"Just maintaining Catalan is not enough: we must make others change their language"

BarcelonaGranted that the Eixample is full of streets dedicated to the exploits of the soldiers of the Crown of Aragon –from Calabria to Sardinia and from Corsica to Aragon–, but if today a taxi driver is looking for Almogavars, they shouldn't head towards Razzmatazz but rather towards the Arc de Triomf, to the Catalan Book Week. This is what the Valencian sociolinguist Toni Mollà says, who is presenting The languages of tomorrow (Bromera) on a crowded afternoon of La Mercè dedicated to the Catalan language. "Surely those of us here are staunch Almogavars, but there are global linguistic uses that we should take into account when designing official and unofficial language policies," he warns. He argues that Catalan will only be a language of tomorrow if it moves beyond the school and folk environment and adapts to what is structural: capitalism, globalization, and algorithms. This is in addition to maintaining the individual linguistic loyalty of the speakers.

And this is where the professor and communicator David Vila comes in with The language and you (Voliana), a manual of linguistic solfeggio that aims to raise awareness and help speakers "maintain the language without feeling uncomfortable," something that, he says, still seems to many like an "implausible" milestone.

A step further

The one who seems to be uncomfortable on stage is the writer and linguist Pau Vidal, who has more drastic and transformative proposals in Go out to win (VilaWeb Books). "For years and years books have been coming out explaining the same thing and I would like us to take a step further. Speaking one's own language is what is normal, or should be. But maintaining Catalan is not enough: we must make others make the change, let it be them who feel uncomfortable because they have been here for 4 or 40 years and do not speak Catalan. If we only maintain ourselves it means we are retreating: that is why when we look at the figures we get depressed", he states. An ambulance passes by the Lluís Companys promenade.

In his book, Pau Vidal ironically sketches eleven profiles of half-hearted Catalan speakers and immediately follows them with Guardiola's motivational speech before the Champions League final in Rome: "Once and for all, we must take the field with a winning mentality. Most of us have lost the notion that this match can be won, and that is why we wait for them to stone us, spit on us, insult us, before giving up. We do not take the initiative. Now that we are in a linguistic and political survival war, and we are losing by a lot, either we go out to attack or we shut up shop." For him, shooting at goal means creating new Catalan speakers. How? A trick he uses is the mirror technique; that is, moving from the I keep to the "I don't understand you".

The last author of the thematic afternoon is Òscar Andreu, who since Sant Jordi has become the Amma of the language. Since his Manual for the defense of Catalan (Univers) is a version of a monologue, the jokes are well-oiled and the speech slides smooth and forceful, with the help of Elisenda Pineda. "If we treat Catalan like a gram of cocaine at the disco at four in the morning, if we hide it from everyone, why should those who don't speak it buy it from us?", he asks. And furthermore: "We will not seduce others by renouncing who we are. Being strong and solid is the way to seduce". It is likely that if he founded a political party, or a religion, he would have followers, judging by the applause: "A country that renounces its language renounces the essence of the country, the fundamental part of its identity. They shoot at this identity because they shoot against sovereignty", he proclaims. And it is quite a feat, having the seat of the High Court of Justice of Catalonia nearby, "of Catalonia to pretend", he says.

Òscar Andreu is not satisfied with having the audience in the bag and finishes with a little detail for the organizers: "Isn't it strange to hold a Week of the Book in Catalan... in Catalonia?", he lets out, sarcastically. If we go by the sales lists, for him it is being a Week that will last all year.