French
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
: ''le Croissant'') is a linguistic transitional zone between the Langue d'oc (also referred to as Occitan) dialects and the Langue d'oïl dialects, situated in the centre of France where Occitan dialects are spoken ( Limousin and Auvergnat) that have transitional traits toward French (Langue d'oïl). The name derives from the contours of the zone that resemble a '' croissant'', or crescent.
The first author to use the term ''Croissant'' was the linguist (1864-1925) in 1913.
There are two main Croissant dialects:
*Marchois, which is closer to the Limousin dialect, is found in the west, going from Confolentais (
Charente
Charente (; Saintongese: ''Chérente''; oc, Charanta ) is a department in the administrative region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, south western France. It is named after the river Charente, the most important and longest river in the department, an ...
Allier
Allier ( , , ; oc, Alèir) is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region that borders Cher to the west, Nièvre to the north, Saône-et-Loire and Loire to the east, Puy-de-Dôme to the south, and Creuse to the south-west. Named after ...
/Gorges du Cher) and passing through the north of Creuse and Guéret.
*The dialects in the eastern two-thirds of the Bourbonnais d'oc dialect region are, as far as they are concerned, Arverno-Bourbonnais dialects belonging to the Auvergnat dialect zone of the Croissant, centered around Chantelle and
Vichy
Vichy (, ; ; oc, Vichèi, link=no, ) is a city in the Allier department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of central France, in the historic province of Bourbonnais.
It is a spa and resort town and in World War II was the capital of ...
The Croissant’s territory is shaped like a tapered crescent, joining the
Tardoire
The Tardoire () is a river in southwestern France, left tributary to the river Bonnieure. It is long. Its source is in Châlus, in the Haute-Vienne ''département''. It flows into the Bonnieure near Saint-Ciers-sur-Bonnieure. Over much of its len ...
valley in
Charente
Charente (; Saintongese: ''Chérente''; oc, Charanta ) is a department in the administrative region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, south western France. It is named after the river Charente, the most important and longest river in the department, an ...
(to the west) to Monts de la Madeleine in
Allier
Allier ( , , ; oc, Alèir) is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region that borders Cher to the west, Nièvre to the north, Saône-et-Loire and Loire to the east, Puy-de-Dôme to the south, and Creuse to the south-west. Named after ...
(to the east). The crescent is very narrow between its westernmost point and Le Dorat (between 10 and 15 km wide) but widens towards the east: between 30 km (at Guéret) and 45 km (at Culan).
The principal communes in the zone:
*
Charente
Charente (; Saintongese: ''Chérente''; oc, Charanta ) is a department in the administrative region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, south western France. It is named after the river Charente, the most important and longest river in the department, an ...
Champagne-Mouton
Champagne-Mouton () is a commune in the Charente department in southwestern France.
Population
See also
*Communes of the Charente department
The following is a list of the 364 communes of the Charente department of France.
The communes co ...
Pressac
Pressac () is a commune in the Vienne department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in western France.
Geography
The Clouère forms the commune's north-eastern border.
The Clain flows northward through the middle of the commune and crosses the ...
Bussière-Poitevine
Bussière-Poitevine (; oc, Bussiera) is a former commune in the Haute-Vienne department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in western France. On 1 January 2019, it was merged into the new commune Val-d'Oire-et-Gartempe.Le Dorat, Magnac-Laval,
Saint-Sulpice-les-Feuilles
Saint-Sulpice-les-Feuilles (; oc, Sent Sepise) is a commune in the Haute-Vienne department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in west-central France.
Geography
The Benaize flows through the commune and forms part of its south-eastern and western ...
Crozant
Crozant (; oc, Crosenc) is a Communes of France, commune in the Creuse Departments of France, department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine Regions of France, region in France.
Geography
A tourism and farming village situated some northeast of Guéret, ...
Cher
Cher (; born Cherilyn Sarkisian; May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Often referred to by the media as the Honorific nicknames in popular music, "Goddess of Pop", she has been described as embodying female ...
Puy-de-Dôme
Puy-de-Dôme (; oc, label= Auvergnat, lo Puèi de Doma or ''lo Puèi Domat'') is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in the centre of France. In 2019, it had a population of 662,152.Saint-Éloy-les-Mines
*
Allier
Allier ( , , ; oc, Alèir) is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region that borders Cher to the west, Nièvre to the north, Saône-et-Loire and Loire to the east, Puy-de-Dôme to the south, and Creuse to the south-west. Named after ...
