L’Asturianu: Una Llingua Sin Reconocimientu
In northern Spain, where the rain mist known as orbayu softens the sky, the Asturian language is quietly fighting for survival. Although it is not officially recognized like neighboring languages such as Catalan or Basque, Asturian remains embedded in the hearts and expressions of people who call Asturias home.
“Asturian is older than Spanish,” said Álvaro Cayetano, who translates books from English to Asturian. “It coexisted with Latin, but after the 13th century, when they made Spanish the official language of the kingdom, Asturian was pushed to the rural corners of society.”
Today, it lingers in rural areas where it is fragile, beloved and fading. Cultural and political neglect over generations has left the language teetering between slow extinction and proud tradition.
“I used to think Asturian was dead,” said Cayetano. “But if you go away from central Asturias, a little bit down to the south, there are lots of people who still use it. It’s still alive.”
Unlike other regional languages in Spain, Asturian lacks official status from the Spanish government due to its limited number of active speakers and reduced institutional power. As a result, it remains underfunded, optional in schools and absent in many areas of public life.
“People are trying to promote it,” said Cayetano. “But it's never enough. You have the right-wing side of the government that are not even anti-Asturian – they just don't want to because of money.”
Even within Asturias, skepticism persists. “Well, it's not an official language, so there's no real use to knowing it,” said Salvador Domingo Evans, who goes to high school in Asturias. “The only people who speak it are people in the countryside.”
Yet for many, Asturian is far more than a functional language. It’s an emotional link to home and heritage.
“I grew up listening to my grandma and my aunt speak Asturian, so to me it feels like home,” said Sara Álvarez, an Asturian native, language scholar and teacher. “Now that my aunt has passed away, whenever I hear Asturian, it just reminds me of her. It really warms my heart.”
Álvarez said younger people use regional expressions, but few speak the language fluently.
“People don’t have the habit of speaking Asturian, and people are losing interest in the language,” she said. “It’s probably been neglected by the younger generations. I would love to be more connected to it and be fluent in it, but we don’t have the resources. If you don’t have a connection with the older people, it’s really difficult to keep up.”
There are efforts to reverse the decline. “That’s why the Asturian government wants to implement Asturian classes in schools,” said Álvarez. “If your grandparents come from other parts of the country and you’re not connected to the language, it’s been lost. Regardless of whether you grow up here or not, you’re not going to be connected to it.”
Revitalization still faces logistical, cultural and political challenges. As young people move to the cities, fewer remain in rural communities to carry on the Asturian language.
“We have a sentence in Asturian that reads ojalā quiērante como un Asturianu quier Asturie – I hope that somebody loves you as much as an Asturian loves Asturias,” said Álvarez. “All we would ever want for someone else is to be loved the same way we love our culture and our heritage and our language.”