Moreover, all Romance languages except Romanian have discarded the Latin scheme of six different cases for the noun, retaining only one case. As a result, the grammatical relationships of words are clarified chiefly by prepositions and word order instead of by inflections, as in Latin. On the other hand, verbs in the Romance languages have preserved a highly developed conjugational system, inherited from Latin, in which the inflections make clear person and number, tense and mood.
See articles on individual languages mentioned. See W. Edcock, The Romance Languages ; C. Burgeoning wealth and greater patronage of learning and the arts created an impetus for proper language standards.
From the late fifteenth century onward, as the Spanish, Portuguese, and French empires staked their claims to parts of the Americas, the Caribbean, Africa, India, and the Pacific, there was a drive to cultivate a language of prestige—one that would project stateliness and grandeur across the globe.
By the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, with the other kingdoms waning, French had beaten all competitors as the global medium for intellectual exchange. This influenced the trajectory of the other Romance languages, although French has always been the most carefully cultivated. But what accounts for the variety of the Romance languages? How did they sprout and diversify from Vulgar Latin—through fusion with the existing local languages, or through regional differences in accent and intonation?
Each theory has its merits, but in the end, we can only guess. And why do we use it to describe erotic love? Read on. And this is where we get romantic comedies that end with a kiss while fireworks explode in the background. In the twelfth century, folk minstrels known as Troubadours started composing extraordinarily popular love ballads.
The earliest and most widely acclaimed ones came from the region of Provence, in southern France. The Troubadour songs traveled to Italy and then to Spain, gaining an audience among other Romance speakers and generating lively discussion about the origins of European speech see above.
They had a profound effect on altering popular perception of the emerging Romance languages. Previously, Latin had been the sole language of literature in Western Europe. The new tongues came to be seen, however, as suitable vehicles for literary expression, filling the void left by the widespread use of Latin.
It was possible to write beautiful poetry in the vernacular. However, the Troubadour ballads had an even more profound effect on Western notions of love. These poetic tales usually feature a knight undertaking a difficult journey or performing daring feats at the behest of a lady.
They are full of magical, fantastical elements, quests, and heroism—but above all, a unique ideal of courtly love. The knight always approaches the lady humbly, considering himself unworthy of her affection; he pledges personal loyalty, and will do anything to satisfy her smallest request; and his reverence for her borders on worship.
Their relationship is governed by rituals of politeness, grace, service, and obligation. From these stories we get the idea of chivalry, the knightly code. Paradoxically, although this type of love—what the Troubadours called domnei —had erotic undertones, it was also thought to have a purifying and ennobling effect on the lover. He might never be physically intimate with the lady—in some versions, even hoping for intimacy would be impertinent! This was a radical shift in the conception of male-female relationships.
Au contraire! We find nothing like this formulation in Western literature prior to the Troubadours. And after them, we find it everywhere. Today you can spot all these elements in thousands of Hollywood movies and paperbacks.
In fact over 90 million worldwide express Ti amo tee ah-moh in Italian. Like French and many other languages, love is not really interchangeable. Why not? Romance and love can be expressed in many different ways, from sayings that show your appreciation, your admiration, and your affection for someone. Romanian is spoken by around 24 million native speakers and around 4 million second language speakers. Romanian is the official language of Romania and the most spoken language of Moldova.
By continuing to browse the site you are agreeing to our use of cookies. Who knows you might impress your sweetheart more by expressing yourself this way than with flowers or chocolate. A top 5 guide and complete list. All News Culture What are the Romance languages? A top 5 guide and complete list October 11, Jo Hartley. The romance languages. How romantic are they? Then, what are romance languages and why are they called that? How many people speak Romance languages? In many countries, Romance languages are spoken as a second language.
French French is the third most spoken Romance language and the second most spoken language in Europe after German. Italian Because of its similarities in vocabulary and pronunciation, Italian is considered one of the closest languages to Latin. Romanian Romanian is spoken by approximately million people as a native language and another 4 million people as a second language.
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