🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <199207272159.AA27024@tuna.wang.com> MICHAEL.WILLETT@OFFICE.WANG.COM ("Michael Willett") writes:
>Regarding Catalan, besides being the dominant language in
>Catalunya (Catalonia), it is also the official language of
>the prinicipality of Andorra.  I recall driving through
>Andorra during the winter and seeing street signs written
>only in Catalan.  One read: Perill-Gel, meaning Danger-Ice!
>
>Interestingly enough, there is an advertisement by Catalunya
>in this week's Economist news magazine by the Catalan
>development agency, timed to coincide with the olympics.  It
>describes Catalunya repeatedly as a country.  It does also
>make a brief mention once about Catalunya being a country
>within Spain.

As I recall, Catalonia was a state in its own right for quite a while, until    the Castillians took them over in the 17th or 18th century (correct my dates if they are way off--I don't have the references at work)  I suppose that the localpeople would like to think of themselves as a country--after all many Texans do!
   
I also recall driving through Andorra before I was really mindful of the fact   that Catalan was spoken there.  Being fluent in French and able to get by in 
Spanish, I thought that it was interesting that Catalan seemed to be (to the
outsider) in many instances either a Spaniard spelling French or a Frenchman    tring to spell Spanish.  In any case it was most interesting and informative.


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