Hello everyone.
Before starting, I want to state that I know this is a very politicised topic these days, specially in Spain, but I believe that I have been objective when presenting all information that follows.
Also, when I reference the Catalan language, you might want to call it Valencian, specially when talking about people like Ausiàs March or Tirant lo Blanc, but there is really no sign of dialectal splits in Catalan until the 15th or 16th centuries and the following Decadència.
In the Tinto Talks #36, presented by @SaintDaveUK some months ago, it could be seen that Catalan was not a language in the game, but rather a dialect of Occitan:
While Catalan undeniably experienced significant influence from Occitan, particularly until the 14th century (in which the game takes place), its separation from the latter is generally considered by experts to have occurred between the 11th and 13th centuries.
The first texts to be considered to be written in Catalan are the Homilies d’Organyà, dated to the end of the 12th century and with an extension of 8 leaves of paper.
This document already displays distinct linguistic features that set Catalan apart from Occitan, leading to believe that Catalan had already evolved into a separate language by the time.
In addition, legal and administrative texts from the 13th century (logically written in Latin) already had versions in what is already considered Catalan. Among these the text Usatges de Barcelona, translated in the 13th century, or the Furs de València, translated and enacted in 1261.
Some of the first juridical texts truly written in Catalan (not translated) are the Costums de Tortosa (1272), and the Llibre del Consolat del Mar (1320), a collection of maritime trade laws.
In the Low Middle Ages, Catalan literature experienced its golden age.
One of the most important figures of the moment was the famous Majorcan Ramon Llull (1232-1315), who wrote some of his most important works in Catalan. In addition to Catalan, he also wrote in Latin and Arabic (in his effort to convert all Muslims to Christianity), and his texts were translated into Occitan, French, and Castilian while he was still alive.
The fact that translations to Occitan were required (even if these were relatively straightforward), already indicates that Catalan and Occitan were no longer fully intelligible or interchangeable, which would support the idea that by the late 13th century the two languages were distinct enough to be considered fully separate.
In addition, in these translations, many translation errors and misunderstandings are found, which brings to believe that someone who spoke Catalan at the time would not have had a full understanding of Occitan:
“While the use of Catalan, Latin, and Arabic in the composition of texts remains constant over time, attention to Occitan or French as vehicles for publication seems to be concentrated mostly in the period from 1274 to 1289. At least in the case of the Book of Evast and Blaquerna (c. 1283), we can be certain that there was already a version in Occitan by around 1287. This was probably ordered by Llull himself, given the proximity of this date to that of the composition of the work and the use that he made of it (We know that he used it to promote a French version which was produced between 1297 and 1289, during his first stay in Paris). The misunderstanding of the Catalan original in the Occitan version demonstrates that Ramon was definitely not the translator and the same is seen in the French version: the errors in understanding in the Occitan text lead us to believe that the translator did not have a very good command of that language”
Source: Narpan Digital Library (University of Barcelona)
Apart from Llull’s works, other important Catalan texts of the period include the Four Great Chronicles, written to justify the political actions of various rulers and nobles of the Crown of Aragon. The first chronicle, finished before Jaume I’s death in 1276, was written in two versions: in Catalan (Llibre dels Fets) and Latin (Libre Gestarum). The second and third chronicles (Llibre del rei en Pere de Bernat Desclot and Crònica de Ramon Muntaner) were also originally written in Catalan before the game’s start, while the fourth chronicle (Crònica de Pere el Cerimoniós) was also written in Catalan but around the 1380s.
Other important Catalan literary works written in the first and second century of the game include those of Francesc Eiximenis, Anselm Turmeda, Bernat Metge, Ausiàs March and Tirant lo Blanc.
These last two actually have events in the game, as it was shown in the Tinto Flavour #5 presented by @Pavía , in which the Catalan literature is repeatedly mentioned.
Conclusion
By all definitions, Catalan can be considered an independent language by the 14th century, even if it is true that it may not have fully separated from Occitan until a century or two before.
By 1337, the language already had a distinct and very rich literature, legal and administrative use and power within the Crown of Aragon (“A language is a dialect with an army and a navy”) and was being translated to many European languages, even Occitan itself.
In addition, the possibility that Catalan remained classified as a dialect until the end of the game would be completely against its historical status, even if I understand perfectly that the game mechanics may limit the ability to change language classifications dynamically.
This image of the court languages is specially troubling:
To conclude, I believe that even if you were not to agree on the fact that Catalan was a language itself at the beginning of the game (even if most linguists say it was), it would be better to have a “non-historical” language for 50 years than a non-historical dialect for 500.
Thank you all for reading, I hope you found this post interesting! I look forward to answering any questions in the comments!
