Catalan Countries

The term Catalan Regions (Catalan: Comunits Catalans).

The Catalan Regions would include:

• Andorra in the Pyrenees
• Inside the current territory of Spain:
  • the Balearic Islands (Islas Baleares)
  • Catalonia (Cataluña)
  • Valencia (Comunidad Valenciana)
• Inside the current territory of France:
  • Roussillon (Rosellón)

This territory does not coincide exactly with the places where Catalan is the native language. For example, in the north-western region of Catalonia known as Val d'Aran (Valle de Arán), a dialect of Occitan is spoken and considered the native language, although Spanish and Catalan are also spoken. In some western and south-western places in the Autonomous Community of Valencia, only Spanish is spoken. The Catalan Regions are sometimes referred to as el pi de les tres branques (the three-branched pine, in Catalan) for its territory can be roughly divided in three parts:

• The former kingdom of Majorca
• The former kingdom of Valencia
• The former Catalonia, comprising the Roussillon, and the current Spanish autonomous community of Catalonia.