WALSERSPRACHE - The four main objectives of the Alpine Space ...

Gurin aber Was mi net brennt, das blaas i net, ‘Was mich nicht brennt,
das blase ich nicht’ tönte es in Macugnaga wieder vertrauter: Was töd dich
nid bisse, mösch ni chrowwu, ‘Was dich nicht beisst, das kratze nicht’.
Neben der Verbreitung könnten die Bilder im Sprichwort ein Thema
sein, die ja meist etwas ganz anderes meinen, als der Wortlaut zum
Ausdruck bringt. Auch Vergleiche mit italienischen Sprichwörtern bieten
sich an.
Es braucht, und das scheint mir eine unerlässliche Säule im Revitalisierungsprozess
zu sein, Erwachsene, die Lernenden – vorweg Kindern
und Jugendlichen – bereitwillig in «Walser» Auskunft geben.
We have convened here to ponder over the progress of research on Walser language and
its revival south of the Alps. I will speak solely on the revitalisation project. It comes down to
steering this language in the right direction. Enlightened influence must be brought to bear
upon a conscious and well-directed effort on the communication systems of a few Walser
colonies on the southern slopes of the Alps, in order to foster the Walser language. It split into
several dialects right after the settling of these sites by the Walsers centuries ago. These
dialects are variants of Alemannic or, to be more correct, of Higher Alemannic. I would like
to share with you a few thoughts I have been entertaining over the last 40 years of acquaintanceship
with the Italian colonies in connection with the planned revitalisation project. Let
us take a look at Macugnaga in the Eighties. In an inn we find a few men, the innkeeper,
her 10-year old son and myself. First they chatted in an Italian local dialect, while the
innkeeper and myself spoke German. During the conversation the innkeeper asked her son
if he wanted to join us and speak a little “Makanaatitsch”, that is the German dialect from
Macugnaga. He declined the offer with a bored air. Like all the kids from the latest generation,
he had learned too well that the German dialect had become superfluous and
encumbering as an everyday language. In Macugnaga, at that time, out of a population of
760 inhabitants, barely 95 people still spoke German, of which 85 were over 40 years old.
There were no more fluent speakers below the age of 30. The situation has been steeply
declining ever since. The void left by elders passing away was not filled by any youth and
the communication system simply collapsed. The same happened in Alagna. It looks a little
bit brighter in Formazza, Gressoney and Issime. But let’s come back to the revitalisation
process. It is regrettable that there be no umbrella or central organisation for all Walsers in
Italy. It could take over the steering process and the responsibility for managing the entire
project. Periodically it could also send out a call for a brainstorming session or a simple
exchange of ideas and it could act as a central bureau for all information. The only institution
which could take up such a demanding task is the Walser Cultural Centre, established
in 1982 in Gressoney, which so far has quite successfully taken care of the interests
of the three communities in the Lys Valley, Gressoney-St-Jean, Gressoney-Trinité and Issime.
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ANMERKUNGEN ZUM PROJEKT WIEDERBELEBUNG DER WALSERSPRACHE
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