On Monday, December 29, 2003, at 12:34 PM, Mate Kapovic wrote:
> Assimilated from the very beginning it seems. Romance was kept only in
> the
> coast and islands (Ragusian, Dalmatian/Vegliote, Istriot/Istroromance)
> from
> which it is now alive only in Istria.
I was referring to a distinct South Romanian linguistic
group. Not to the Vegliots (extinct in the 19th c.),
and not to the Istro-Romanians (very few today). But
to another group, that seem to have been closer to
the Aromanian (Macedo-Romanian) branch.
Anyway, I put the question to you only because earlier
this year I watched a Romanian TV report on such
people somewhere near the Dalmatian coast, but some
where (I forgot where) which is farther South. People
from among 3 families, gathered in a location, were
interviewed, and they could understand very simple
Romanian sentences, as well as utter themselves
some simple sentences in a "primitive", weird kind
of Romanian. They were aware of belonging to that
"morlak" group of Romanians, but they were otherwise
assimilated: their everyday's language is Croatian;
their surnames too.
Experts (both local and from Romania) who also
talked in that TV documentation said people from
this linguistic group moved closer to the Adriatic
coast several centuries ago, coming from the interior
of the peninsula, presumably from areas densely
populated with Aromanians or even... Romanians
(of East Croatia and Serbia).
Well, I can't tell you more, because I was sitting
twiddling thumbs, and not jotting down information. :-))
> Mate
George