Sardinian: not a dialect, but a language closely related to Latin

Italy is a country of many languages ​​and dialects: officially there are 34. But if you include the dialects of all the individual towns and villages, there are probably many more. Well-known languages ​​and dialects are of course Italian, Sicilian (U Sicilianu), Neapolitan (Napulitano) and Roman (Romanesco). A language that many people are less familiar with is Sardinian (Sardu). I would like to introduce you to it!

Unfortunately, I speak very little Sardinian myself. My Sardinian father spoke a lot of Italian to me when I was younger. A development that is also visible on the island itself: fewer and fewer young people speak a good word of Sardinian.

Not surprising in itself, this also happens in the Netherlands. You can compare it with Frisian: also officially a different language than Dutch, but a lot less spoken than about 100 years ago. In a way it's a shame, because Sardinian is a unique language.

The history of the Sardinian language

The history of the Sardinian language is quite complex, due to the many cultures that have come and gone over time. After the fall of the Roman Empire, Sardinia was occupied by Carthaginians, Vandals, Byzantines, Pisans, Genoese and Spaniards, among others. The result? A mix of loanwords and expressions from several languages, such as Latin, Greek, Arabic and Catalan.

The exact origin of Sardinian still remains somewhat mysterious. However, most linguists agree that Sardinian belongs to the Romance language family and is closely related to Latin. Some would even say that it is the modern language that most resembles Latin. 

Despite all influences, Sardinian has retained its own identity. Different dialects of Sardinian are also spoken in different regions of the island. The Campidanese dialect is mainly spoken in the south, while the Logudorese dialect is dominant in the north. These dialects are thus often considered variants of Sardinian, but some linguists would even call them separate languages.

Contemporary Sardinian

Nowadays Sardinian faces some challenges. The dominance of Italian as the official language of Italy has caused a decline in the use of Sardinian, especially among young people and in urban areas.

But it is not extinct yet: about 80% of Sardinians still speak Sardinian. It is worth mentioning that the vast majority of speakers of the language live on the island. Sardinia has a population of 1,5 million, and there are 1,35 million speakers of Sardinian in the world.

In many primary schools, lessons are given in Sardinian. A law was passed for this in 2018, with the aim of keeping the Sardinian language alive. In itself this works quite well, but Sardinian still has the reputation of being a 'peasant' language. For that reason, things like official documents and street signs are still written in Italian.

A lesson in Sardinian

Sardinian is quite different from Italian. I speak Italian at a basic level, but you can't make much of Sardinian with that knowledge. So when my aunts asked me something in Sardinian during holidays, I looked at them sheepishly. During my research for this article, I learned something myself. Time for a short lesson in Sardinian!

You may recognize some words from Spanish. A few other words show similarities with Italian. So you can see that it really is a mixture of different languages ​​and dialects.

My personal favorite Sardinian word is ajò, which means something like 'come on'. A Sardinian might say this when he disagrees with you, for example. But also when he calls his friends to go, in a pleasant way. There is no literal translation of it, and that is exactly what makes it so authentic. When you visit Sardinia you will hear the expression 'ajò' therefore regularly encountered on souvenirs such as t-shirts.

Just practice

In the Netherlands you can take numerous courses to learn Italian, for example the one from This is Italy. Unfortunately, taking a Sardinian course is a bit more difficult, at least from Dutch. But if you speak English or Italian quite well, you can use the app GigaSardinian Install to learn Sardinian. Please note, the app is only available on Android systems. If you don't have one, you can too the free pdf .

After reading this article, are you already eager to practice your Sardinian? Pack your suitcases: Sardinia is a large and diverse island with many beautiful destinations, such as Pula of Alghero.