Low-Brittany

The Low-Brittany , Breizh Izel in Breton, designates in opposition to the High-Brittany all the Western part of the Brittany located at the West of Ploërmel. It is the area where is traditionally spoken the Breton language, from where its other name of Breton-speaking Brittany, pleasantly also called Brittany thundering.

History

The name

If one refers the other area following the example of (Low Lorraine /Haute-Lorraine, Bas- Poitou /Haut-Poitou) the qualifiers of “Bottom” and “High” refer to the position of the capital of the province. Indeed the altitude of Low-Brittany is higher than that High. The ducal court and institutions (French-speaking) had their seat with Ploërmel, Nantes or Rennes. However of 1380 to 1460 the capital was Vannes /Gwened, located in Low-Brittany (Breton-speaking).

Traditionally, theBreton ones say Bretons, and call their country Brittany. In the same way, for outside, “Brittany” without precision referred a long time to this only Low-Brittany (this is still often true nowadays). It was the only one with being highly remarkable, because of Breton language, of the “typical” folklore so, and also of insulation civilisationnel of the country. Thus, about many testimonys since the XIXe century speak about a change of world at the time of the arrival in Low-Brittany.

In French, the “low” adjective is pejorative, and it is readily omitted (or replaced: from where “Corsica of the South” beside “Haute-Corse”, “University of Western Brittany”…). The collectors as Luzel however always specified it, by concern for exactitude.
The French-speaking people wanting to speak about this area with contempt take care to specify the adjective.

The Breton term “Breizh Izel” is mentioned in many Breton songs of XIXe and XXe century. Contrary to French, " Izel" into Breton is not pejorative.

The image of Breton (inhabitant and language) is now associated with this concept of " bas" and each one can of gausser impunénément.

Limit between Low and High-Brittany

Being based on the linguistic Border, it corresponds very little to the administrative units. It was already established in XIVe century, and varied little (but always in the direction of the retreat of the Breton language).
In 1588, the historian Bertrand d' Argentré makes it leave the surroundings of Binic to North until Guérande to the South, by leaving in High-Brittany the communes of Loudéac, Josselin, Malestroit… In 1886, Paul Sébillot makes go this “linguistic border” of Plouha to Batz-on-Sea: it moved back of a few kilometers. Other old charts represent it, going back to 1601, of 1695.

At the XIXe century, the nationalist movement creates for itself and asserts political rights for historical Brittany, that of the old duchy, corresponding to the 5 departments: these claims do not relate to Low-Brittany in itself. The social origin of the nationalists, nobility and middle-classes mainly French-speaking, explains why they supported the historical unit in their claim rather than to seek to create two Bretagnes according to the linguistic surfaces.

After 68, the entities of left of the Breton movement either did not center their claims on Low-Brittany…

See too

External bonds

Directory of sites on Brittany
Chart of 1695, presenting the limit
" With the research of the frontière" : Presentation of the book of Fañch Broudic ISBN 2-906373-44-3

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