Català

Catalan

Romance

FamilyRomance Speakers~10M ScriptLatin CountriesSpain, Andorra, France, Italy Official inAndorra, Spain (co-official) Vitalitysafe ISO 639-3cat

Catalan (Català) is a Romance language with ~10M speakers, co-official in Andorra (sole official), Catalonia, the Balearic Islands, the Valencia region (where it is officially called "Valencian"), and recognized in the Roussillon (eastern Pyrenees-Orientales, France) and L'Alguer (Sardinia, Italy). Linguistically transitional between Ibero-Romance and Gallo-Romance, sharing features with both Spanish/Portuguese (closed/open vowel distinction) and Occitan/French (final consonant retention, vocabulary). Pompeu Fabra's 1913 Normes Ortogràfiques and 1918 Gramàtica Catalana standardized the modern written form, codified by the Institut d'Estudis Catalans (IEC, est. 1907). Catalan endured suppression under Franco (1939-1975) but emerged strong post-democracy with rich revitalization, full educational immersion in Catalonia, the world's largest Catalan-language university (Universitat de Barcelona), and a vibrant publishing industry. Notable medieval literary tradition including Ramon Llull (13th c.) and Ausiàs March (15th c.).

Where it is spoken

20 core words in Catalan

Water

aigua

/ajɣwə/

Fire

foc

/fɔk/

Sun

sol

/sɔl/

Moon

lluna

/ʎunə/

Mother

mare

/maɾə/

Father

pare

/paɾə/

Eat

menjar

/mənʒa/

Drink

beure

/bewɾə/

Love

amor

/əmoɾ/

Heart

cor

/kɔɾ/

Tree

arbre

/aɾbɾə/

House

casa

/kazə/

Dog

gos

/ɡos/

Cat

gat

/ɡat/

Hand

/ma/

Eye

ull

/uʎ/

Hello

hola

/ɔlə/

Thank you

gràcies

/ɡɾasiəs/

One

un

/un/

Good

bo

/bɔ/

Sources

Words compared

Compared with related Romance languages

Meaning CatalanGalicianNeapolitanLadinoOccitanInterlinguaSpanish (Mexico)
Water aigua /ajɣwə/ auga /awɣa/ acqua /akkwə/ agua /aɣwa/ aiga /ajɡɔ/ aqua /akwa/ agua /aɣwa/
Fire foc /fɔk/ lume /lume/ fuoco /fwɔkə/ fuego /fweɣo/ fuòc /fwɔk/ foco /fɔko/ fuego /fweɣo/
Sun sol /sɔl/ sol /sɔl/ sole /solə/ sol /sol/ solelh /sulɛʎ/ sol /sɔl/ sol /sol/
Moon lluna /ʎunə/ lúa /lua/ luna /lunə/ luna /luna/ luna /lyno/ luna /luna/ luna /luna/
Mother mare /maɾə/ nai /naj/ mamma /mammə/ madre /madɾe/ maire /majre/ matre /matre/ madre /maðɾe/
Father pare /paɾə/ pai /paj/ pate /patə/ padre /padɾe/ paire /ˈpajɾe/ patre /patre/ padre /paðɾe/
Eat menjar /mənʒa/ comer /komeɾ/ mangià /mandʒa/ komer /komeɾ/ manjar /mandʒa/ manducar /mandukar/ comer /komeɾ/
Drink beure /bewɾə/ beber /beβeɾ/ vevere /vevərə/ bever /beveɾ/ béure /bewre/ biber /biber/ beber /beβeɾ/
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Word order compared

Compare with major world languages

Catalan
Jo vull provar-me un vestit que vaig veure en una botiga davant de l'hotel
أنا أريد أن أجرب بدلة رأيتها في محل مقابل الفندق
试穿 酒店 对面的 商店 看到的 那套西装
I want to try on a suit I saw ‌in a shop across from the hotel
Ich möchte einen Anzug anprobieren den ich in einem Geschäft gegenüber vom Hotel gesehen habe
मैं होटल के सामने एक दुकान में देखा सूट को पहनकर देखना चाहता हूँ
私は ホテルの 向かいの お店 見た スーツを 試着 したいです
Я хочу примерить костюм который я увидел в магазине напротив отеля

Compare with closely-related languages

Catalan
Jo vull provar-me un vestit que vaig veure en una botiga davant de l'hotel
Je voudrais essayer un costume que j' ai vu dans un magasin en face de l'hôtel
Eu quero probar un traxe que vin nunha tenda fronte ao hotel
Io voglio provare un abito che ho visto ‌in un negozio di fronte all'hotel
Io voglio pruvà nu vestito ca aggio visto dinto a nu negozio 'nfronte a l'hotel

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