ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the current state of maintenance and revitalization of eastern Brittany’s Oïl language variety, Gallo. Following a description of the sociolinguistic context of regional languages in France today, this chapter focuses on maintenance and revitalization efforts for Gallo. Gallo promotion organizations comprising teachers, linguists, enthusiasts, and activists are working hard at a local and regional level to ensure that there is a greater awareness of the existence of this language variety and to foster an appreciation of the importance of its maintenance and revitalization. Whether these efforts will help Gallo become more used in eastern Brittany’s everyday sociolinguistic landscape remains to be seen. However, Gallo promotional organizations appear to be establishing the symbolic and cultural value of Gallo as part of Brittany’s languages, and are thereby solidifying a claim for regional language status for Gallo and by extension the other Oïl language varieties of Northern France.
