The International Placement Year is a time of intense discovery. Almost overnight you are immersed into a new culture, a new way of life, a new community. After spending a year studying at Université Rennes 2 in the Brittany region of North-West France, however, I encountered something entirely novel: the coexistence of both regional and national languages. Breton is Brittany’s regional language, as the last surviving continental Celtic language, belonging to the Brythonic subfamily of Insular Celtic languages. In the region, streets don bilingual signs, thousands of schoolchildren attend immersive Breton-language schools; there is a huge sense of pride in the region’s distinct language and culture. As something I had never before experienced, I soon became fascinated by the cultural complexity of Breton, in particular the historic political fights for its survival, which my undergraduate dissertation analyses.

However, the story of Breton is not an entirely optimistic one. Despite the evident cultural pride in the language, UNESCO classifies Breton as severely endangered, with only 200,000 of Brittany’s 3.3 million strong population actively speaking Breton today. Falling from regional hegemony, to the precipice of erasure, there are now huge efforts in the region to promote and celebrate the language.

Now, here are three facts you didn’t know about Breton:

1. Until 1951, it was illegal to use Breton in education

Following the French Revolution, the government made efforts to unite the French Republic under one language, which entailed the suppression of all regional tongues. The Jules Ferry Education reforms mandated secular primary education to all, however prescribing that all instruction be carried out in French. Commonly displayed in Brittany’s schools were posters stating that “il est défendu de parler breton et de cracher à terre” (“it is forbidden to speak Breton, and to spit on the ground”). Humiliating school punishments were used against any pupil caught speaking a regional language, such as extra homework, writing lines, or infamously ‘le symbole’. Le symbole, commonly a clog or piece of wood, would be passed from the teacher to the first pupil they heard using a regional language in the classroom, who would then pass it to classmate caught speaking a regional language. This fostered a culture of denunciation and sentiments of linguistic devaluation among young generations of Breton speakers, which directly led to a demise of inter-generational transmission of the language. It wasn’t until the 1951 Loi Deixonne when regional languages, such as Breton, were legalised in France’s classrooms.

2. Both the 1996 and the 2022 French Eurovision entries were sung in Breton

Since the 1960s, there have been significant political and social efforts to save Breton from extinction, including the installation of bilingual street signs in the region, the establishment of numerous political departments and agencies to promote the Breton language, and so forth. A milestone for the revitalisation of the Breton language movement was France’s 1996 Eurovision entry, with song ‘Diwanit Bugale’, by Dan Ar Braz and l’Héritage des Celtes. For one of the first times, Breton was heard by not only a regional, nor national audience, but enjoyed by millions around the world. It served as a key milestone in the Breton revitalisation movement. Equally, France’s 2022 Eurovision entry was a win for the Breton cause, with Breton song ‘Fulenn’ by musician Alvan and the vocal group, Ahez.

3. It is still illegal to call your child many Breton names in France

Despite many advancements for the Breton cause in recent years, there are still many ongoing political and legal complications between the French and Breton languages. For instance, there is an ongoing legal row between Breton parents, Mélissa Yana and Étienne Pichancourt, and the French government over calling their newborn son, Fañch. Breton has different typographical features to that of French, such as the ‘ñ’ and ‘Ꝃ’, and it is illegal to use any non-French typography on official birth certificates. Therefore, by law, it is illegal for the parents to register their son’s birth under the name of Fañch. There have been several instances of this in recent years, with some parents winning the right to call their child a Breton name, and others not. Fañch’s case is ongoing, with some politicians commenting that it puts the unity of the Republic into question, with others arguing that it embraces the linguistic diversity of France. In solidarity with the parents, and the broader Breton cause, artist, Thomas Godin, commissioned a 5.8m tall ‘ñ’ statue to be erected in Landerneau, a town in North-West Brittany, as a celebration of Breton’s revival in the face of such juridical complications.

As a student affiliate to the Chartered Institute of Linguists, and an avid reader of their magazine, The Linguist, I reached out to the magazine’s editor to write an article on the plight of – and fight for – Breton. To my both my surprise and joy, I was delighted to be given the opportunity to feature an article in the Winter 2023 edition of The Linguist! The article traces the historic rise, fall and resurgence of the Breton language, as well as the ongoing efforts in the region to ensure its survival. Read my article here.

As the popular Breton phrase goes, Hep Brezhoneg, Breizh ebet!… Without Breton, there is no Brittany! Minority languages around the world are in danger more than ever before, with a language dying every 40 days. Linguists predict that between 3,400 and 6,120 could become extinct by 21001. Integral to indigenous cultures and regional populations alike, the protection of minority languages is crucial to the future of the world’s linguistic diversity. The preservation efforts of Breton stand as a testament to the resilience of communities striving to maintain their linguistic and cultural heritage, in what is an inspiring story of resurgence for endangered minority languages around the world.

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