UNESCO, in its Atlas of Languages in Danger in the World,

On 24 February 2010, a parliamentary group from the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party presented a proposition to the courts of Castile and León to recognize the value of Leonese and implement a plan to protect and promote it. Although the proposition was approved unan

On 24 February 2010, a parliamentary group from the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party presented a proposition to the courts of Castile and León to recognize the value of Leonese and implement a plan to protect and promote it. Although the proposition was approved unanimously by the plenary session of the parliament of Castile and León on 26 May, the government's position has not changed.

UNESCO, in its Atlas of Languages in Danger in the World,^[26] lists Leonese in the most at-risk category. The category's criteria are:

• unofficial
• without legitimized significant use in the news media
• low levels of proficiency and use
• poor social prestige
• not used as a medium of primary education
• not used in official toponyms

Standardization

The Autonomous Community of Castile and León lacks a government agency to promote minority languages and a nongovernmental agency in an advisory capacity in matters pertaining to minority languages. The Academy of the Asturian Language has sponsored linguistic and sociolinguistic research, which encompasses the non-Asturian dialects of Asturian-Leonese. Two congresses about Leonese have been held, at which the following measures were proposed to move towards language standardization:

• B

  The Autonomous Community of Castile and León lacks a government agency to promote minority languages and a nongovernmental agency in an advisory capacity in matters pertaining to minority languages. The Academy of the Asturian Language has sponsored linguistic and sociolinguistic research, which encompasses the non-Asturian dialects of Asturian-Leonese. Two congresses about Leonese have been held, at which the following measures were proposed to move towards language standardization:

  • Based on articles 5.2 and 5.3 of the Statute of Autonomy, raise the legal status of Leonese to equal that of Galician.
  • Create an autonomous administrative organ under the Departament of Culture and Tourism responsible for protecting and promoting Leonese and Galician.
  • Introduce Leonese into adult and childhood education.
  • Recover native toponymy with bilingual signage.
  • Support cultural and literary Leonese and its publications and collaborate with associations which base their work on the recovery of Leonese, encourage Leonese in soc

    For about 15 years cultural associations have offered Leonese-language courses, sometimes with the support of local administrations in the provinces of Leon and Zamora. In 2001, the Universidad de León (University of León) created a course for teachers of Leonese. The dialect can be studied in the larger villages of León, Zamora and Salamanca provinces as El Fueyu courses, following an agreement between the Leonese provincial government and the organization. The Leonese Language Teachers and Monitors Association (Asociación de Profesores y Monitores de Llingua Llïonesa) was created in 2008 to promote Leonese-language activities.

    Literature

    Leonese literature includes:

    • Benigno Suárez Ramos, El tío perruca, 1976.