AHC: Combine Romance

Kingpoleon

Banned
With a POD no earlier than 1700, combine as many Romance languages as possible into one language by 2015. This language, let's call it Romanese, could have dialects as similar as Catalan is to Aragonese, or Aragonese to Spanish. Please try to explain it with as many linguistic maps and linguistic explanations as possible. Please do not protest the "impossibility" of this, regardless of your personal opinions or your own handpicked facts.
 
"Romanese"

Napoleon conquers Spain and Italy, and holds them long enough for societies and languages to merge into one.
 
Napoleon conquers Spain and Italy, and holds them long enough for societies and languages to merge into one.

Well, that's going to be awfully hard considering that the Spanish heavily resisted Napoleon and resistance against the French would form a basis for the survival of a separate Spanish language and culture no matter what the French try. Italy would be more sympathetic.

It would actually be more likely if Revolutionary France stayed a Republic, with Napoleon maybe still becoming a First Consul but otherwise staying staunchly republican, not trying to found a dynasty and eventually losing power when France has finished the subjugation of its enemies. Trying to unite the Romance languages in the framework of either a single state or a confederation of states (probably the latter, as nationalism will be an issue in case of the former) is much, much easier in a republican framework, thanks to ideological solidarity. A French-led loose confederation of republics (kind of a proto-EU, in fact), if it formed, would need to pretty much achieve most of Napoleon's dreams and hegemonize Central Europe, or the old order would try to destroy them again and again, and eventually succeed.

The republican ideal of "Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité" would also serve to provide justification for the common language (to tighten the bonds of brotherhood). At some point, no later than in the mid-1800s, someone proposes the idea of creating a common Romance language (preferably someone who is not French, as that might have negative connotations of "French cultural imperialism"), and through some miracle, others agree. I think it's going to be pretty damn hard for this language to supplant any of the existing languages, but there might be a "Romance" language that's used as a lingua franca within this hypothetical republican confederation, learnt as a second language by most, and a first language by a few people. It's essentially a conlang that combines the most desirable elements of various languages and would probably also undergo a process of simplification and a few ideological modifications.

This is the closest I can get that could theoretically happen IMO. As for what areas this language could be prevalent in? I'd imagine France, Italy (the first sister-republic), possibly Dalmatia (as part of a Dalmatian cultural revival), maybe Catalonia (as a kind of opposition to Castilian Spanish), the Helvetic Republic... I doubt it can be extended to all of Iberia this way, Spain shares a language with half of the Americas and would probably not want to move away from that.
 
Thank you. Now I have a fiftieth reason for my Faith in Humanity bar to go down from 9.2/10 to 9.1/10! For that, here's a saddy face: :(

While mine has gone up - humanity needs to retain a sense of humour!

As the OP some form of earlier revolution in France that spreads to Spain and Italy (or v.v.) with a Napolean analogue who maintains a federal republican idealogy.
Then in the 1800s it's decided a pannational language is needed and a version of Latin promoted.
 
Thank you. Now I have a fiftieth reason for my Faith in Humanity bar to go down from 9.2/10 to 9.1/10! For that, here's a saddy face: :(

Come on - he didn't even mention The Wurzels.

Cuz I got a brand new combine harvester
An' I'll give you the key
Come on now let's get together
In perfect harmony
I got twenty acres
An' you got forty-three
Now I got a brand new combine harvester
An' I'll give you the key

They don't write them like that any more :D

Cheers,
Nigel.
 
PoD of 1700?

Very, very difficult to do more than OTL.

The OTL elimination of all Italian languages in favour of Tuscan (demoting the others to 'dialects'), the essential extinction of Occitan, and the downgrading of all Iberian languages except Castillian, Catalonian and Portuguese to 'dialects' is already a 'combine Romance' wank.

Realistically, I suppose you could have the Iberian union re-form, demoting Portuguese (and Catalonian) to 'dialects' but even that would be tough with a PoD that late.
 

Kingpoleon

Banned
PoD of 1700?

Very, very difficult to do more than OTL.

The OTL elimination of all Italian languages in favour of Tuscan (demoting the others to 'dialects'), the essential extinction of Occitan, and the downgrading of all Iberian languages except Castillian, Catalonian and Portuguese to 'dialects' is already a 'combine Romance' wank.

Realistically, I suppose you could have the Iberian union re-form, demoting Portuguese (and Catalonian) to 'dialects' but even that would be tough with a PoD that late.

What is the latest you, personally, could manage it with?
 
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