To speak Catalan without living or working in Catalonia

BarcelonaHe has a slight accent and a cadence that suggest he comes from very far away and that Catalan is not his mother tongue. Nevertheless, both the pronunciation and vocabulary of Alejandro González, a 25-year-old Hispanic-Colombian, are excellent. And even more so considering that he has never lived in Catalonia nor, for now, does he have any intention of settling there. He is not driven by need, nor obligation, nor even love, which are the factors that usually push someone to learn a language. In fact, it wasn't until he landed in Toulouse to study a master's degree four years ago that he became curious about the language and culture of a friend who introduced herself as "a Catalan from Barcelona".

Then he began to research online more about the origins of his new friend, and the moment he heard songs in Catalan, he discovered "the beautiful sonority" it has. "I think Catalans are very lucky to have this language," he says in a video conference from his home in Brussels, where he lives and works in the banking sector. "I don't need Catalan to work or to live, I simply really enjoy speaking it – says the young man –. It is very presumptuous of me to say that I speak Catalan because I still have a lot to learn".

From time to time, González speaks Catalan with his friend, who also lives in the Belgian capital, and with other friends he has made. In fact, he counts down the days to Canet Rock, which will take place on July 4th. He came to the previous edition encouraged by his Catalan friends and discovered that "it is much more than music" and that it is an event of political relevance during the late Franco regime.

Weak pronouns

In his list he says that The Tyets, Mushka, Txarango and La Gossa Sorda are not missing, whom he hopes to be able to say goodbye to live in the last concert they will give at the end of the year. He also likes "older" groups like Manel or Els Amics de les Arts and also mentions Lluís Llach. "Last year I heard Julieta and I loved her voice," he adds. The lyrics of the songs help him to expand his vocabulary and improve his pronunciation. He confesses that the worst of all are the weak pronouns, knowing when to use an open or closed accent or a voiceless or voiced 's'.

The best expressions? "It doesn't come from here, common sense and wildness or between little and too much." Speaking French and Spanish has served as a cushion, although he says he prefers to use periphrases before falling into barbarisms. He learns in a self-taught way, consulting here and there and, like many other foreigners, has fully entered Plats Bruts. From time to time, he says, he watches other programs or gets information from Telenotícies and especially through social networks he follows conventional media like ARA. "Many times, only the headlines," he apologizes.

González has had a taste of the history of Catalonia and says he has been surprised by "contact" with France, the existence of Northern Catalonia and Catalan resistance to the dictatorship, and also resonates with October 1st and Carles Puigdemont. "I like Catalans to be critical, non-conformist," he affirms, and points out that through language he has also learned "the Catalan way of doing things," such as saving. He still has to read Passeig de Gràcia. Història d'una família, by Roger Bastida, a Sant Jordi gift.

In the visits he has made to Barcelona, he regrets that he has hardly heard Catalan in the street or in shops. This situation makes him feel "uncomfortable" in case the interlocutor does not understand him or does not want to understand him. His desire to reinforce his knowledge of the language has led him to enroll in a master's degree at the Open University of Catalonia (UOC), where he follows the syllabus and exams in Catalan. He says the effort is worth it, and he does not rule out taking Catalan classes or going to the Casal Català in Brussels to find people to talk to. In the meantime, he practices phonetics with artificial intelligence. "To do this interview, I have been asking it questions about natural and colloquial expressions and answering it to correct me," he confesses.