Language policy
Encyclopedia
Many countries have a language policy designed to favour or discourage the use of a particular language
or set of languages. Although nations historically have used language policies most often to promote one official language
at the expense of others, many countries now have policies designed to protect and promote regional and ethnic languages whose viability is threatened.
Language Policy is what a government does either officially through legislation, court decisions or policy to determine how languages are used, cultivate language skills needed to meet national priorities or to establish the rights of individuals or groups to use and maintain languages.
in today's world is a major concern to many scientists, artists, writers, politicians, leaders of linguistic communities, and defenders of linguistic human rights. More than half of the 6000 languages currently spoken in the world are estimated to be in danger of disappearing during the 21st century. Many factors affect the existence and usage of any given human language, including the size of the native speaking population, its use in formal communication, and the geographical dispersion and the socio-economic weight of its speakers. National language policies can either mitigate or exacerbate the effects of some of these factors.
There are many ways in which language policies can be categorised. It was elaborated by Université Laval
sociolinguist
Jacques Leclerc for the French-language Web site L'aménagement linguistique dans le monde put on line by the CIRAL
in 1999. The collecting, translating and classifying of language policies started in 1988 and culminated in the publishing of Recueil des législations linguistiques dans le monde (vol. I to VI) at Presses de l'Université Laval in 1994. The work, containing some 470 language laws, and the research leading to publication, were subsidised by the Office québécois de la langue française
. In April 2008, the Web site presented the linguistic portrait and language policies in 354 States or autonomous territories in 194 recognised countries.
Language
Language may refer either to the specifically human capacity for acquiring and using complex systems of communication, or to a specific instance of such a system of complex communication...
or set of languages. Although nations historically have used language policies most often to promote one official language
Official language
An official language is a language that is given a special legal status in a particular country, state, or other jurisdiction. Typically a nation's official language will be the one used in that nation's courts, parliament and administration. However, official status can also be used to give a...
at the expense of others, many countries now have policies designed to protect and promote regional and ethnic languages whose viability is threatened.
Language Policy is what a government does either officially through legislation, court decisions or policy to determine how languages are used, cultivate language skills needed to meet national priorities or to establish the rights of individuals or groups to use and maintain languages.
Overview
The preservation of cultural and linguistic diversityCultural diversity
Cultural diversity is having different cultures respect each other's differences. It could also mean the variety of human societies or cultures in a specific region, or in the world as a whole...
in today's world is a major concern to many scientists, artists, writers, politicians, leaders of linguistic communities, and defenders of linguistic human rights. More than half of the 6000 languages currently spoken in the world are estimated to be in danger of disappearing during the 21st century. Many factors affect the existence and usage of any given human language, including the size of the native speaking population, its use in formal communication, and the geographical dispersion and the socio-economic weight of its speakers. National language policies can either mitigate or exacerbate the effects of some of these factors.
There are many ways in which language policies can be categorised. It was elaborated by Université Laval
Université Laval
Laval University is the oldest centre of education in Canada and was the first institution in North America to offer higher education in French...
sociolinguist
Sociolinguistics
Sociolinguistics is the descriptive study of the effect of any and all aspects of society, including cultural norms, expectations, and context, on the way language is used, and the effects of language use on society...
Jacques Leclerc for the French-language Web site L'aménagement linguistique dans le monde put on line by the CIRAL
Ciral
Ciral is a commune in the Orne department in north-western France....
in 1999. The collecting, translating and classifying of language policies started in 1988 and culminated in the publishing of Recueil des législations linguistiques dans le monde (vol. I to VI) at Presses de l'Université Laval in 1994. The work, containing some 470 language laws, and the research leading to publication, were subsidised by the Office québécois de la langue française
Office québécois de la langue française
The Office québécois de la langue française is a public organization established on March 24, 1961 by the Liberal government of Jean Lesage...
. In April 2008, the Web site presented the linguistic portrait and language policies in 354 States or autonomous territories in 194 recognised countries.
Language regulators
- List of language regulators
- Bòrd na GàidhligBòrd na GàidhligBòrd na Gàidhlig is a quango appointed by the Scottish Government with responsibility for Scottish Gaelic...
- Dutch Language UnionDutch Language UnionThe Dutch Language Union is an international institution for discussing issues regarding the Dutch language. It was founded on 9 September 1980 by the Netherlands and Belgium...
- Foras na GaeilgeForas na GaeilgeForas na Gaeilge is the governing body of the Irish language, responsible for the promotion of the language throughout the island of Ireland. Its name can be translated into English as "The Irish Language Body", although the body has no official English-language name...
- Office québécois de la langue françaiseOffice québécois de la langue françaiseThe Office québécois de la langue française is a public organization established on March 24, 1961 by the Liberal government of Jean Lesage...
- Welsh Language BoardWelsh Language BoardThe Welsh Language Board is a statutory body set up by the UK Government as part of the Welsh Language Act 1993. It is now an Assembly Sponsored Public Body...
- Pan South African Language BoardPan South African Language BoardThe Pan South African Language Board was established in South Africa to promote multilingualism and language rights as well as to develop the official languages of South Africa...
See also
- Linguistic rightsLinguistic rightsLinguistic rights are the human and civil rights concerning the individual and collective right to choose the language or languages for communication in a private or public atmosphere...
- Cultural hegemonyCultural hegemonyCultural hegemony is the philosophic and sociological theory, by the Marxist philosopher Antonio Gramsci, that a culturally diverse society can be dominated by one social class, by manipulating the societal culture so that its ruling-class worldview is imposed as the societal norm, which then is...
