Arvanitic language
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| Arvanitic (Αρbε̰ρίσ̈τε) | |
|---|---|
| Spoken in: | Greece |
| Region: | Attica, Boeotia, southern Euboea, the Peloponnese |
| Total speakers: | 150,000 (2000) |
| Ranking: | Not in top 100 |
| Genetic classification: | Indo-European |
| Official status | |
| Official language of: | - |
| Regulated by: | - |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-1 | - |
| ISO 639-2 | - |
| SIL | AAT |
| See also: Language – List of languages | |
Arvanitic (Greek: Αρβανίτικα, Arvanitic: Αρbε̰ρίσ̈τε/Arbėrķshte) is an Indo-European language sharing a common origin with Tosk Albanian, with which it is somewhat mutually intelligible. It is not mutually intelligible with Gheg Albanian. Arvanitic has been spoken by the Arvanite people of Greece for more than five centuries.
The approximately 150,000 speakers inhabit more than 300 villages in Greece. There are no monolingual Arvanitic-speakers; all are bilingual in Greek, and the language has been heavily influenced by Greek over the centuries. Although traditionally an oral rather than a written language, an Arvanitic alphabet adapted from the Greek alphabet has been developed for Arvanitic.
External links
- Ethnologue entry (http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=aat)
- Arvanitic on Eurolang (http://www.eurolang.net/State/greece.htm#Albanian)