Norman

The North Frisian writer, painter and revolutionary Harro Paul Harring (1798–1870) committed suicide in exile in Saint Helier (St Hélyi, Saint-Hélier) on Jersey. Both the Channel Islands (British Crown Dependencies) and mainland Normandy (which belongs to France) were occupied by German forces during World War II.

Language information: Norman is traditionally considered a French dialect group and as such tends to be referred to as “Norman French” or “patois.” An alternative view that is gaining popularity is that it is a language in its own right.
     Some Norman dialects have written traditions. In general, French orthographic conventions are used to write them.
     There are two main areas in which Norman is used: Normandy (Norman Normaundie, French Normandie) in Northern France, and the British-administered Channel Islands (Norman Îles d’la Manche, French Îles anglo-normandes). While the mainland group (Norman normaund, French normand) consists of numerous dialects, there is one variety each on the Channel Islands Jersey (Jersey Norman Jèrri), Guernsey (Guernsey Norman Guernési) and Sark (Sark Norman Sèr, French Sercq). These insular varieties are natively known as Jèrriais, Guernésiais and Sèrtchais respectively, the latter two for some reason mostly referred to by outsiders in the Jersey way as Dgèrnésiais and Sercquiais (or Serkyee) respectively, thus demonstrating Jersey dominance. Of these, the varieties of Jersey and Guernsey have been officially recognized as regional languages by the British government. The name “French” is still being used, however, even by locals, such as “Jersey French,” sometimes even the label “patois” that to most people connotes inferiority to “good,” “correct” French. Fairly recently extinct is the variety of the Channel Island Alderney (Alderney Norman Aoeur’gny, French Aurigny).
     Like its close relatives French, Walloon, Champenois, Picard and Gallo, Norman belongs to the Oïl group of the Gallo-Romance branch, all of whose members developed on Celtic substrates hailing back to Gaulish predominance of the area. In addition to that, Norman appears to have a North Germanic adstratum of influences going back to the era when Normandy was invaded and ruled by Normans (“Northmen”) from Scandinavia.
     Another member of the Norman language is Anglo-Norman which developed in Britain after the Norman Conquest (1066) as the language of prestige among English descendants of Norman occupiers and their English sycophants and admirers. While Anglo-Norman lost prestige almost three centuries after the Norman Conquest and finally became extinct, some Anglo-Norman phrases are still used in royal ceremonies today. Many “French” loans in English are in fact Anglo-Norman loans, such as “cabbage” (< caboche, cf. French chou), “catch” (< cachi; cf. French chasser), “fashion” (< faichon, cf. French façon), “wicket” (< viquet, cf. French guichet), “pocket” (< pouquette, cf. French poche), “fork” (< fouorque, cf. French fourche), “garden” (< gardin, cf. French jardin), “candle” (< caundèle, cf. French chandelle), and “castle” (< castel, cf. French château). As can be seen in these examples, Norman phonology is by and large more conservative than French phonology.

Genealogy: Indo-European > Italic > Romance > Italo-Western > Western > Gallo-Iberian > Gallo-Romance > Gallo-Rhaetian > Oïl > Norman

Historical Lowlands language contacts: English

    Click to open the translation: [Guernsey]

Author: Reinhard F. Hahn