لغة الكيان وكيان اللغة عند الأكستانيين / The Being of Language and the Language of Being among Occitanians

Aida Adib Bamia

Program

ALIF

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http://www.jstor.org/stable/521808

All Authors

بامية, عايدة أديب; Bamia, Aida

Document Type

Research Article

Publication Title

Alif: Journal of Comparative Poetics

Publication Date

1993

doi

https://www.doi.org/10.2307/521808

Abstract

[The Occitan language is now one of the regional languages in France. In the Middle Ages, it was an important language, known as "langue d'os" which was spoken in the South of France and which produced the celebrated poetry of the Troubadours. However, the language of Northern France, known as "langue d'oïl" came to dominate and became known as the French language. Historical circumstances and edicts of the central government led to the hegemony of the North and its language on the South. There has been a number of attempts to revive and affirm the Occitanian language, especially that a sizable minority continues to use it. The Occitanian revival movement of the nineteenth century known as "Félibrige" as well as the twentieth century Institute of Occitanian Studies and the specialized journal Oc have contributed to highlighting the wealth of the language and the ethnic aspirations and frustrations associated with it. The article concentrates, after providing the background, on two contemporary Occitanian poets, Alain Viaut and Philippe Gardy, exposing their poetic approaches: nostalgic and passionate on one hand, ironic and bitter on the other. The article translates excerpts from their poetry, analyzes their complex imagery, and reveals the dreams and anxieties of a cultural minority as well as the creative powers of a regional language in articulating its submerged rights and contesting its marginalization while moving lyrically between the two poles of hope and despair.]

First Page

126

Last Page

135

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