Asturian Language Academy

The Asturian Language Academy (in Asturian: Academia de la Llingua Asturiana or ALLA) is a public body of the Government of Asturias founded in 1980 whose purpose is the study, promotion and defense of Asturian.

History

On February 10, 1919, the Royal Asturian Academy of Arts and Letters was created in Gijón, sponsored by people like Pin de Pría, Francisco González Prieto, Fermín Canella or the Count of Revilla Gigedo. It was divided into four sections, and its main objective was to create an Asturian dictionary and grammar and publish a magazine. The other sections were intended to promote Asturian literature, theater and music. This academy had already been proposed in the time of Jovellanos and sowed the seeds of the current one.

In 1945, during the first stage of the Franco regime, the Management Commission of the Provincial Council agreed to the creation of an academic institution, the Instituto de Estudios Asturianos, expressly dedicated to research and study, publishing publications, teaching and dissemination of Asturian culture.

Old headquarters in Oviedo.

With the return of democracy to Spain, the pre-autonomous entity, the Regional Council, approved the creation of another academy, which would be founded on December 15, 1980. Its purposes are, as stated in the statutes approved on April 6 of 1981, and modified on April 12, 1995, research and grammatical normalization of Asturian and its different varieties, inventorying its lexicon, promoting its dissemination, regularizing its teaching, promoting its use as a means of expression for Asturians, promote literary contests, carry out linguistic studies and ensure the linguistic rights of Asturians.

Xosé Lluis García Arias was the president from its foundation until 2001. His successor in office is Ana Cano. The Academy has 24 full members, 20 corresponding members and 16 honorary members.

In Spanish:

The Asturian language is an ancient heritage of the Asturian People and, as such, it is part of the cultural heritage of all Asturians and Asturians without exclusion. This heritage, such as art and other cultural manifestations of ours, needs protection and updating. For this reason, the use of the Asturian language by citizens who want to use it and its recognition as a legal value are the best essential element for its protection and updating. Asturian self-government institutions have an obligation to make the right of Asturian citizens to the use of the Asturian language, in accordance with the current legality, fully effective. In this regard, the General Board of the Principality, a historical body of representation of the Asturians, requires the Government of the Principality to make possible the right of citizens to use the bable in their relations with the Asturian institutions and, at the time, coinciding with the reform of the Statute of Autonomy of Asturias, proposes a definitive decision regarding the legal-official borders of its consideration.

___________________ In Asturian:

The Asturian llingua is a patrimoniu millenariu of the Pueblu Asturianu and, as such, it is part of the cultural heritage of Asturian and Asturian tolos without inclusion. Esti patrimoniu, like l'arte and three cultural manifestations of nueso, needs protection and updating. Poro, l'emplegu de la llingua asturiana per part of citizens who want to facer usu d'ella and the so reconocimientu with valir arrivel are the meyor encontu pa la so proteición y actual. Les instituciones asturianes d'autogobiernu have the obligation to facer que'l derechu de los ciudadanos asturianos al usu de la llingua asturiana seya, acordies cola comeslidá vixente, fully efeutivu. Nesti sen, the Xunta Xeneral del Principáu, muérganu históricu de representación de los asturianos, encamienta al Gobiernu del Principáu que faiga vidable'l derechu de los ciudadanos al emplegu del asturianu nes rellaciones coles instituciones asturianes y, nel soutouficiia

Jobs

In 1981 the first normative work of the Academy was published, Normes Ortográfiques y Conjugación de Verbos. Other notable publications are the Gramática de la Llingua Asturiana in 1998 and in 2000 the Diccionariu de l'Academia de la Llingua Asturiana, also known by its acronym «DALLA ».

It periodically publishes a magazine entitled Lletres Asturianes (official bulletin of the institution), as well as books and magazines related to the study of Asturian language, literature and culture: Cultures. Asturian Culture Magazine and Lliterature. Asturian literary magazine. Among its book collections are: Toponymy (oral place names), Llibrería Llingüística (philological studies), Preseos (vocabularies), Cartafueyos Normativos (regulatory texts applicable to the process of social normalization of the Asturian language), Llibrería Académica (literary creation), Escolín (for children), Lliteratura Xuvenil, Cuquiellu, Mázcara (theatre)...

It also celebrates the Día de les Lletres Asturianes (Day of Asturian Letters) every year since 1982, as well as international study sessions (Xornaes Internacionales d'Estudiu), on an annual basis, and the biannual Alcuentru "Llingua Minoritaria y Educación".

Complete list of academics