Català 'heavy' - català 'light': una problemàtica de la «lingüística de profans»

Abstract

The article centers around the debate between defenders of "heavy Catalan" vs. those who advocate "light Catalan" which was initiated by the book Verinosa llengua (‘Venomous language’) published in 1986 by Xavier Pericay and Ferran Toutain, in which the authors argue against traditional literary Catalan (= heavy) and in favour of a formal variety that allows more convergence with Castilian (= light). The debate is presented as an example of lay linguistics and a number of manuals directed towards a lay public are analysed as to their stance in the light/heavy debate.