Catalan Countries
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The term Catalan Countries (Catalan: Països Catalans) refers to the concept of a single nation that would include all territories where the Catalan language is the native language. This concept first appeared in a book by Valencian writer Joan Fuster, Nosaltres els valencians ("We, the Valencians") (1962) with a very strong sense of Catalan identity.
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The Catalan Countries include:
- Andorra in the Pyrenees
- Inside the current territory of Spain:
- the Balearic Islands (Catalan: Illes Balears)
- Catalonia (Catalan: Catalunya or Principat de Catalunya)
- an adjacent area of Aragon (informally referred to as la Franja de Ponent)
- Valencia (Catalan: València or País Valencià)
- Inside the current territory of France:
- Roussillon (Catalan: Rosselló or La Catalunya Nord)
This territory does not coincide exactly with the places where Catalan is the native language. For example, in the north-western region of Catalonia known as Val d'Aran, a dialect of Occitan is spoken and considered the native language, although Spanish and Catalan are also spoken. In some western and south-western places in the Autonomous Community of Valencia, only Spanish is spoken. However, there are also some Catalan-speaking places outside the Catalan Countries, such as El Carxe in Murcia and the city of Alghero (L'Alguer) on the island of Sardinia.
The Catalan Countries are sometimes referred to as el pi de les tres branques (the three-branched pine, in Catalan) for its territory can be roughly divided in three parts:
- The former kingdom of Majorca
- The former kingdom of Valencia
- The former Catalonia, comprising the Roussillon, the franja de ponent, and the current Spanish autonomous community of Catalonia.
See also:
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Flags_of_Catalonia Flags of Catalonia
External links
- Do you know Catalunya? (http://www.freecatalonia.com/forum2004/main.asp?opc=0&idi=eng)