Néris-les-Bains
Néris-les-Bains (; oc, Nerís) is a commune in the Allier department in the Auvergne region in central France.
Etymology
The name Néris comes from the Gaul God Nérios, a deity personifying the local thermal spring (Latinized to "Nerius"). ...
,
Commentry
Commentry (; Auvergnat: ''Comentriac'') is a commune in the department of Allier in central France. It lies southwest of Moulins in the valley of the Œil. It is within 8 km of one of the geographic centres of France. The film actress ...
Montmarault
Montmarault (; oc, Montmaraut) is a Communes of France, commune in the Allier Departments of France, department in central France.
Population
Tourism
The ''Petite Valette'' campground has been named the best camping of the Auvergne by the Ge ...
,
Vichy
Vichy (, ; ; oc, Vichèi, link=no, ) is a city in the Allier department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of central France, in the historic province of Bourbonnais.
It is a spa and resort town and in World War II was the capital of ...
Audes
Audes (; Occitan, ''Auda'') is a commune in the Allier department in central France.
Population
The inhabitants of the town of Audes are ''Audois''.
Politics
Mayors of the commune of Audes:
* 2008–2020: Serge Boulade
* 2020–current: ...
Vichy
Vichy (, ; ; oc, Vichèi, link=no, ) is a city in the Allier department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of central France, in the historic province of Bourbonnais.
It is a spa and resort town and in World War II was the capital of ...
.
Classification
Most linguists specializing in the Croissant dialects confirm it is a predominantly Occitan-speaking zone. (Tourtoulon & Bringuier, Dahmen, Escoffier, Chambon & Olivier, Quint). Only Jules Ronjat expresses a more cautious opinion by refusing to explicitly say if the Croissant comes under Langue d’Oc or Langue d’Oïl (French). Since Ronjat’s hesitation, some books by Occitan scholars (Pierre Bec, Robert Lafont) have been reluctant to present the Croissant as a completely Langue d'oc zone. However, cultural studies conducted in the Croissant from the 1970s (Quint, Merle) prove that linguistic and cultural awareness of Occitan is widespread there.
Since the 1970s, edited maps include nearly all of the Croissant in the Langue d’oc region. Guylaine Brun-Trigaud even includes the Langue d’oïl dialects with Occitan features.
Likewise, the writer
Valery Larbaud
Valery Larbaud (29 August 1881 – 2 February 1957) was a French writer and poet.
Life
He was born in Vichy, the only child of a pharmacist. His father died when he was 8, and he was brought up by his mother and aunt. His father had been owne ...
(1881-1957), who originated from Vichy, in the Croissant zone, expressed his support for the idea of a union of Langue d’oc regions in his work ''Jaune bleu blanc'' ''(Yellow blue white)'' (1927).
Historical, territorial and linguistic evolution
The influence of French in the Croissant zone goes back a long way. The presence of French-speaking nobility and administrators caused, from the second half of the 13th century, administrative and legal documents to be written in French and not in the local dialects, as well as in
Marche
Marche ( , ) is one of the twenty regions of Italy. In English, the region is sometimes referred to as The Marches ( ). The region is located in the central area of the country, bordered by Emilia-Romagna and the republic of San Marino to the ...
County ( Limousin-speaking territory) and in Bourbonnais ( Auvergnat-speaking territory). In Bourbonnais, the earliest known documents written in the local vernacular are deeds in French with some Occitan forms inserted from 1245. Therefore, the Croissant has been a Langue d’oc- Langue d’oïl
diglossia
In linguistics, diglossia () is a situation in which two dialects or languages are used (in fairly strict compartmentalization) by a single language community. In addition to the community's everyday or vernacular language variety (labeled ...
since that time, long before French had spread through the rest of the Langue d’oc linguistic area. The border between Langue d’oc and
Berry
A berry is a small, pulpy, and often edible fruit. Typically, berries are juicy, rounded, brightly colored, sweet, sour or tart, and do not have a stone or pit, although many pips or seeds may be present. Common examples are strawberries, rasp ...
and the northern part of Bourbonnais) still contain traces of the Langue d’oc substrate.(oc) Domergue Sumien, « », ''Jornalet'', 12 mai 2014 (ISSN 2385-4510, lire en ligne [archive])
The spread of French towards the Croissant has been a long and progressive process, in contrast to the quite rapid ''désoccitanisation'' of Poitou, County of Saintonge, Saintonge and
Angoumois
Angoumois (), historically the County of Angoulême, was a county and province of France, originally inferior to the parent duchy of Aquitaine, similar to the Périgord to its east but lower and generally less forested, equally with occasional ...
