History of Catalan

The Catalan language originated from Vulgar Latin in the Pyrenees Mountains between France and Spain. It diverged from the other Romance languages in the 9th century. At that time, Catalan spread quickly throughout the Iberian peninsula when the Catalan counts conquered Muslim territory. By the 11th century, the Catalan language was present in several feudal documents. Catalan was present throughout the Mediterranean by the 15th century. At that time, the city of Valencia was thriving.

In 1659, the Treaty of Pyrenees was signed, beginning a suppression of the Catalan language. Louis XIV issued a decree that prohibited the use of the Catalan language in Northern Catalonia. The repression continued during the French Revolution when the First French Republic prohibited the usage of Catalan in linguistic education. The repression continued until recently, when finally the French government in 2007 promoted the usage of Catalan publicly and in education.

In Spain, the usage of Catalan was allowed along with any other language. In Francoist Spain, Catalan was not prohibited in government or education. It was initially prohibited in mass media, but then allowed during the early 1950s. Nevertheless, the publishing of written works in Catalan continued. Since the death of Franco and the subsequent adoption of the Spanish constitutional monarchy, the Catalan language has been promoted.