Monégasque dialect

Monégasque has been officially taught[4] in the schools of Monaco since 1972 and was made a compulsory subject in 1976,[5] but is the native language of only a handful of people.

Prior to the Genoese settlers, the main language of the region was Provençal, as spoken in the nearby localities of Menton and Roquebrune.

At this time the population of Monaco was mainly made up of immigrants and descendants from Genoa and other parts of Liguria, and though Monégasque was not written, it was openly spoken and passed down through families by oral tradition.

Monégasque was then demoted to a "patois," and barred from being taught or spoken in public and religious schools until 1976, in a similar manner to that of Occitan in France.

[7][8][9] The first written traces of Monégasque appear between 1721 and 1729 in the correspondence of Antonio I with his daughter Louise Hippolyte, as well as in a few notarial deeds, but the language remained above all, oral.

From 1860, the population of Monaco City rose from 1,200 inhabitants in 1860 to 22,000 in 1880; Monégasque found itself threatened by the massive influx of foreign workers and by the development of a pidgin mixing Provençal, Piedmontese, Corsican, French, and Ligurian.

Adult education and lessons to foreign residents are carried out and there is an annual language competition for schoolchildren over which the Prince presides.

Despœi tugiù sciü d'u nostru paise Se ride au ventu, u meme pavayùn Despœi tugiù a curù russa e gianca E stà l'emblema, d'a nostra libertà Grandi e i piciui, l'an sempre respetà The following is a Monégasque rendering of the Hail Mary:[15] Ave Maria, Tüta de graçia u Signù è cun tü si benedëta tra tüt'ë done e Gesü u to Fiyu è benejiu.

Santa Maria, maire de Diu, prega per nùi, pecatùi aùra e à l'ura d'a nostra morte AMEN.