The legal situation of Occitan is very different in the three countries where it is spoken. In its main part (France), Occitan is ignored by the authorities while more interesting situations are to be found in Spain and Italy.

In Spain (Val d'Aran), Occitan is co-official language, on equal terms with Catalan and Spanish. The Aranese speech, pertaining to Gascon dialect is used. Official documents and traffic signs are in Occitan. The language is tought in schools as teaching language. Public authorities helps the language by financing press and book edition.

In Italy, Occitan gained in 1999 a status which should lead to a normalization process similar to what is found in Spain. But decisions and laws are not yet done.

In France, Occitan is considered as a "regional language". With this stautus, it can (but does not have to) be taught in schools, on the same principle as a foreign language. Moreover, the administration is often hostile, and laws are ambiguous and contradictory. Most of them the second article of the constitucion,  modified in 1992 to add that only French is the language of the State. Outside these few public courses, everything has to be developed on an associative or private basis.
 
 

Below are displayed argumented critiscisms about the way the French institutions treat the languages other than French. Are also displayed propositions to change this situation.