PIEDMONTESE

Piedmontese is a Romance language of northwest Italy. It is spoken by approximately 1.6 million speakers globally, which includes the populations in Italy and adjacent communities in France and Switzerland as well as sizable expatriate communities in parts of North and South America.

Unlike many regional languages of Italy, Piedmontese has a long written history, and there are contemporary efforts to promote and teach the language. Nevertheless, the dominance of standard Italian in daily life and a sharp decrease in the use of Piedmontese amongst the younger generations makes it vulnerable to loss.

Toronto is home to several dozen Piedmontese speakers. In the following video, a speaker of the Solerino dialect talks about her language and shares a tale of her grandfather.

If you are a speaker of Piedmontese in the Toronto area and would like to participate in our project, please contact us.