In Valais, the Cantonal Federation of Friends of Patois has launched a weekly weather bulletin in patois since last October. The opportunity to discover the richness of this language with dialectologist Gisèle Pannatier.
An oral language, only mastered by the oldest, the Valais patois and its transmission are threatened. This is why for seventy years, the Cantonal Federation of Friends of Patois has been increasing its actions to keep this language of Franco-Provençal origin alive and valued.
On the occasion of this anniversary, the Valais federation, in collaboration with the Friends of the Patois of Troistorrents which is celebrating its thirty years, offers each week on internet a weather report in one of the regional dialects (Bagnes, Anniviers, Evolène, etc.)
A very rich vocabulary
Like the Inuit and their fifty words to describe snow, Valais patois is also a language strongly influenced by its environment.
>> Listen to the interview with dialectologist Gisèle Pannatier in Forum:
“It is an oral language which developed in very specific geographical and sociological conditions,” explains Valais dialectologist Gisèle Pannatier in the Forum program on January 6. It is characterized by the observation of nature, the ‘observation of the world’. And the specialist adds: “It is also a language of concreteness, of action, where the verb has a lot of importance”.
A delicate situation
Apart from the exception of the commune of Evolène (where all generations are able to express themselves in patois), the number of speakers capable of speaking it is decreasing drastically.
-In this context, the school has a role to play, according to Gisèle Pannatier. For the dialectologist, the idea is not so much to transmit this oral language, but rather to promote it: “In my opinion, the school should transmit knowledge about the patois, because the linguistic reality in French-speaking Switzerland is often little known.
For the president of the Valais Federation of Friends of Patois, “the promotion of the language also contributes to its position in society. However, for a long time, patois has been decried and despised, as being an instrument hostile to progress”.
In addition to weather reports, the Federation of Friends of Patois also offers texts and plays. Without forgetting the daily practice that can be done with local elders.
Comments collected by Thibaut Schaller and Valentin Emery
Web adaptation: Sarah Clément
