The language of the Cathars in the South of France/North of Spain was OCCITAN. Listen to this, their hymn of Freedom. Then read the extract below.

From NC:

“After the Reformation mutiny, the natural process of divergence of languages ​​was spurred by special state measures. The deposited governors of the Empire began to introduce new alphabets in their territories, change grammar, invent new fonts and vowels, and new reading rules. For example, in some places they introduced the practice of reading “not as it is written.” A vivid example of this is the French language. It is written, for example, Foix – the name of the Qatari city near Toulouse – and read Foix. The goal is clear – as soon as possible to gain independence, not only state, but also cultural, linguistic. In the XVII century, they sought to end the legacy of the Great Empire in their newly formed countries. First of all, quickly move away from the Slavic language and Slavic writing.

This is not so difficult to do. They introduced the teaching of a new language in schools, and after one or two generations the old language and written language were forgotten by the bulk of the population. Old books, written in Slavic and old type, became incomprehensible. Not being renewable, they gradually disappeared. In Western Europe of the 17th century, the process went especially fast, since it was apparently elevated to the rank of a state program of paramount importance. No wonder the index of banned books was introduced. Old history, books, writing, and at the same time “heretics,” were thrown into the fire.

The custom to read not as it is written, for example, in French, was introduced not so long ago. Here is a curious fact. It turns out that so far in southern France, in some villages and small towns, residents SPEAK MANY MODERN FRENCH WORDS AS WRITTEN WRITTEN, AND NOT BY THE RULES OF THE MODERN FRENCH LANGUAGE. That is, they pronounce aloud all the letters. This applies, in particular, to the names of some French villages. About this A.T. Fomenko told the locals in 1997. Sometimes this leads to interesting situations. In everyday speech, the townspeople pronounce their names, “as it is written,” that is, voice all the letters. But when sending letters to the state mail, you have to pronounce the same name in a modern way, skipping some letters.

It is clear why in some places in France the custom has been preserved to read all the written letters. These are still not completely forgotten traces of the former, “pre-reform” Slavic language. It existed until the XVI-XVII centuries. In which all the written letters are pronounced.”