Catalan language in travel literature in the first third of the nineteenth century

Abstract

This paper analyses the descriptions of the Catalan language made by travellers who traversed the Catalan Countries and, especially, the Valencian Country during the first third of the 19th century. It is also aimed at examining the linguistic observations and perceptions of these travellers about the Catalan language, especially about its internal unity/diversity, its classification within other Romance languages, and its use by the inhabitants of these territories. The works studied are not only travel books, but also those informative texts that serve travellers to guide and contextualize their itineraries: travel guides and topography and geography works, among others. All these authors come from outside the Catalan-speaking territories: there are Germans, English, French, Scots and Americans who, for different reasons, travelled throughout the Catalan Countries, described this territory and explained —with greater or lesser attention and precision— the language spoken by its inhabitants and its main characteristics.