Corsican

Where it’s spoken

Corsican (Corsu) is spoken on the French island of Corsica and on the northern Sardinian region of Gallura (Italy), where the Gallurese dialect is closely related. About 130,000 Corsicans speak it as a first language. The University of Corsica supports it, and bilingual signage is widespread.

What it sounds like

Corsican shares much of its phonology and vocabulary with Tuscan Italian. Distinctive features include the rounded ü vowel, palatalized consonants, and a vowel-quality contrast in southern dialects. Stress patterns and rhythm reflect the language’s Romance Mediterranean character.

How it’s written

Corsican uses the Latin alphabet plus grave and circumflex accents to mark stress and vowel quality. There is no single fully standardized orthography — variants like Northern (Cismontano) and Southern (Pumontincu) Corsican are written somewhat differently. The University of Corsica’s grammar guidelines provide a working standard.

History

Corsican developed from the Tuscan dialects of the medieval Pisan and Genoese rulers, with substrate features from earlier Romance speech on the island. France acquired Corsica from Genoa in 1768; French has been the official language since, with Corsican gaining gradual recognition.