Before starting, I want to state that I know this is a very politicised topic these days, specially in Spain, but I believe that I have been objective when presenting all information that follows.
Also, when I reference the Catalan language, you might want to call it Valencian, specially when talking about people like Ausiàs March or Tirant lo Blanc, but there is really no sign of dialectal splits in Catalan until the 15th or 16th centuries and the following Decadència.
In the Tinto Talks #36, presented by @SaintDaveUK some months ago, it could be seen that Catalan was not a language in the game, but rather a dialect of Occitan:
While Catalan undeniably experienced significant influence from Occitan, particularly until the 14th century (in which the game takes place), its separation from the latter is generally considered by experts to have occurred between the 11th and 13th centuries.
The first texts to be considered to be written in Catalan are the Homilies d’Organyà, dated to the end of the 12th century and with an extension of 8 leaves of paper.
This document already displays distinct linguistic features that set Catalan apart from Occitan, leading to believe that Catalan had already evolved into a separate language by the time.
In addition, legal and administrative texts from the 13th century (logically written in Latin) already had versions in what is already considered Catalan. Among these the text Usatges de Barcelona, translated in the 13th century, or the Furs de València, translated and enacted in 1261.
Some of the first juridical texts truly written in Catalan (not translated) are the Costums de Tortosa (1272), and the Llibre del Consolat del Mar (1320), a collection of maritime trade laws.
In the Low Middle Ages, Catalan literature experienced its golden age.
One of the most important figures of the moment was the famous Majorcan Ramon Llull (1232-1315), who wrote some of his most important works in Catalan. In addition to Catalan, he also wrote in Latin and Arabic (in his effort to convert all Muslims to Christianity), and his texts were translated into Occitan, French, and Castilian while he was still alive.
The fact that translations to Occitan were required (even if these were relatively straightforward), already indicates that Catalan and Occitan were no longer fully intelligible or interchangeable, which would support the idea that by the late 13th century the two languages were distinct enough to be considered fully separate.
In addition, in these translations, many translation errors and misunderstandings are found, which brings to believe that someone who spoke Catalan at the time would not have had a full understanding of Occitan:
“While the use of Catalan, Latin, and Arabic in the composition of texts remains constant over time, attention to Occitan or French as vehicles for publication seems to be concentrated mostly in the period from 1274 to 1289. At least in the case of the Book of Evast and Blaquerna (c. 1283), we can be certain that there was already a version in Occitan by around 1287. This was probably ordered by Llull himself, given the proximity of this date to that of the composition of the work and the use that he made of it (We know that he used it to promote a French version which was produced between 1297 and 1289, during his first stay in Paris). The misunderstanding of the Catalan original in the Occitan version demonstrates that Ramon was definitely not the translator and the same is seen in the French version: the errors in understanding in the Occitan text lead us to believe that the translator did not have a very good command of that language”
Source: Narpan Digital Library (University of Barcelona)
Apart from Llull’s works, other important Catalan texts of the period include the Four Great Chronicles, written to justify the political actions of various rulers and nobles of the Crown of Aragon. The first chronicle, finished before Jaume I’s death in 1276, was written in two versions: in Catalan (Llibre dels Fets) and Latin (Libre Gestarum). The second and third chronicles (Llibre del rei en Pere de Bernat Desclot and Crònica de Ramon Muntaner) were also originally written in Catalan before the game’s start, while the fourth chronicle (Crònica de Pere el Cerimoniós) was also written in Catalan but around the 1380s.
Other important Catalan literary works written in the first and second century of the game include those of Francesc Eiximenis, Anselm Turmeda, Bernat Metge, Ausiàs March and Tirant lo Blanc.
These last two actually have events in the game, as it was shown in the Tinto Flavour #5 presented by @Pavía , in which the Catalan literature is repeatedly mentioned.
Conclusion
By all definitions, Catalan can be considered an independent language by the 14th century, even if it is true that it may not have fully separated from Occitan until a century or two before.
By 1337, the language already had a distinct and very rich literature, legal and administrative use and power within the Crown of Aragon (“A language is a dialect with an army and a navy”) and was being translated to many European languages, even Occitan itself.
In addition, the possibility that Catalan remained classified as a dialect until the end of the game would be completely against its historical status, even if I understand perfectly that the game mechanics may limit the ability to change language classifications dynamically.
This image of the court languages is specially troubling:
To conclude, I believe that even if you were not to agree on the fact that Catalan was a language itself at the beginning of the game (even if most linguists say it was), it would be better to have a “non-historical” language for 50 years than a non-historical dialect for 500.
Thank you all for reading, I hope you found this post interesting! I look forward to answering any questions in the comments!
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