Patrick Vaillant

Nòva cançon is a song-driven cultural movement from Occitania (primarily southern France) that emerged in the 1970s. It is sung in the Occitan language and aims to preserve the language and affirm Occitan identity in the face of French-only policies and cultural centralization. Musically, nòva cançon is not a strict stylistic genre. It usually adopts the accessible idioms of folk and chanson-/pop-oriented singer‑songwriter music—acoustic guitars, clear vocal delivery, and memorable choruses—while its defining feature is the use of Occitan and the promotion of Occitan culture (Occitanism). The movement is frequently compared to Catalonia’s Nova cançó, which provided both a neighboring model and inspiration.