Lingua Napoletana and Language Oppression

Summary

Have you ever heard of Lingua Napoletana or Neapolitan, the language of Naples?

In this episode of the Language on the Move Podcast, Tazin Abdullah speaks to Massimiliano Canzanella, a Neapolitan language activist.

The conversation delves into the history of the Neapolitan language and the interplay of culture, race, and national identity that have contributed to the oppression of the language and its speakers. Massimiliano also discusses his own journey as a language activist and the movement to preserve Neapolitan, including his novels, Set Your Soul To It and You Don’t Say, which were the first ever to be written entirely in Neapolitan (and also available in English translation)

For additional resources, show notes, and transcripts, go here.

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Language on the Move

Language on the Move is a podcast about linguistic diversity in social life. Produced and edited by Ingrid Piller and Brynn Quick, our aim is to have in-depth and fun conversations with key thinkers about multilingualism, language learning, and intercultural communication in the contexts of globalization and migration.

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