What are we talking about, when we talk about Catalan?

In the endless debate about the state of health of the Catalan language, it happens, as in so many other areas, that we often guide ourselves by our perceptions and impressions rather than by careful analysis of the data. In the case of language, moreover, it seems to be true that every Catalan carries a sociolinguist within. It is evident, in any case, that it is not a debate that we can face with complete coolness, free from worries and even anxieties, because we have the perception that too much is at stake: we project into the uncertain future of the language the uncertain future of all of us as a society.

We have, to begin with, the figures. But the figures do not speak for themselves; they must be interpreted. Sociolinguistic surveys show a decline in the social use of the Catalan language. The percentage of people who habitually speak Catalan has decreased in recent years, but this is because the (foreign) population is increasing: in Catalonia we have gone from 6 to 8 million inhabitants in record time, a growth produced on the almost exclusive basis of international immigration (much of it Spanish-speaking). But this hides an undeniable reality that must also be part of the equation, and that is that, in absolute numbers, there are now more people than ever who know Catalan. And many people, let's not forget, who know they should know Catalan: in fact, the offer of courses cannot meet all the existing demand.

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It is true that, compared to the situation fifty years ago, there seems to be a change that is both significant and worrying. Although today the intergenerational transmission of Catalan is assured, and knowledge of the language is guaranteed by education and public media, its use among the young population is somehow leaning towards the Spanish language. Again, here we would need to carefully measure the extent of the phenomenon and, above all, have a comparative perspective, because without comparison one cannot understand. Do we know to what extent this linguistic desertion is also occurring in Galicia and the Basque Country (not to mention the Valencian Country and the Balearic Islands)? And beyond? In Norway, with a language that has barely five million speakers, there is a social debate about the fact that young people, with a very broad command of English (it is one of the non-English speaking European countries where English is spoken best), use English among themselves, to the detriment of the Norwegian with which they speak to their parents. This is seen as a direct consequence of the extensive use of social networks (where the premise is that you have to have as many followers} as possible, which pushes you to use a majority language) and, probably, also of an adolescent fear of diversity, which leads them to long for uniformity in what was previously called the lifestyle.

Look, in this regard, at the long Adidas advertisement for this summer's World Cup (you will find it, of course, on YouTube), which, for a story of totally American inspiration and flavor, uses as a setting a sad cement court nestled among working-class housing blocks in the Llefià neighborhood, in Badalona. The advertisement, titled Backyard Legends, is a supposed vindication of the proletarian condition of football, but it ends up reflecting a world where all young people have become "bro" (ignoring the racial and class connotations of the term), because "everyone" wants to be part of a globalized world, which expresses itself in the same language (or in Spanish, if English is not mastered enough, as some of the Hispanic footballers who appear in the advertisement do). Should we talk about linguistic and cultural imperialism? The term may sound démodé, but it describes a truly existing reality.

We can ask ourselves if the future of Catalan is being played out in Llefià and Rocafonda. And the answer is yes, that it is also being played out on that sports court. But no more so than so many other things, which have to do with well-being, education and diversity, and which, in the end, will be what guarantees, if we know how to secure them, a future for Catalan.