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Catalonia Publishes Detailed Language-Use Map Showing Barcelona’s Low Catalan Habits

The territorial breakdown from the 2023 survey completes February’s release with granular figures by area.

Overview

  • The Departament de Política Lingüística and Idescat released the territorialized 2023 results, confirming that 32.6% of residents use Catalan as their sole habitual language.
  • In Barcelona city, 26.9% report Catalan as their habitual language versus 47.3% for Spanish, with both shares down from 2018 as other languages gain ground.
  • Across the Àmbit Metropolità, Catalan habitual use is 24.7% and Spanish 54.7%, though the Maresme stands out with 43.6% using Catalan habitually.
  • Higher shares of habitual Catalan appear in Terres de l’Ebre (66.8%), Ponent (51.1%) and the Comarques Gironines (45.1%), with declines since 2018 noted in each.
  • Among those aged 15 to 29, Spanish is the habitual language for 50.1% compared with 29.2% for Catalan, highlighting a generational tilt toward Spanish.