Language island
Enclave of a language From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A language island (a calque of German Sprachinsel; also language enclave, language pocket) is an enclave of a language that is surrounded by one or more different languages.[1] The term was introduced in 1847.[2] Many speakers of these languages also have their own distinct culture.
Language islands often form as a result of migration, colonization, imperialism, or trade without a common tongue. Language islands are common of indigenous peoples, especially in the Americas, where colonization has led them to isolate themselves greatly.
Patagonian Welsh
Patagonian Welsh is the dialect of the Welsh language spoken in Patagonia, a region of southern Argentina. Despite it still being mutually intelligible with European Welsh, it has been heavily influenced by Spanish, the national language of Argentina. Many Welsh Argentinians are bilingual or sometimes trilingual in Spanish, Welsh, and English.
Education reports by English education officials created racist propaganda to raise suspicions against the Welsh people;[3] this led to laws prohibiting the Welsh language and parts of its culture.
Talian
Talian is a dialect of Wider Venetian spoken in several provinces of what is now Brazil.[4] It is result of Italian settlers, most of them from Veneto, taking permanent stay along the Brazilian coast, although some of them migrated further into the continent.
Examples of language islands:
- Alghero
- Arbëresh
- Betawi
- Belgian French of Brussels
- Chipilo and Chipilo Venetian dialect
- Faetar
- Gorani
- Griko & Grecanico
- Khalaj
- Lusatia
- Monégasque
- Narada
- Okuyoshino
- Palenquero
- Patagonian Welsh
- Pennsylvania German
- Saterland
- Szeklerland
- Swabian Turkey
- Talian
- Tamanic languages (culturally Dayaks)
- Upper Harz
- Yola
- And within Sinitic:
- Tianjinnese, a Central Mandarin variety surrounded by Northern varieties[5]
- Ganzhounese, a Southwestern Mandarin variety surrounded by Hakka in southern Jiangxi, being one of the many Junhua
- Cantonese spoken in Sichuan Province
- Hangzhounese, a Mandarinic variety surrounded by Northern Wu lects, caused by the change of capital during the Southern Song dynasty[6]
- Zhongshan Min, a group of Eastern Min and Southern Min varieties surrounded by Yue varieties, caused by migrants seeking shelter during the Song and Yuan dynasties.
Gallery
The predominantly French-speaking enclave of Brussels surrounded by Dutch-speaking area
Language islands in Romania
Sorbian language area in Germany
Sanxiang of Zhongshan Min can be seen in the west coast of the Pearl River Delta, far from the rest of Southern Min
See also
References
Wikiwand - on
Seamless Wikipedia browsing. On steroids.