Romance languages spoken in Occitania, that is, Southern France, the Occitan Valleys of Italy, Monaco and in the Aran Valley of Spain....
 should be included in Gallo-Romance, and according to others both Occitan
Occitan language

Occitan , known also as Lenga d'?c or Langue d'oc is a Romance languages spoken in Occitania, that is, Southern France, the Occitan Valleys of Italy, Monaco and in the Aran Valley of Spain....
 and the Catalan
Catalan language

Catalan is a Romance languages, the national language and official language of Andorra, and a official language in the Autonomous Communities of Spain of the Balearic Islands, Catalonia and Valencian Community and in the city of Alghero in the Italy List of islands in the Mediterranean of Sardinia....
 should be considered Gallo-Romance. However, other linguists consider Catalan
Catalan language

Catalan is a Romance languages, the national language and official language of Andorra, and a official language in the Autonomous Communities of Spain of the Balearic Islands, Catalonia and Valencian Community and in the city of Alghero in the Italy List of islands in the Mediterranean of Sardinia....
 as part of the Ibero-Romance languages
Iberian Romance languages

This article is about a subdivision of the Romance language family. For the broader group of languages spoken in the Iberian Peninsula, see Iberian languages....
.

The issue at debate is as political as it is linguistic, since the division on Gallo-Romance and Ibero-Romance languages stems from the current nation-states of France
France

France , officially the French Republic , is a country whose Metropolitan France is located in Western Europe and that also comprises various Overseas departments and territories of France....
 and Spain
Spain

Spain or the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in Southern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though Espa?a , Estado espa?ol and Naci?n espa?ola are used interchangeably....
, and thus is based more on territorial criteria than historic and linguistic criteria. One of the main proponents of the unity of the languages of the Iberian peninsula
Iberian Peninsula

The Iberian Peninsula, or Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe and includes modern-day Spain, Portugal, Andorra and Gibraltar and a very small area of France....
  was Spanish philologist Ramon Menendez Pidal
Ramón Menéndez Pidal

Ram?n Men?ndez Pidal was a Spain philologist and historian. He worked extensively on the history of the Spanish language and Spanish folklore. His main topic was the legend of El Cid....
, while from long time ago others like Wilhelm Meyer-Lubke (Das Katalanische, Heidelberg, 1925) have supported the kinship of Occitan
Occitan language

Occitan , known also as Lenga d'?c or Langue d'oc is a Romance languages spoken in Occitania, that is, Southern France, the Occitan Valleys of Italy, Monaco and in the Aran Valley of Spain....
 and Catalan
Catalan language

Catalan is a Romance languages, the national language and official language of Andorra, and a official language in the Autonomous Communities of Spain of the Balearic Islands, Catalonia and Valencian Community and in the city of Alghero in the Italy List of islands in the Mediterranean of Sardinia....
.

During the Middle Ages, for five centuries (8th to 13th) of political and social convergence of these territories, there was no clear distinction or separation between the Occitan
Occitan language

Occitan , known also as Lenga d'?c or Langue d'oc is a Romance languages spoken in Occitania, that is, Southern France, the Occitan Valleys of Italy, Monaco and in the Aran Valley of Spain....
 and the Catalan
Catalan language

Catalan is a Romance languages, the national language and official language of Andorra, and a official language in the Autonomous Communities of Spain of the Balearic Islands, Catalonia and Valencian Community and in the city of Alghero in the Italy List of islands in the Mediterranean of Sardinia....
. For instance, the Provençal
Provençal

Proven?al may refer to*Proven?al, meaning "of Provence", a region of France*The Proven?al of the Occitan language, spoken in the south of France...
  troubadour
Troubadour

A troubadour was a composer and performer of Occitan lyric poetry during the High Middle Ages .The troubadour school or tradition began in the eleventh century in Occitania, but it subsequently spread into Italy, Spain, and even Greece....
, Albert de Sisteron, says: "Tell me which are better, French or Catalans, and place me among the Catalans, the Gascons, Provençal, Limousins, Auvergnats and Viennois". In Marseille
Marseille

"Marseille" is the second-largest city of France and forms the third-largest aire urbaine, after those of Paris and Lyon, with a population recorded to be 1,516,340 at the 1999 census and estimated to be 1,605,000 in 2007....
, a typical Provençal song is called 'Catalan song'. (M. Milà i Fontanals, De los Trobadores en España, p. 487)