Features and current problems of the Barranquenho: contributions to a revitalisation policy

In this article, we analyse the current situation—a centuries-old result of contacts between Portuguese and Spanish—of a hybrid linguistic variant spoken in the Alentejo region, i.e., Barranquenho. Additionally, we propose a revision of the status and typology that up until now have been attributed to this variant—also referred to as dialect, border language, or raiana (“border line” or “strip” language)— that, due to its characteristics, should be considered as a contact language, a minority language, an endangered language, and a language on the brink of extinction. As for our methodological approach, we compiled various sources on Barranquenho, as well as data gathered from research and surveys conducted in Barrancos aimed at ascertaining the perception that people living outside the community of its speakers’ have of Barranquenho. Furthermore, we have also examined the linguistic awareness that speakers of Barranquenho have of their own language. Our research is thus a contribution to studies aimed at recognising Barranquenho as a lato sensu language while calling upon the need for a linguistic policy and planning aimed at preserving it from extinction.