RENAISSANCE IN SPAIN: EMERGENCE OF NATIONAL LANGUAGE AND NATIONAL IDENTITY

Abstract

The aim of the article is to describe the attitude of the Spaniards to their native language. The turn of the 16th century saw a considerable growth of interest in the languages spoken by the majority of the population in European countries. It was at that time that the Spanish-speaking community first recognized the value of their mother tongue and saw its merits as equal to those of Latin and Greek. As a result it is proved that in the Spanish mindset of the 16th century the recognition of the priority of the Spanish Castilian took shape. It should be emphasized that this comprehension is politically grounded in a concrete historical situation. The role of the works written by the Renaissance humanists and the professional grammarians in the emergence of the national identity sense of the Spaniards is shown.

Keywords

• apology of Castilian
• Spanish national self-identity
• professional linguistic mentality
• Spanish-speaking community
• апология кастильского языка
• испанское национальное самосознание
• профессиональное лингвистическое сознание
• испаноязычное лингвокультурное сообщество