Catalan

Of course in Barcelona whilst they all speak Spanish, they have another official language which is Catalan, so don’t be surprised if you don’t understand some of the signs and menus! But, one thing is sure – it differs a LOT from Castilian Spanish!

Because the Catalans are very good business people, they have developed a reputation in Spain as being reluctant to spend money, a bit like the Scottish in Britain. All the jokes about mean people in Spain involve the Catalans.

To hear how the Castilian language sounds, view the free video on www.spanishlanguagesite.com (lesson two) where I pronounce the vowels to help my Spanish language students… on this page you can also view a close up of me saying them – steady ladies! – to help you form those tricky Spanish sounds.

Have you heard this Catalan joke?

¿Cómo meterías a 40 Catalanes en un coche? Tirando una moneda dentro.
Y, ¿como los sacarías?
Diciéndoles que es un taxi.

How do you get 40 Catalanes in a car?
Throw a coin inside
And, how do you get them out?
Tell them it’s a taxi.