The 2024 edition of the Gibunco Gibraltar Literary Festival will feature a special discussion, focussing on Llanito. 

A statement from the Government follows below:

A panel of academics and writers will discuss Gibraltar’s unique Llanito language and aim to delve into its linguistic properties, reasons for its decline, and its links to national identity. This subject is also attracting international interest and research from academics and renowned European Universities looking at Llanito Past, Present and Future. Gibraltarian writers are embracing their mother tongue challenging their written expression, giving rise to varied approaches and formats, all whilst facing the challenges of translation, audience and grammar. 

A varied panel will delve into their own personal experiences and research to tackle questions like what it means to be Llanito, speak Llanito and write Llanito and what are the issues facing the community? 

They say language is the roadmap of a culture, with its evolution reflective of a changing society, would you agree? 

Contributors will include Dr Ryan Asquez, Dr Laura Wright, Dr Jonathan Teuma, Manuel Enriles, Sophie Macdonald. The panel will be chaired by Kevin Ruiz. 

The Minister for Culture, the Hon Christian Santos, said: ‘It is only fitting that the Gibraltar Literary Festival should include a bespoke event that delves into the essential core of our spoken heritage and explores how local and international authors and academics are committing it to history in the form of the written word. I’m looking forward to what promises to be an insightful and inspiring discussion, which is fully aligned with this Government’s commitment to protect and further our use and understanding of Llanito.’