Breton nationalism (Breton: Broadelouriezh Brezhoneg, French: nationalisme Breton) is a form of regional nationalism associated with the region of Brittany in France. The political aspirations of Breton nationalists include the desire to obtain the right to self-rule, whether within France or independently of it, and to acquire more representation within the European Union, United Nations, and other international institutions.
Breton nationalism emerged in various forms over time, which nationalists consider to fall into phases known as "renovations" (emsav). The First Emsav was the birth of the modern Breton movement before 1914; the Second Emsav covers the period 1914-1945; and the Third Emsav for the postwar movements. Breton nationalism has an important cultural component which has long focused on the defense of the Breton and Gallo languages against the French Republic's policies of linguistic imperialism and coercive Francization through the State educational system. Instead, Breton nationalists favor language revival and the expansion of Breton-medium education. They have also been interested in both reviving and preserving the region's uniquely Celtic culture, music and symbols and have occasionally professed forms of pan-Celticism.
The academic Michel Nicolas describes this political tendency of the Breton movement as "a doctrine putting forward the nation, in the state and non-state framework". According to him, the people belonging to this tendency can choose to present themselves as separatists or independentists, that is to say claiming the right to "any nation to a state, and if necessary must be able to separate to create one".
He thus opposes it to regionalism which aims at it for a "administrative redeployment granting autonomy at regional level" (that is to say autonomist), and at the Breton federalism which seeks it to set up a federal organization of the territory.
Prior to the expansion of the Roman Empire into the region, Gallic tribes had occupied the Armorican peninsula, dividing it into five regions that then formed the basis for the Roman administration of the area, and which survived into the period of the Duchy.
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The Bretons (ˈbrɛtɒnz,-ənz,-ɒ̃z; Bretoned or Vretoned, breˈtɔ̃nɛt) are a Celtic ethnic group native to Brittany, north-western France. They trace their heritage to groups of Brittonic speakers who emigrated from southwestern Great Britain, particularly Cornwall and Devon, mostly during the Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain. They migrated in waves from the 3rd to 9th century (most heavily from 450 to 600) into Armorica, which was subsequently named Brittany after them.
The Celtic nations or Celtic countries are a cultural area and collection of geographical regions in Northwestern Europe where the Celtic languages and cultural traits have survived. The term nation is used in its original sense to mean a people who share a common identity and culture and are identified with a traditional territory. The six regions widely considered Celtic countries in modern times are Brittany (Breizh), Cornwall (Kernow), Ireland (Éire), the Isle of Man (Mannin, or Ellan Vannin), Scotland (Alba), and Wales (Cymru).
Gallo is a regional language of eastern Brittany. It is one of the langues d'oïl, a Romance sub-family that includes French. Today it is spoken only by a minority of the population, as the standard form of French now predominates in this area. Gallo was originally spoken in the Marches of Neustria, an area now corresponding to the border lands between Brittany, Normandy, and Maine. Gallo was a shared spoken language among many of those who took part in the Norman conquest of England, most of whom originated in Upper (i.