Culture of Brittany

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The culture of Brittany is the patterns of human activity and symbolism associated with the historical region of Brittany in northwestern France and the Breton people. Breton culture has been influenced by various local and nearby traditions over the centuries, including the Celtic culture of the Britons and Gauls and French culture to a lesser extent, particularly in Upper Brittany.

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Modern day Brittany (Breton : Breizh, Gallo: Bertaeyn, French : Bretagne) is considered a historical region, which includes the Loire-Atlantique department. It was once independent as the Duchy of Brittany, with its capital in Nantes, and then it became duchy within the Kingdom of France before being ultimately integrated into France in 1491. Therefore, it is not meant to be confused with the administrative region of Brittany, which are the boundaries of Brittany as politically defined by France's historical Vichy regime since 1941. Brittany's strongest international connections tend to be in the United Kingdom, particularly in the Celtic Brythonic groups of Cornwall and Wales, and in Canada.

Language

The languages traditionally spoken in Brittany are Breton, a Celtic language, and Gallo, a Romance language that forms part of the Langues d'oïl group. The region of Brittany used to be divided by an imaginary line into two subdivisions based on linguistic boundaries between Gallo and Breton. Upper Brittany is the area surrounding eastern Brittany, which is where the Gallo was predominant, and Lower Brittany is located in the west, where Breton was more widely spoken. It's worth noting the imaginary line has been constantly evolving due to Romance influence, but the line is considered to start in the commune Ploërmel. However, both languages have been on the decline in the region since the French Revolution, as the people who kept speaking them were seen as "counterrevolutionary" and the regional languages and dialects were heavily discouraged by the Government of France. Today, the main language of Brittany is French.

Breton

Breton is a Celtic language, part of the Brittonic branch.

Gallo

Gallo is a Romance language.

Costume

Festivals

Flag

Music

See also

French Wikipedia links

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flag of Brittany</span> French regional flag

The flag of Brittany, a region in the northwest of France, is called the Gwenn-ha-du, which means white and black, in Breton. The flag was designed in 1923 by Morvan Marchal. It is also unofficially used in the department of Loire-Atlantique, although this now belongs to the Pays de la Loire and not to the region of Brittany, as the territory of Loire-Atlantique is historically part of the province of Brittany. Nantes, its prefecture, was once one of the two capital cities of Brittany.

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The Festival interceltique de Lorient (French), Emvod Ar Gelted An Oriant (Breton) or Inter-Celtic Festival of Lorient in English, is an annual Celtic festival, located in the city of Lorient, Brittany, France. It was founded in 1971 by Polig Monjarret.

TV Breizh is a private French regional station for the Brittany region.

AberFest is a Celtic cultural festival celebrating all things Cornish and Breton that takes place every second year in Cornwall, UK, around Easter. The AberFest Festival alternates with the Breizh – Kernow Festival which is held in Brandivy or Bignan in Brittany, alternating between those two Breton locations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pan Celtic Festival</span> Celtic-language music festival

The Pan Celtic Festival is a Celtic-language music festival held annually in the week following Easter, in Ireland, since its inauguration in 1971. The first Pan Celtic Festival took place in Killarney, County Kerry, Ireland. Its aim is to promote the modern Celtic languages and cultures and artists from six Celtic nations: Brittany, Cornwall, Ireland, Isle of Man, Scotland and Wales.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Upper Brittany</span> Eastern portion of Brittany

Upper Brittany is the eastern part of Brittany, France, which is predominantly of a Romance culture and is associated with the Gallo language. The name is in counterpoint to Lower Brittany, the western part of the ancient province and present-day region, where the Breton language has traditionally been spoken. However, there is no certainty as to exactly where the line between 'Upper' and 'Lower' Brittany falls.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Linguistic boundary of Brittany</span> Language border

The language boundary in Brittany is the language border between the part of Brittany where Breton is spoken and the area in Brittany where Gallo is spoken. The existence of this linguistic border led to differentiate the Celtic-speaking Lower Brittany (West) from the Romance-speaking Upper Brittany (East).

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