Though we currently have no way of knowing when or which group of people spoke the first words, there are various theories about the development of language.

By the time Dante made reference to the langue d’oc in 1304, it had suffered persecution at the hands of the French. Today, the various dialects that make up the langue d’oc are collectively referred to as Occitan. It is still spoken in southern France. There’s also communities in Monaco, Italy, and Catalonia, with the total number of speakers thought to be around 790,000.