FELIBRIGE, filebrezh', a local associa tion of writers of the south of France founded at the Chateau de Font-Segugne, 21 May 1854 for the purpose of promoting the literary and regional use of the langue d'oc and developing the peculiar life of this ancient tongue. The first article of the constitution of the society, as reformed in 1876, shows the spirit and aims of the organization to be bring to gether and to inspire with a common interest and object all those who, by their writings, help to maintain the language of the land of Oc, and likewise scholars and artists studying and work ing in the interest of this land.* The society was an attempt, on the part of a few, to revive the regional aspirations of the south, once so pronounced, but already to all appearances long dead. Naturally the promoters of the move ments, carried away by their enthusiasm and their localism, placed an exaggerated value upon their work. This exaggeration and localism were well fitted to attract attention and to give the movement the proper advertising. According to the prophets of langue d'oc nationalism from a literary and linguistic-artistic point of view this ancient tongue of southern France had ever been and was still °the incarnation of love of country, of independence and of manly feelings and thoughts, the representation of the dignity of a race and the honor of a people.° °Let us throw aside all parties of a political nature and work for the upbuilding of our own southern land; for its literary artistic regeneration and for the intensification of our own local life* was the peculiar appeal of the members of the Felibrige. It came at a time when the people of the ancient Provencal tongues, not only in France but in Spain, had already begun to feel the movement of modern life, when the reviv ing influence of popular education had begun to penetrate, or rather, to percolate into the south. The appeal made throughout a dis tracted and divided Spain for a united national sentiment which should place the interests of the country before every other interest had met with an apathetic reception throughout Cata lonia and all the Spanish Provencal districts; and across the border in France the same phe nomenon was observable. The people of the
langue d'oc, largely cut off from the people of the centre and north of France on account of their long-preserved localism and the strong provincialism of their various Provencal dia lects, continued to live very much to themselves and to maintain an attitude of passivism toward the patriotic campaign of the leaders of thought of the rest of the country. But as soon as the organizers of the Catalan movement began to be active in Spain and the felibres to preach their doctrine in southern France, the whole Provencal land began to take an interest in those voices speaking to inhabitants in their own tongue and voicing their most extreme region alism and their indifference to the somewhat theatrical appeals of the general movement for closer national unity and an exhibition of in tenser patriotism and pride in the glorious achievements of A common sentiment bound together the Catalans and the people of the langue d'oc; and the one encouraged the other in their local aspirations. Soon both be gan to protest against abuses to which they were subjected on the part of the central govern ment in each case. At this critical moment the Felibrige movement turned the people of south Rrn France to the glorious past of their Pro vencal ancestors and the writers and poets began to chant the prowess of the mighty men of the langue d'oc; while across the border the Cata lans were doing the game thing for the people of Catalonia and the other heirs of the Span ish Provençal tongue.
The Felibrige movement stood for the development of the people of southern France free of all influence directly asserted from It consequently protested against the acceptance of an interpretation of patriotism whose accomplishment would mean the disap pearance of the langue d'oc and the blending of the peoples of the north, centre and south of France into one homogeneous mass of a uniform made of the same thought and stamp of education, "Let us have liberty to develop in our own way;° was the cry from the leaders of the south of France and the east of Spain alike; and this cry was but the expression of a feeling that had long been deep down in the hearts of the Provencal people.