Do most Corsicans understand and speak Italian?
True Corsicans who speak Corsican understand 99% of a sentence in Italian without any problem. Here the problem begins because today at the least 50% of the inhabitants of Corsica are not Corsicans ( French , Pieds Noirs, Northern African, some Germans etc ) and besides it many young Corsicans are not so fluent in Corsican. Usually the young Corsicans are French mother tongue. So if you try to talk with somebody from small villages you can be sure these Corsicans understand very well Italian , but if you are , for example in Ajaccio many people understand very bad Italian , because in Ajaccio majority are not Corsicans and for these reason everyday language is just French . If somebody speaks Corsican , Italians have some small difficulty just to understand everything when Corsicans speak the southern dialect ( a little less close to standard Italian ) and when young Corsicans speak their language with strong French accent . Sometime Corsican politics ( Talamoni, Simeoni etc ) go to Italy to have meeting about the Corsica ‘s situation with Italian politicians and journalists and they talk Corsican and Italians answer in Italian with zero problems , because Italian and Corsican are about the same language .Here you can watch and listen the president of the Corsican Assembly , Talamoni, to talk in Corsican in an Italian television ( nobody translates it, being already a regional Italian !) : Intervista a Guy Talamoni x Sa die de sa Sardigna. Many people in Corsican Eastern coast sometimes watch movie and football in Italian Tv.Of course , we mustn’t forget that in Corsica 50% of the inhabitants aren’t Corsicans but French , Northern Africans , Germans etc, who neither understand Corsican .GO to Corte or to little village , where people are mostly Corsicans, to talk Italian with the people in “ cafeteries” or in the farms and there everybody understand you perfectly!
What language is spoken in Corsica?
Corsica was annexed by France in the 18th century, and today, French is by far the most spoken and the official language of the island.Until 1859, however, Italian remained de jure the official language.Corsican is spoken by about 10% of the population, and is quite similar to certain dialects of Italian. However, French is still much more prominent.Sources (from Wikipedia):Abalain, Hervé, (2007) Le français et les langues historiques de la France, Éditions Jean-Paul Gisserot, p.113"Euromosaic-Index1". UOC.
Speak fulani??? Is there anybody who can help?
Yes, I do speak Fulani, and would be very pleased to help. As for websites, you can visit the following for example: www.peeral.com Fulani, otherwise known as Fulfulde, Pulaar or Fula is one of the three largest African languages spoken by more than 50 million in more than 22 countries... From where are you writing anyway? Please get in touch, thanks.
Other than French, is Italian useful in Corsica?
All Corsicans can speak French, as this is the official language of Corsica. Many Corsicans also speak Corsican (Corsu) that is quite similar to Italian. By 1990, an estimated 50% of islanders had some degree of proficiency in Corsican, and a small minority, perhaps 10%, used Corsican as a first language.Only nearly 12% of Corsicans speak Italian, while three-quarters understand it thanks to the television programmes from Italy. It´s useful just because the similarities between Italian and "Corsu". Normally, they never speak in Italian but French or Corsu. If you don't speak French at all, it may be rather difficult to make yourself understood in Corsica. Try to learn at least few French phrases before your journey and don't be afraid to use them when talking to Corsicans -- they'll appreciate your effort. On the other hand, trying to speak Corsican is not recommended to foreigners, because Corsicans value their language as a national treasure. If you speak Italian or even Spanish, many Corsicans will understand. Corso: Sò natu in Corsica è g'aghju passatu i megli anni di a mio ghjuventù Italian: Sono nato in Corsica e ci ho passato i migliori anni della mia gioventù
Which language do they speak in France?
The languages of metropolitan France include: Basque Celtic language: Breton Germanic languages: Alsatian (Elsässerdeutsch) West Flemish dialect of Dutch Lorraine Franconian Romance languages: Catalan Corsican (Corsu) Franco-Provençal Bressan Dauphinois Forèzien Jurassien Lyonnais Savoyard Occitan language (also Lenga d'òc, Langue d'oc): Vivaroalpenc Auvergnat Gascon Ariegese (Ariégeois) Bearnese (Béarnais) Landese (Landais) Languedocien Limousin Nissart (Niçois or Nissart) Provençal Oïl language family: Bourguignon-Morvandiau Champenois Franc-Comtois French Gallo Lorrain Norman Picard Poitevin-Saintongeais Walloon There are migrant languages Arabic (dialectal) Armenian (eastern) Bambara Berber Spanish Italian Lao Mandarin Polish Portuguese Romany Russian Vietnamese Yiddish
What is Corsica, France famous for?
