What's in a name?

"Respelido" is the word in Prouvènçau (a dialect of Occitan (langue d'oc) particular to Provence also known as Provençal or Provençal Occitan) which means "Renaissance." Provençal and closely related languages were once spoken throughout the south of France but starting with the reign of Charlemagne, the language of northern France (langue d'oil) gained dominance. In 1539 the Edict of Villers-Cotterêts decreed that the northern form of French should be adopted nationwide for administration and commerce (and of course, public education). In the late 19th Century, Frédéric Mistral, a resident of St.-Rémy (where I'll be living) and a group of authors called the Félibrige wrote in Provençal in an attempt to revive the language. Mistral wrote the words to a song called "La Respelido Prouvènçau" (The Provençal Renaissance) which celebrated the culture and products of Provence, and called speaking Provençal "the greatest right" of the people of Provence. The Félibrige was not able to revive the Provençal language, but Mistral did win the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1904. And despite the fact that the only Provençal I'll probably see in an entire year will be on street signs, the culture of the region has managed to stay healthy despite the influx of tourists. Named after the song of it's son, the cultural museum of St.-Rémy is called: La Respelido.  See the words and hear the tune of La Respelido by follwing this link.