Heritagisation as decolonisation. Giving back to the inhabitants of Comelico valley their minority language toponyms

Abstract

This paper presents and discusses an empirical experience of cadastre-based Historical GIS applied to minority language place names in the Alpine valley of Comelico. The Comelico digital toponymy atlas (T-Atlas) is a tool to record and map local place names for scientific purposes; it promotes the linguistic minority as a resource for cultural tourism; it intends to revitalise the use of Ladin toponyms among local population and visitors; it aims to unravel the process of translation of local place names into dominant language in official cartography (namely in cadastral maps of 19th century), so strengthening the awareness about the value of minority language in the valley.