Bonjhůr é bènvnu!
Welcome to the official website of the Sark Norman Language Codification Project, dedicated to the documentation and revitalisation of the indigenous Romance tongue of the island of Sark, Sarkese.
The aim of our project, started in 2016 and realized in cooperation with La Société Sercquaise, the Sark School and the Charles University in Prague, is a proffesional, sensible and sustainable revitalisation of a unique ancient variety of the Old Norman language, which has amazingly survived on our picturesque little isle in the English Channel, between Britain and France, to the 21st century.
Even though Sarkese or Sark Norman (l’Sérčê in Sarkese) may be actively spoken today by only three native active speakers, having been labelled as “doomed” to extinction by many in the past, thanks to the active help and endeavour of our last speakers, hundreds of hours of consultations and recordings and with the financial support of the Charles University in Prague, the fascinating language of Sark is now once again being taught, learned and spoken by the youngest generations of the Sarkese.
This website, still a work in progress, is here to answer your questions regarding the language, our project and our activities in the field of language documentation and revitalization, if you are a non-Sarkese, who is simply interested in our language. If you are a student or a participant of the Sarkese classes at the Sark School or online, here you will find studying materials for your courses, as well as interesting facts, stories and other trivia you may find intriguing on your way of learning Sarkese, the ancient language of the “Crows and Rabbits” of Sark 😉