Table of Contents
Asturian in Spain
Language designations:
- In the language itself: Asturianu
- ISO 639-3 standard: ast
Language vitality according to:
Linguistic aspects:
- Script: Latin.
Language standardization:
Asturian has a standardized orthography, regulated by the Academia de la Llingua Asturiana.
Demographics
Language Area
Asturian is spoken in the Autonomous Community of Aturias, to the North and west of the city of León, and to the West of the city of Zamora. A variant of Asturian, Mirandese, is also spoken in and around the city of Miranda , Portugal.
operating instructions
Various functions are available as part of the map.
mouse/touch operation
- moving by grabbing the map with a mouse-click you can move the map around
- overview map using the < button in the bottom right of the map you can expand an overview map
- zooming in and out using the + and - buttons in the top left of the map you can obtain more or less detail in the map
- switching themes or maps clicking on the ≡ icon on the right-hand side of the map you can view and select available maps and themes
- retrieving information the map may contain elements that contain more information, by clicking these a popup will show this information
- fullscreen display using the ⛶ button the map can be maximized to fullscreen display, use the ▢ button to return to page display.
keyboard operation
Keyboard operation becomes available after activating the map using the tab key (the map will show a focus indicator ring).
- moving using the arrow keys you can move the map
- overview map using the + button in the bottom right of the map you can expand an overview map
- zooming in and out using the + and - buttons in the top left of the map or by using the + and - keys you can obtain more or less detail in the map
- switching themes or maps clicking on the ≡ icon on the right-hand side of the map you can view and select available maps and themes
- retrieving information the map may contain elements that contain more information, using the i key you can activate a cursor that may be moved using the arrow keys, pressing the enter will execute an information retrieval. press the i or the escape key to return to navigation mode
- fullscreen display using the ⛶ button the map can be maximized to fullscreen display, use the ▢ button to return to page display.
It's possible that some of the functions or buttons describe above have been disabled by the page author or the administrator
| id | symbol | latitude | longitude | description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Asturian language area | ||||
 |
 |
KML track: asturian | ||
Speaker numbers
Table 1: % of inhabitants that use Asturian as the "family language"
Language and education legislation:
History of language education:
In the 19th century, the Asturian born Gaspar Melchor de Jovellanos expressed the urgency for the compilation of a dictionary and a grammar, and for the creation of a language academy for Asturian. It was not until 1980 that the then Conseyu Rexional d’Asturies (Regional Council of Asturias, the transitory government body of Asturias) officially created the Academia de la Llingua Asturiana (Academy of the Asturian Language).
In December 1981, the Estatutu d’Autonomía d’Asturies (Statute of Autonomy of Asturias), signed by King Juan Carlos, set out in Article 4 that “Bable [as the Asturian language is also termed] will enjoy protection. Its use and dissemination via the mass media and its teaching will be promoted, respecting, in all instances, local variations and the voluntary nature of learning the language”. This resulted in the Government of the Principality of Asturias initiating a linguistic policy.
Thus, in 1985, the Oficina de Política Lingüística (Bureau for Linguistic Policy) was created in order to prepare action campaigns to promote the use of Asturian and its standardization 4).
European legislation:
Asturian is covered under Part III of the Charter.
Download the Council of Europe report 2014-2016 about Spain.
National legislation:
Article 4 of the Statute of Autonomy of Asturias (1981) states that the teaching of Asturian has to be promoted, as well as its use and its dissemination in the media.
The Llei d’Usu y promoción del Bable/Asturianu (Use and Promotion of Bable/Asturian Act), passed by the Asturian Parliament in 1998, elaborates on this as follows:
- Asturian is the traditional language of Asturias.
- All citizens have the right to employ Asturian in speech or in writing.
- The use of Asturian (oral or written) by the citizens of the Principality of Asturias will have full legal validity.
- The official names of the towns and municipalities of the Autonomous Community will be in Asturian. be in Asturian.
Educational legislation:
The autonomous Community of the Principality of Asturias is fully competent in educational matters5)
Bodies inspecting compliance with educational legislation:
The Conseyería d’Educación, Cultura y Deporte del Principáu d’Asturies (Technical Educational Inspectorate of the Regional Ministry of Education, Culture, and Sport) inspects Asturian language education.
Education in practice
Primary education
Asturian is taught as a voluntary subject, but is not used as language of instruction, for two one hour classes a week. Almost 65% of pupils attend the voluntary Asturian language classes 6).
Secondary education
In secondary education, Asturian is a optional subject, but not all schools offer it. Normally, Asturian is not used as language of instruction, but there are some teacher experiments7).
Vocational education
A small number of Bachillerato (Baccalaureate; two year education (16-18 years) to provide access for university) institutes offer Asturian as a subject. Around 3% of students took Asturian as a subject in 20138).
Higher education
The University of Oviedo (the only in the Principality of Asturias) students can use Asturian according to the Llei d’Usu y promoción del Bable/Asturianu. At the teacher training for primary education, students can take up a two year minor Asturian which includes subjects such as Asturian philology, literature, sociolinguistics, and language teaching. Future secondary school teachers can choose the Asturian specialisation in the master's degree9).
Adult education
Classes for Asturian is limited, though some courses have Asturian as language of instruction10).
Learning resources and educational institutions
- Academia de la Llingua Asturiana determines the offical spelling standards, and authors the Gramática de la Llingua Asturiana (1998) and the Diccionariu de la Llingua Asturiana (2000).
- Xunta pola Defensa de la Llingua Asturiana, works to raise language awareness and supports other institutions;
Mercator's Regional Dossier
Read more about Asturian language education in Mercator's Regional Dossier (2014).