Sassarese (natively ''sassaresu'' or ''turritanu''; sc, tataresu ) is an Italo-Dalmatian language and transitional variety between Sardinian and Corsican. It is regarded as a Corso–

Sardinia Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label=Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after ...

n language because of

Sassari Sassari (, ; sdc, Sàssari ; sc, Tàtari, ) is an Italian city and the second-largest of Sardinia in terms of population with 127,525 inhabitants, and a Functional Urban Area of about 260,000 inhabitants. One of the oldest cities on the island, ...

's historic ties with

Tuscany Tuscany ( ; it, Toscana ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of about 3.8 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence (''Firenze''). Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, art ...

and geographical proximity to

Corsica Corsica ( , Upper , Southern ; it, Corsica; ; french: Corse ; lij, Còrsega; sc, Còssiga) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the 18 regions of France. It is the fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of ...

. Despite the robust Sardinian influences (in terms of vocabulary and phonology, as well as syntax), it still keeps its Corsican (and therefore Tuscan) roots, which closely relate it to

Gallurese Gallurese () is a Romance language from the Italo-Dalmatian family spoken in the region of Gallura, northeastern Sardinia. It is sometimes considered a dialect of southern Corsican or a transitional language between Corsican and Sardinian. ...

; the latter is linguistically considered a Corsican dialect despite its geographical location, although this claim is a matter of controversy. It has several similarities to the

Italian language Italian (''italiano'' or ) is a Romance language of the Indo-European language family that evolved from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire. Together with Sardinian, Italian is the least divergent language from Latin. Spoken by about 85 m ...

, and in particular to the old Italian dialects from

. Sassarese is spoken by approximately 100,000 people, out of a total population of 175,000, in the northwest coastal areas of

, Italy. Large Sassarese-speaking communities are present in

Stintino Stintino ( sdc, Isthintini, sc, Istintìnu) is a coastal ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Sassari in the Italian region Sardinia, located about north of Cagliari and about northwest of Sassari. Geography Stintino is located on the ...

Sorso Sorso ( sdc, Sòssu) is a ''comune'' (municipality) of c. 14,700 inhabitants in the province of Sassari in the Italian region Sardinia, located about north of Sassari. Overview Sorso is a tourist resort facing the Gulf of Asinara. Apart tourism ...

, and

Porto Torres Porto Torres ( sdc, Posthudorra, sc, Portu Turre) is a comune and a city of the Province of Sassari in north-west of Sardinia, Italy. Founded during the 1st century BC as ''Colonia Iulia Turris Libisonis'', it was the first Roman colony of the ...

. The Sassarese varieties transitioning to

, known as the ''Castellanesi'' dialects, can be heard in

Castelsardo Castelsardo ( sdc, Castheddu; sc, Casteddu Sardu) is a town and ''comune'' in Sardinia, Italy, located in the northwest of the island within the Province of Sassari, at the east end of the Gulf of Asinara. History Archaeological excavations have ...

Tergu Tergu ( sdc, Tzelgu) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Sassari in the Italian region Sardinia, located about north of Cagliari and about northeast of Sassari in the Anglona historical regiona. It is home to the Romanesque church ...

, and

Sedini Sedini ( sdc, Séddini) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Sassari in the Italian region Sardinia, located about north of Cagliari and about northeast of Sassari. It is part of the Anglona traditional subregion. Sedini borders t ...

. Sassarese emerged as an urban ''

lingua franca A lingua franca (; ; for plurals see ), also known as a bridge language, common language, trade language, auxiliary language, vehicular language, or link language, is a language systematically used to make communication possible between groups ...

'' in the late part of the age of the Judicates (13th–14th century), based on a mixture of different languages – namely Sardinian, Corsican/Tuscan, and Ligurian. The neighbouring

Logudorese Logudorese Sardinian ( sc, sardu logudoresu, it, sardo logudorese) is one of the two written standards of the Sardinian language, which is often considered one of the most, if not the most conservative of all Romance languages. The orthography ...

dialects of Sardinian exercised a significant influence on the modern linguistic development, along with some

Catalan Catalan may refer to: Catalonia From, or related to Catalonia: * Catalan language, a Romance language * Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia Places * 13178 Catalan, asteroid #1 ...

and

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

vocabulary. There exist many modern and older works both on and in Sassarese, and a number of cultural, social, and theatre events are held regularly in connection with it. In 1943 the German

linguist Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. It is called a scientific study because it entails a comprehensive, systematic, objective, and precise analysis of all aspects of language, particularly its nature and structure. Linguis ...

Max Leopold Wagner Max Leopold Wagner (17 September 1880, Munich – 9July 1962, Washington, D.C.) was a German philologist and ethnologist, particularly known for his studies on the Sardinian language. He also carried out pioneering research on the Spanish language ...

wrote:

Official status

Sassarese is recognized as an official language by the regional government of Sardinia:Official Website of the Autonomous Region of Sardinia
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Text sample:Extract from the
Gospel of Matthew The Gospel of Matthew), or simply Matthew. It is most commonly abbreviated as "Matt." is the first book of the New Testament of the Bible and one of the three synoptic Gospels. It tells how Israel's Messiah, Jesus, comes to his people and for ...
, Mat. 10:15-22

240px, Sassarese compared to Sardinian dialects. Maps of Corsican Dialects

References

External links

A ischora di sassaresu - Sassari.tv

TOGO, Dizionario Italiano-Sassarese
{{Romance languages Sassari Languages of Sardinia Sardinian language Corsican language Languages of Italy

Official status

See also

References

External links