Occitania
Occitania ( Occitan Occitània [ utsi'tanjɔ ] ) is called the southern Romanesque embossed thirds of France, after the Occitan language on the basis of affirmation formula OC ( langue d' oc). In contrast, the north is called Langues d' oïl the area from which the current standard French has emerged.
As Occitan language is, however, also in the northwest of Catalonia and used in some Alpine valleys of the Italian Piedmont.
General
While there has never been a political unit Occitan, Occitan, however, was as a language that is very similar to Catalan, at least in the past, a strong link to the population of southern France. Reinforced some Occitan towns and villages confess in recent years back to their historical heritage. To place and street signs are executed similarly as in Ireland or South Tyrol again bilingual. The language is spoken throughout the Occitan -thirds of France of less than 2 million inhabitants and controlled. Around 78,000 students study in Occitan eight academies from Nice to Toulouse and Clermont- Ferrand.
Particularly well known were the troubadours, minstrels Occitan, and the religious Catharism in medieval times. Occasionally Occitania is west of the Rhône equated with the land of the Cathars. Even today, the south of France than the other air and the other vegetation certain peculiarities: So here the tradition of bullfighting is like on the Iberian Peninsula maintained, there are culinary traditions, national sport here is traditional rugby rather than football, and also the pronunciation of French in the " Midi " differs partly heavily on the Parisian standard.
Again and again over the centuries there have been initiatives for self-government and cultural self-assertion. In the 1970s, the independent newspaper LUTTE OCCITANE was created - Occitan as drech a la paraula ( Occitanier, you have the right to speak ). In these decades, the resistance against, among others ruinous production conditions for farmers and winemakers as well as the reconstruction of the country to set up a holiday paradise for tourists.
1945 Occitan Cultural Institute was founded, the Institut d' Estudis Occitans. However, it was only in 1986 officially recognized by the French Ministry of Education. The association Per Noste for the care of the Occitan language and culture was established in 1960.
As a regional party Occitan be understood by the Partit Occitan.
History
In prehistoric point of the area is divided into several regions, which left very own forms of megalithic products. Most likely the Chassey- cultural belonging. There are two regions with Statuenmenhiren (Languedoc, Rouergates ) and eight Dolmengebiete (Aquitaine, Ardèche, Grands Causses, Languedoc, Minervois, Pays Basque, Quercy and Roussillon ).
In the years 125-123 BC, the Romans conquered the south of Gaul under Flaccus and called this province Gallia Ulterior and later Narbonensis. The southern half of the province of Aquitania later founded the later area of Occitania was staked in about.
Even after the end of the Roman Empire held in the south of Gaul Roman culture and Roman consciousness. The cities were still ruled by aristocratic families, who often descended directly from Roman senators. The emerging Frankish Empire subjugated these areas although in the 6th century in fighting against the Visigoths and but 200 years later against Muslim Arabs, the center of the empire was in the north in the Île- de -France, which is why the South could take an independent development. Around the year 800 came from the Latin out the Occitan language. It was spoken in different dialects such as Provençal or Gascognisch.
In the High Middle Ages, shortly before and during the occurrence of the Cathar movement, coined two dynasties the area: one is the family of Saint- Gilles as Count of Toulouse and on the other the family Trencavel, which succeeded each viscounts of Albi, Carcassonne, Béziers and to be the Razès.
While not in the modern sense of a colony, but with the effect of migration of Okzitaniern in this enclave, Count Raymond of Toulouse in 1102 as a result of the Crusades, the County of Tripoli north of Jerusalem.
In three crusades against alleged heretics ( 1209-1244 ), the Occitan core reigns of Saint- Gilles in Toulouse and the Trencavel in Carcassonne were conquered by northern French barons. The Occitan language and culture has been pushed back afterwards.
In the - in the tradition of absolutism and the Jacobins ( during the French Revolution) derived - centralist France of the 19th and 20th centuries an independent identity has been long suppressed, Southern France ( Okzitanier ) and Northern French merged in the French nation-state of the French nation.