Spanish and Catalan in the Balearic Islands

José Luis Blas-Arroyo

doi:10.1515/IJSL.2007.015

Article

Spanish and Catalan in the Balearic Islands

José Luis Blas-Arroyo

Published/Copyright: March 22, 2007

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International Journal of the Sociology of Language

From the journal Volume 2007 Issue 184

Abstract

The Balearic Islands are one of the autonomous regions of modern Spain, where both Catalan and Spanish are considered offcial languages and are widely spoken among the population. Historically, the main language of the region has been Catalan, brought to the islands during the Spanish Re-conquest from the thirteenth century onwards. The presence of Spanish was noted much later, as a slow language substitution process starting in the sixteenth century took place. This article analyzes the functional distribution of both languages today, as well as consequences of secular language contact and some attitudinal aspects of Balearic social bilingualism.

Published Online: 2007-03-22

Published in Print: 2007-03-20

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https://doi.org/10.1515/IJSL.2007.015