, which took place between the 12th and 15th centuries, principally from the ravages of the
Hundred Years' War
The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a series of armed conflicts between the kingdoms of England and France during the Late Middle Ages. It originated from disputed claims to the French throne between the English House of Plantagen ...
, which caused the area to be consecutively repopulated.
In the Croissant dialects, the spread of Gallicisms has increased, weakening the local Occitan variants. During the last few centuries, it seems that progression to have been more rapid in
Marche
Marche ( , ) is one of the twenty regions of Italy. In English, the region is sometimes referred to as The Marches ( ). The region is located in the central area of the country, bordered by Emilia-Romagna and the republic of San Marino to the ...
County ( Limousin-speaking territory) than in Bourbonnais ( Auvergnat-speaking territory). However, since the 20th century, in all cases, the spread of French has resulted in a
diglossia
In linguistics, diglossia () is a situation in which two dialects or languages are used (in fairly strict compartmentalization) by a single language community. In addition to the community's everyday or vernacular language variety (labeled ...
, and linguistic substitutions similar to those across all of the Langue d’oc regions. That puts into perspective the "gallicised" aspects of the Croissant dialects today since nearly all Occitan dialects are undergoing a process of Gallicization.
Dialectological subdivisions
There is no clear dialectological subdivision in the Croissant region, and the general impression is that it is largely fragmented. There is no clear border between the Auvergnat dialect region and the Limousin dialect region since the "border" between these two dialects is a vast transitional zone spanning the entire eastern part of the Limousin region (well beyond the Croissant).
In any case, from a cultural and possibly dialectological point of view, the west of the Croissant as far as Montluçon belongs to Limousin or La Marche (Marchois is spoken there).
The eastern part of the Croissant from
Montmarault
Montmarault (; oc, Montmaraut) is a Communes of France, commune in the Allier Departments of France, department in central France.
Population
Tourism
The ''Petite Valette'' campground has been named the best camping of the Auvergne by the Ge ...
, where the Averno-Bourbonnais dialect is found, is linked to Auvergnat.
Within the Auvergnat area, there is a distinct zone influenced by Francoprovençal in the south-east of Bourbonnais (the south-eastern part of
Allier
Allier ( , , ; oc, Alèir) is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region that borders Cher to the west, Nièvre to the north, Saône-et-Loire and Loire to the east, Puy-de-Dôme to the south, and Creuse to the south-west. Named after ...
), towards the Bourbonnais Mountains. There, since ancient times, the intervocalic ''d'' is dropped, in particular in ''-aa'' endings (for ''-ada''), as is also the case in Vivaro-Alpin, where the loss of the ''d'' can also be explained by its proximity to Francoprovençal.
Traits
The Croissant dialects are quite heterogenous according to Ronjat, but the following characteristics are commonly found:
* According to accounts from Croissant dialect speakers, intercomprehension is a little difficult but often possible with other dialects located to the south. It is much more difficult with the dialects located to the north.
* The final vowels ''-a'' and ''-e'' are often completely silent in the Croissant, but they are very clearly pronounced in the other Occitan dialects. On the other hand, it is possible to hear ''-as'' (:)and ''-es'' j/ijendings, which can potentially bring out the tonic accent. Despite that phenomenon, there are still traces of a mobile tonic accent, which can fall either on the second-last syllable of a word (a
paroxytone
Paroxytone ( el, παροξύτονος, ') is a linguistic term for a word with stress on the penultimate syllable, that is, the second last syllable, such as the English word ''potáto'', and just about all words ending in –ic such as mús ...
) or on the last syllable (an
oxytone
An oxytone (; from the grc, ὀξύτονος, ', 'sharp-sounding') is a word with the stress on the last syllable, such as the English words ''correct'' and ''reward''. (A paroxytone
Paroxytone ( el, παροξύτονος, ') is a lingui ...
