Description :
This episode of Orality and Humanity, broadcast by Radio Pais, is part of the European Tramontana Network (Réseau Tramontana) project, co-funded by the European Union. The programme documents Europe’s oral heritage by recording the voices of people who continue to use regional languages in their daily lives. In this edition, the presenter introduces Fabienne, a young woman from the Luchon valley whose natural and fluent use of the local Gascon dialect demonstrates the vitality of intergenerational language transmission.
Fabienne explains that she learned the language naturally at home, where her parents and family spoke it as their everyday means of communication. Although she later moved away for her studies and now lives near Narbonne, she continues to speak the regional language with her relatives whenever they meet or talk on the telephone. She describes it as the language of her family, her homeland and her identity, while also recalling the challenges she experienced when she first entered school with only limited knowledge of French.
Throughout the interview, Fabienne reflects on her enduring attachment to the mountains where she grew up. She recalls walking alone through forests and mountain paths from an early age, finding peace and happiness in nature, and returning regularly to her home valley despite living elsewhere. For her, these landscapes, childhood memories and the language spoken there remain inseparable, illustrating how oral heritage, personal identity and a strong sense of place continue to shape the lives of younger generations.