In 1938, Romansh was recognised as a national language in addition to French, German and Italian. With the recognition of Romansh as a partially official language in 1996, it has now been placed on the same footing as Switzerland’s other three official languages as far as certain matters are concerned.

The Romansh language territory in Graubünden includes Surselva (the regions along the valley of the Rein Anteriur or Vorderrhein), certain parts of Sutselva (Hinterrhein), Surmeir and the Albula Valley (Oberhalbstein), Upper Engadin, Lower Engadin and the Val Müstair. Each of these regions has its own idiom. The five idioms are considered as written Romansh languages. These written languages cannot, however, cover the whole panoply of spoken dialects. Dozens of such local dialects make the Romansh linguistic atlas into a confusing microcosm. In 1982, Rumantsch Grischun, a supra-regional written Romansh language, came into being and in 1996 it was declared to be an official administrative and court language of the Swiss Confederation and Canton Graubünden.

Many children learn the language, but most of them become more fluent in German and may not use Romansh actively later in life.