The Rhaeto-Romanic population continues to hand down its traditions
Before being conquered by the Romans, Trentino was populated by the Raeti, the founders of an ancient reign whose culture and language became popular throughout the region. Back then, the most populated areas were the largest valleys and the hilly areas. With the arrival of the Romans, the Raeti adopted a wide range of Roman customs, as well as a great part of Latin culture and language. However, an invasion by Germanic populations forced many Raeti peoples to flee to alpine valleys and high plateaus.
The once predominant culture of the Eastern Alps continues to live on in the dolomitic valleys. In Trentino, Ladin is still spoken in the Val di Fassa, including the municipalities of Canazei (Cianacei), Pozza (Poza), Mazzin (Mazin), Campitello (Ciampidel), San Giovanni di Fassa (Sèn Jen), Vigo (Vich), Soraga and Moena. If you want to discover more on Ladin culture you can visit the Ladin Museum in Fassa in San Giovanni near Vigo di Fassa.
Some dialects of the Val di Sole and the Val di Non are characterised by Rhaeto-Romance influences. The "noneso" and the "solandro", two local dialects of the Val di Non, are in fact known as the missing link between dolomitic Ladin and the Rhaeto-Romance language Romansh which is spoken in the Eastern part of Switzerland.