), in contrast to modern French, whose stress is always on the last syllable.
* Expressive uses, despite the invasion of French forms (such as ''était'' starting to take the place of ''èra''), retain a large number of authentic Occitan traits and considerable lexical and idiomatic creativity (Escoffier).
Bibliography
* BEC Pierre (1995) ''La langue occitane'', coll. Que sais-je? n° 1059, Paris: Presses Universitaires de France st ed.1963* BONIN Marcel (1981) ''Le patois de Langy et de la Forterre (région de Varennes-sur-Allier)'', Cagnes-sur-Mer: Cahiers Bourbonnais
* BONIN Marcel (1984) ''Dictionnaire général des patois bourbonnais'', Moulins: impr. Pottier
* BRUN-TRIGAUD Guylaine (1990) ''Le Croissant: le concept et le mot. Contribution à l'histoire de la dialectologie française au XIXe siècle'' hD thesis coll. Série dialectologie, Lyons: Centre d'Études Linguistiques Jacques Goudet
* CHAMBON Jean-Pierre, & OLIVIER Philippe (2000) "L'histoire linguistique de l'Auvergne et du Velay: notes pour une synthèse provisoire", ''Travaux de linguistique et de philologie'' 38: 83-153
* DAHMEN Wolfgang (1985) ''Étude de la situation dialectale dans le Centre de la France: un exposé basé sur l'"Atlas linguistique et ethnographique du Centre"'', Paris: CNRS [1st ed. in German, 1983, ''Studien zur dialektalen Situation Zentralfrankreichs: eine Darstellung anhand des 'Atlas linguistique et ethnographique du Centre, coll. Romania Occidentalis vol. 11, Gerbrunn bei Würzburg: Wissenschaftlicher Verlag A. Lehmann]
* ESCOFFIER Simone (1958a) ''La rencontre de la langue d'oïl, de la langue d'oc et du franco-provençal entre Loire et Allier: limites phonétiques et morphologiques'' hD thesis Mâcon: impr. Protat nother similar edition is: coll. Publications de l'Institut de Linguistique Romane de Lyon-vol. 11, Paris: Les Belles Lettres* ESCOFFIER Simone (1958b) ''Remarques sur le lexique d'une zone marginale aux confins de la langue d'oïl, de la langue d'oc et du francoprovençal'', coll. Publications de l'Institut de Linguistique Romane de Lyon-vol. 12, Paris: Les Belles Lettres
* JAGUENEAU Liliane (1987) ''Structuration de l'espace linguistique entre Loire et Gironde: analyse dialectométrique des données phonétiques de l'"Atlas linguistique et ethnographique de l'Ouest"'' hD thesis Tolosa: Université de Toulouse-Le Mirail
* LAFONT Robert (1987) ''Clefs pour l'Occitanie'', coll. Clefs, Paris: Seghers st ed. 1971b* MERLE René (1977) ''Culture occitane per avançar'', Paris: Éditions Sociales
* QUINT Nicolas (1991) ''Le parler marchois de Saint-Priest-la-Feuille (Creuse)'', Limoges: La Clau Lemosina
* QUINT Nicolas (1996) ''Grammaire du parler occitan nord-limousin marchois de Gartempe et de Saint-Sylvain-Montaigut (Creuse)'', Limoges: La Clau Lemosina
* QUINT Nicolas (2002) "Le marchois: problèmes de norme aux confins occitans" [CAUBET Dominique, & CHAKER Salem, & SIBILLE Jean (Joan) (2002) (dir.) ''Codification des langues de France'', Paris: L'Harmattan, actes dau collòqui "Les langues de France et leur codification", Paris, Inalco, 29–31 May 2000: 63-76]
* RONJAT Jules (1930–1941) ''Grammaire istorique [sic] des parlers provençaux modernes'', 4 vol. [re-ed. 1980, Marseilles: Laffitte Reprints, 2 vol.]
* TOURTOULON Charles de, & BRINGUIER Octavien (1876) ''Étude sur la limite géographique de la langue d'oc et de la langue d'oïl (avec une carte)'', Paris: Imprimerie Nationale e-ed. 2004, Masseret-Meuzac: Institut d'Estudis Occitans de Lemosin/Lo Chamin de Sent Jaume