This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (September 2008)

Gallo
Galo
Spoken in	France
Native speakers	28,000[1][not in citation given]  (date missing)
Language family	Indo-European Italic Romance Western Gallo-Iberian Gallo-Romance Gallo-Rhaetian Oïl Gallo
Language codes
ISO 639-3	–
Linguist List	fra-gal
Linguasphere	51-AAA-hb
The Gallo language area (in grey) corresponding to Upper Brittany (in colours, Lower Brittany)

Gallo is a regional language of France. Gallo is a Romance language, one of the Oïl languages. It is the historic language of the region of Upper Brittany and some neighboring portions of Normandy, but today is spoken by only a small minority of the population, having been largely superseded by French.

Gallo was originally spoken in the Marches of Neustria, which now corresponds to the border lands of Brittany and Normandy and its former heart in Le Mans, Maine. As an Oïl language, it forms part of a dialect continuum which includes Norman, Picard and Poitevin, among others. One of the features that distinguishes it from Norman is the absence of Norse influence. There is some limited intercomprehension with adjacent varieties of the Norman language along the linguistic frontier and with Dgèrnésiais and Jèrriais. However, as the dialect continuum shades towards Mayennais, there is a less clear isogloss. The clearest isogloss is that distinguishing Gallo from Breton, a Celtic language traditionally spoken in the western territory of Brittany.

In the west, the vocabulary of Gallo has been influenced by contact with Breton, but remains overwhelmingly Latinate. The influence of Breton decreases eastwards across Gallo-speaking territory.

As of 1980^[update], Gallo's western extent stretches from Plouha (Plóha), in Côtes-d'Armor, south of Paimpol (Paimpol), passing through Châtelaudren (Châtié), Corlay (Corlaè), Loudéac (Loudia), Pontivy (Pontivy), Locminé (Lominoec), Vannes (Vannes) and ending in the south on the Rhuys peninsula, in Morbihan.

Status[link]

The town of Loudéac displays its Gallo name, Loudia, on signage

One of the metro stations of the Breton capital, Rennes, has bilingual signage in French and Gallo, but generally the Gallo language is not as visibly high-profile as the Breton language, even in its traditional heartland of the Pays Gallo, which includes the two historical capitals of Rennes (Gallo Resnn, Breton Roazhon) and Nantes (Gallo Nauntt, Breton Naoned).

Different dialects of Gallo are distinguished, although there is a movement for standardisation on the model of the dialect of Upper Brittany.

Although a written literary tradition exists, Gallo is more noted for extemporised story-telling and theatrical presentations. Given Brittany's rich musical heritage, contemporary performers produce a range of music sung in Gallo (see Music of Brittany).

A Gallo sign in the Rennes metro

Examples[link]

Films[link]

Bilingual signage in the Rennes metro

• Of Pipers and Wrens (1997). Produced and directed by Gei Zantzinger, in collaboration with Dastum. Lois V. Kuter, ethnomusicological consultant. Devault, Pennsylvania: Constant Spring Productions.

References[link]

External links[link]

• http://bertaeyn-galeizz.com/

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Gallo language

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (August 2009)

Manou Gallo during a concert in Frankfurt, Germany, 2 February 2004.

Manou N'Guessan Gallo is a musician, born August 31, 1972 in Divo, Ivory Coast.^[1]

Brought up by her grandmother in Ivory Coast, Gallo first performed at the age of 12 when she put on a show with friends from her village. The tale of a little witch went on to become a success, touring in various African countries such as Burkina Faso, Mali, Togo and Benin as well as recording four albums.

When the group Woya eventually stopped, Gallo followed Marcellin Yacé to Abidjan. He took her under his wing, gave her her first bass guitar and taught her about recording. Between 1993 and 1996, she also performed in theatre and dance troupes as well as playing on an album by Ray Lema.

She eventually met the tour manager of Zap Mama, and was offered the chance to tour with them in Europe. She performed with them for six years from 1997, as well as appearing with the Tambours de Brazza.

She eventually formed her own group, Le Djiboi, and toured extensively. Her debut album, "Dida" was released on the IglooMondo label in 2003, followed by "Manou Gallo" in 2007. She sings in Dida, French and English.

Discography[link]

Solo albums[link]

• Dida (2003)
• Manou Gallo (2007)
• Lowlin (2010)

Collaborations[link]

• A Ma Zone (1999) with Zap Mama

References[link]

External links[link]

• Manou Gallo at MySpace
• Zig Zag World label
• Manou Gallo on IglooMondo