Latin Europe
[[Image:LatinEurope.gif|thumb|250px|right|
Latin Europe]]
Latin Europe (
Italian/
Portuguese/
Spanish:
Europa latina;
Romanian: Europa latină; French:
Europe latine) is composed of those nations and areas in
Europe that speak a
Romance language and are seen as having a distinct culture from the
Germanic and
Slavic parts of Europe.
The term "Latin Europe" is originally used for four countries around the northwestern
Mediterranean basin (also known as the
Latin Arch);
Italy,
France,
Spain and on the
Iberian peninsula (but not on the Mediterranean littoral);
Portugal. These countries are thought to have a common linguistic background (i.e. languages derived from
Vulgar Latin) and
Roman Catholicism as the prevalent religion. This definition, in a larger sense, also includes smaller political entities of
Andorra,
Monaco,
San Marino, and
Vatican City (all of these states are members of the
Latin Union), along with adjacent
Wallonia (in
Belgium),
Romandy and
Italian- and
Romansh-speaking Switzerland.
Istria county in
Croatia and Italian-speaking municipalities of
Slovenia, often seen linguistically and culturally integral with neighbouring Italy, and
Dalmatia, with its own (now extinct) Romance language
Dalmatian, may also be mentioned. On the other hand, in particular contexts, the usage of "Latin Europe" may well be ambiguous such as inclusion of
Israel. [
1]
Romania and
Moldova have Romance languages but are located far from the core of Latin Europe, in the milieu of "
Slavic Europe" and
Eastern Orthodoxy. However, these countries have shown conscious enthusiasm for recognition as parts of Latin Europe, historically expressed in official regulation of
Latin Romanian script in
1860, Romanian spelling reform in
1993, and installation of
Moldovan Latin script in
1989. Both of these countries are, currently, full members of the Latin Union.
Note that some parts of the countries above have non-Romance languages and cultural traits distinct from most of Latin Europe:
*
Alsace-Moselle and
French Flanders in France has mostly Germanic roots
*
South Tyrol in
Italy is a predominantly German-speaking area, with German as an official language alongside Italian
*
Brittany in France is considered as a "
Celtic nation",
Galicia and
Asturias in Spain, and some regions in the North of
Portugal (notably in the regions of
Minho and
Trás-os-Montes) show a Celtic flavour
*Some parts of the Italian region of
Friuli-Venezia Giulia are Slovenian-speaking, with Slovenian having the status of official language alongside Italian and Friulian
*
Basque is a co-official language in the autonomous regions of
Basque Country and
Navarre in Spain. The neighbouring French region of
Pays Basque shows a Basque identity, even if Basque language is spoken by few.
Latin America is an equivalent term to refer to countries in the
Americas with a
Romance language. Although the language and cultural features of parts of the society (often the
creoles and the
Southern Cone) is derived directly from Latin Europe, Latin American countries have partial Latin culture, due to
Amerindian and
African influence. The use of the words
Latin and
latino as used in the
United States and in the
Americas to speak only about Latin-American things is considered ignorance-derived by Latin Europeans, and can be considered offensive.
*
Roman Empire*
Western Roman Empire*
Latin peoples*
Latin Right*
Romance copula*
Germanic Europe*
Slavic Europe*
South Europe
