I will write in English as it´s a long time since I tried to write in
Sicilian. I used to write a few years ago here.

i´d also like to ask you some important questions after my short
spanish comparison.

I find myself now in Spain, Barcelona in the Autonomous region of
Catalunya. I thought i´d like to describe just how opposite Spain´s
approach is to languages compared with Italy.

The dialects we describe every day in Italy are perhaps even more
diverse than the ´languages´ that are recognised, spoken, taught in
school and used in university here. Catalan the language of Catalunya
where i live now is closer to italian than sicilian is to italian,
yet of course it´s no dialect of Italy.

It´s very easy to understand (jo escolta, jo faig, jo treballo etc)
and it is just incredbile and annoying that just a few hundred
kilometers away what you here in this forum would dream of is a
reality here.

Moreover when you consider that their Catalan language was officially
prohibited by Franco´s dictatorship until the 1970´s and that now the
highest percentage of population that speak it are those under 25.

Yet perhaps in Sicily nearly 90% or nearly everyone i know speak
sicilian, more than the percentage here in catalunya where around
officially some 78% understand approximately.

I study here at university and all lectures are in Catalan. When I
tell my teacher what languages I speak I feel I must tell her that
Sicilian is one of them yet when i do it´s unheard of. Yet more
people speak sicilian worldwide in total than Catalan I´d imagine.

I think unfortunately given the political situation in Italy, and i
dare say it our language will most likely never have the liberty that
catalan enjoys.

However the only negative is that this linguistic difference is used
as a catalyst for a cultural nationalism which is out of control in
my opinion where people refuse to speak to you if you approach them
in Spanish. Catalunya attempts to isolate itself in a bubble, not
quite getting the balance to preserving a minority language and
taking advatange of knowing a multinational one.

If Sicilian were to be given such status i´d think it´d take decades
to turn it round to reach Catalans presence here.

If Sicilian were recognised tomorrow how long do you think it´d take
before university lectures could be in Sicilian? Would that even be
achievable? Do any of you consider making a serious campaign to bring
the language that far or do you think it´d be better off as a side
addition in schools as some sort of cultural awarness subject?
ALthough we all speak Sicilian, because it has remained mostly oral
without a development of the language into technical areas would
anyone in Sicily be capable of giving a university lecture on
biochemistry?

For all my arguments with the locals over how i too speak an
independent language i cant escape the striking fact that there is no
national sicilian conscience of any kind in sicily which there is
here. yes we may say semu siciliani, sugnu siciliana di ccà e di ddà
but it goes no further, it lacks any political consciousness or drive
to be anything other than "jo sugnu sicilianu, ma quali ´talianu
haha" ma doppu di chissu chi fai? nenti. parranu e basta..è triste.

daniel