Three surveys from the last two decades in comparison. On the diffusion of Francoprovençal in Faeto and Celle San Vito (Apulia, Italy)

Abstract

Abstandsprachen with no standard and little elaboration are a kind of minority languages representing Italian sociolinguistic diversity. An example for this typology is provided by groups speaking Francoprovençal, a set of Gallic-Romance varieties spoken in Aosta Valley, in Piedmont and in two villages in Apulia, Faeto and Celle San Vito. The purpose of this article is to analyse these two communities, outlining the diachronic evolution of the minority language diffusion and use, which is correlated to the macro-sociolinguistic frame of each community. Moreover, these scenarios are used to reflect on the forms of conservation and revitalisation that need to be put in place.