Stan at Sentence First just posted a list of interesting links. One of them brought me to an article on Venetian. I was immediately fascinated by the subject, maybe it’s because of my interest in Scots, which also opens for a debate on whether it is a language or a dialect.
I have, as mentioned earlier, spent many summers in Italy. These have been spent in the area around Venice, and I have also visited the city itself multiple times. I also have friends from the area, and language has been discussed on more than one occasion. However, I have never once heard anyone mention Venetian. Neither by name, nor has anyone mentioned a dialect different to the one I have heard.
The story of a variety (always the safe word to use) that has developed independently from Italian for so many years, and still hold such a strong position as the article claims, is an astonishing story. I have noted the name of the book written by a scholar at the University of St Andrews (which the article is based on) and will try to find time for it sometime. For now I’ll just share the story with you, and hope that I might get some information for free (maybe you’ve already read the book? I f you have any knowledge of Venetian at all, please, do share!)
Anne blabbers 