Romansh people Romansh people The Romansh people (also spelled Romansch, Rumantsch, or Romanche; Romansh: , "rumàntsch", or ) are a Romance ethnic group of Switzerland, native speakers of the Romansh language. They are usually multilingual, also speaking German (both the standard variety and the local Swiss German) and sometimes Italian, which are the other official languages of Graubünden, the canton where they are concentrated. They make up about 1% of Switzerland's population and 15% of Graubünden's. The Romansh people began advocating for an end to German dominion over them starting with World War I. In 1937 the Swiss government recognized the Romansh
Romansh language Romansh varies, with 41.3% in Trin reporting to speak it habitually. In the Sutselva, the local Romansh dialects are extinct in most villages, with a few elder speakers remaining in places such as Präz, Scharans, Feldis/Veulden, and Scheid, though passive knowledge is slightly more common. Some municipalities still offer Romansh as a foreign language subject in school, though it is often under pressure of being replaced by Italian. The notably exception is Schams, where it is still regularly transmitted to children and where the language of instruction is Romansh. In the Surmeir region, it is still the dominant every day