Catalan in the Catalonia of eight million

This Tuesday, the National Language Pact was signed, an agreement that aims to promote the social use of Catalan and reverse a worrying trend: the continued decline our language has suffered since the beginning of the 21st century. This pact comes after years in which the language had ceased to be a political priority despite evidence of decline. It was under the government of President Pere Aragonès that the foundations for this pact, now signed, were laid, with the aim of placing Catalan once again at the center of public debate and national policies.

The data speaks for itself. In just two decades, the habitual use of Catalan has dropped from 46% to 32% of the population. And if we focus on the younger generations, that percentage is even lower. This decline is explained, above all, by two far-reaching social phenomena that have had a profound impact on our society.

The first major change is demographic. Catalonia has gone from being a country of seven million inhabitants to eight in just twenty years. And, according to forecasts, we will reach eight and a half million in the next decade. This growth is mainly due to the arrival of newcomers who, generally speaking, have little or no knowledge of the Catalan language. Although in absolute terms there are more people who can speak Catalan today than twenty years ago, in relative terms the language has lost importance. The incorporation of new Catalans into our society has not been accompanied, in many cases, by effective integration into the country's native language. And this is not only the responsibility of the newcomers, but of a society that, too often, has failed to generate sufficient incentives and real contexts to make Catalan a welcoming language.

The second major change is technological. The digital revolution has radically altered citizens' audiovisual and communication consumption habits. The new generations live immersed in an environment dominated by video games, global platforms, and social media, where Catalan is almost invisible. In this ecosystem, Spanish and English dominate overwhelmingly. The role that media outlets such as TV3 played for years in normalizing Catalan among children and young people has almost vanished. Today, many teenagers do not consume any content in Catalan beyond what they hear in class. However, Catalan radio is a happy exception to this scenario, thanks to the historical RAC1 results and in the perseverance of Catalunya Ràdio, which has been able to connect with audiences of all kinds without language being an obstacle.

But beyond these external factors, there is a fundamental issue that determines the future of Catalan: social prestige. The health of a language depends primarily on its speakers and the pride with which they defend it. And, unfortunately, today, many young people do not associate Catalan with a symbol of modernity, freedom, or opportunity. Speaking it in certain contexts generates discomfort or even a certain shame. The automatic switch to Spanish to avoid seeming strange has become an increasingly common reflex. And so, Catalan is restricted to the academic or family sphere and loses presence in leisure time, in social relationships, and on the street.

The National Language Pact, in addition to promoting public policies, should serve to build a collective narrative of commitment to the language. Only if Catalan speakers use Catalan regularly in all areas can we reverse the critical situation depicted by the data. A language is not protected solely by laws and decrees; above all, it is strengthened by daily use and the deep conviction that it is an essential part of our shared identity.

And it's clear that this work is best done through consensus. The disengagement of Junts and the CUP from the Pact weakens the message and the capacity for action and breaks a historical dynamic in which political decisions regarding language were shared by large majorities. The support of Òmnium, the Platform for the Language, the unions, and the majority of political parties is positive, but the division weakens and weakens the common goal.

In a few days, the Council of the European Union will vote on the official status of Catalan in Europe. If approved, it will be a historic event and a vitally important boost that we must seize to strengthen the prestige of our language. The Catalonia of eight million people needs a language that unites us, that represents us, and that propels us into the future. And this will only be possible if we unite, without complexes or excuses, to speak it.