More contemporarily, Corsica is known for a very diverse and scenic coastline, great hiking trails, and smelly cheeses. Its highest peak, the Monte Cinto, is second only to Mount Etna in elevation, among the islands of the Mediterranean. It is a famous tourist destination for Northern Europeans. Although French is the official language, many of the locals speak Corsican, a language in its own right.
What is your view of the independence of Corsica?
The concept of French nation is based on the fact that wherever your culture is from, you can feel French if you share a certain number of values.Even though regional languages and cultures used to be taboo and discriminated by the State during the 19th Century, it is not the case anymore.In Metropolitan France like in our former colonies, now called “départements” ( French for “counties”), you can learn your regional language at school if you want to. Obviously, the first language you learn at shool, anywhere in France, is French, so all Corsican people speak French. Only a few old people in the mountains struggle to speak French or just don’t want to.If you arrive in a Corsican or a Basque village by the road, you’ll be surprised to read two different names for the village: one in French and one in Corsican or in Basque. It is a good example of how open the local authorities are about local culture.On the other hand, many regions complain about the centralisation of power in Paris. Some of them would like more autonomy like Spanish regions do.I guess some Corsicans legitimately feel neglected by the French government in Paris. That can explain why the independence party is so strong on the island.But is complete independence really necessary ? I honestly believe that most Corsicans know it isn’t. How would such a small and rural independent island survive in a globalised world ? They would have to depend on some other country’s economy, like Italy: what would be the point of this ?The only way Corsican independence could be a great idea would be if they joined together with Sardinia to form a federation, but right now it’s very unlikely to happen.
Can you translate these lyrics from Corsican to English?
E allora uhe' oh' lievete 'a sotto: si nun te staje accorto quaccheduno te ciacca 'a ggente ca te guarda nun se ne fotte 'e niente. Maronna e comm'e' brutto a sta' c' o mal' 'e diente. E allora uhe' oh' tienelo a mmente: pe' cchi nun se fa' male rieste'na samenta e si pierde a' pazienza. Song'guaje 'e morte e allucca cchm' forte. E allucca cchiu' forte. E allora uhe' oh' lievete 'a sotto ... E allora uhe' oh' lievete 'a'nnanze: stanotte aggio durmuto senza mal' 'e panza. Quaccosa t'haie magnato ca t'ha fatto male. Tengo a televisione trentasei canali si parlano tutti'nzieme so'tanta capere. Ma quanno ascimmo fora sarra' primavera. Ma quanno ascimmo fora sarra' primavera. Ma quanno ascimmo fora sarra' primavera. I see a lot of apostrophes, so I imagine it might be a bit difficult, but if you could do your best, that would be great! Thanks in advance!
Is Italian being taught in schools of Corsica?
No. France never allowed the Italian language in Corsican schools to cut all “dangerous” connections of a French region with a foreigner nation . For the same reason they never allowed German in Alsace-Lorraine , despite the big number of Germans living there. The same thing happened with Italian also in Mentone . France is the only European nation that doesn’t allow other language than 1 ( the French ). To show that they protect minority cultures and languages they have recently approved a law about the protection of the regional languages , but of course that is nothing more than folklore . Despite it , to avoid the introduction of Germán and Italian language they have transformed the local Germán and Italian dialects in regional languages. So they have recognised as regional language of Corse the dialect of Corse ( not even exist ONE dialect for all the island ). The funny is that listening in French schools that Corsican isn’t an Italian dialect many students and some nationalists ( especially for political reasons ) now are believing in the existance of a separated Corsican language and the other regional languages invented by the Paris government . Of course there isn’t any serious linguistic that sopport it. To crown it all, Corsican is one of the Italian dialects closest to the standard Italian belonging to the group of the central dialects . Map of the Italian dialects : dialetti italiani2. Map of the regional languages, approved by the French government . Of course they didn’t want recognise Italian, German and Occitan as languages , condiderating that dangerous for the integrity of the state : Langues régionales ou minoritaires de France — Wikipédia.