- Economics of languageEconomics of languageThe economics of language is an emerging field of study concerning a range of topics such as the effect of language on culture, income, markets for language-related goods and services, and the costs and benefits of language planning options, preservation of minority languages, etc. It is relevant...
- Grimm's lawGrimm's lawGrimm's law , named for Jacob Grimm, is a set of statements describing the inherited Proto-Indo-European stops as they developed in Proto-Germanic in the 1st millennium BC...
- Language changeLanguage changeLanguage change is the phenomenon whereby phonetic, morphological, semantic, syntactic, and other features of language vary over time. The effect on language over time is known as diachronic change. Two linguistic disciplines in particular concern themselves with studying language change:...
- Language MovementLanguage MovementThe Bengali Language Movement, also known as the Language Movement , was a political effort in Bangladesh , advocating the recognition of the Bengali language as an official language of Pakistan...
- Language planningLanguage planningLanguage planning is a deliberate effort to influence the function, structure, or acquisition of languages or language variety within a speech community. It is often associated with government planning, but is also used by a variety of non-governmental organizations, such as grass-roots...
- Language politicsLanguage politicsLanguage politics is a term used to describe political consequences of linguistic differences between people, or on occasion the political consequences of the way a language is spoken and what words are used. It means language can express some authority. Examples include:*Recognition of a...
- Language reformLanguage reformLanguage reform is a type of language planning by massive change to a language. The usual tools of language reform are simplification and purification. Simplification makes the language easier to use by regularizing vocabulary and grammar...
- Language revivalLanguage revivalLanguage revitalization, language revival or reversing language shift is the attempt by interested parties, including individuals, cultural or community groups, governments, or political authorities, to reverse the decline of a language. If the decline is severe, the language may be endangered,...
- Language taxLanguage taxThe language tax is an economic concept proposed by the Belgian economist Philippe Van Parijs. It is intended to compensate countries with a less widespread language for their expenses for teaching and translation....
- Linguicide
- Official scriptOfficial scriptAn official script is a writing system that is specifically designated to be official in the constitutions or other applicable laws of countries, states, and other jurisdictions. Akin to an official language, an official script is much rarer. It is used primarily where an official language is in...
- Regional languageRegional languageA regional language is a language spoken in an area of a nation state, whether it be a small area, a federal state or province, or some wider area....
- International Mother Language DayInternational Mother Language DayInternational Mother Language Day is an observance held annually on 21 February worldwide to promote awareness of linguistic and cultural diversity and multilingualism. It was first announced by UNESCO on 17 November 1999...
- International Year of LanguagesInternational Year of LanguagesThe United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 2008 as the International Year of Languages, pursuant to a resolution of UNESCO. The resolution also reaffirmed the need to achieve full parity among the six official languages on United Nations websites....
(2008)
- Directions of language policies:
- Linguistic imperialismLinguistic imperialismLinguistic imperialism, or language imperialism, is a linguistics concept that "involves the transfer of a dominant language to other people...
- Linguistic protectionism and Linguistic purismLinguistic purismLinguistic purism or linguistic protectionism is the practice of defining one variety of a language as being purer than other varieties. The ideal of purity is often opposed in reference to a perceived decline from an "ideal past" or an unwanted similarity with other languages, but sometimes simply...
- Linguistic separatism
- Some case studies:
- Europe: European Charter for Regional or Minority LanguagesEuropean Charter for Regional or Minority LanguagesThe European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages is a European treaty adopted in 1992 under the auspices of the Council of Europe to protect and promote historical regional and minority languages in Europe...
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- Belgium: Language legislation in BelgiumLanguage legislation in Belgium-1830: freedom of languages and linguistic coercion:One of the causes of the Belgian Revolution of the 1830s was the growing ascendancy of the Dutch language in the administration of the Southern provinces of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands...
- Croatia: Croatian linguistic purismCroatian linguistic purismOne of the features of standard Croatian language and in common with several languages such as Czech, Finnish, Slovenian, Tamil or Turkish is word coinage using roots or elements perceived as being characteristic or unique to the speech of the community....
- Finland: Finland's language strifeFinland's language strifeThe language strife was one of the major conflicts of Finland's national history and domestic politics. It revolved around the question of what status Swedish—the language which since the Middle Ages had been the main language of administration and high culture in Finland—and, on the other hand,...
- France: Language policy in FranceLanguage policy in FranceFrance has one official language, the French language. The French government does not regulate the choice of language in publications by individuals but the use of French is required by law in commercial and workplace communications...
- Germany: GermanizationGermanisationGermanisation is both the spread of the German language, people and culture either by force or assimilation, and the adaptation of a foreign word to the German language in linguistics, much like the Romanisation of many languages which do not use the Latin alphabet...
- Latvia: Language policy in LatviaLanguage policy in LatviaArticles 4 and 114 of the Constitution of Latvia form the foundation for language policy in Latvia, declaring Latvian to be the official state language and affirming the rights of ethnic minorities to preserve and develop their languages...
- Poland: PolonizationPolonizationPolonization was the acquisition or imposition of elements of Polish culture, in particular, Polish language, as experienced in some historic periods by non-Polish populations of territories controlled or substantially influenced by Poland...
- Slovakia: Language law of SlovakiaLanguage law of SlovakiaThe state language law of Slovakia fixes the status and regulates the use of the Slovak language. It took force in 1995 and underwent a major amendment in 2009....
, SlovakizationSlovakizationSlovakization or Slovakisation is a term used to describe a cultural change in which ethnically non-Slovak people are made to become Slovak. The process can be named as 'accelerated assimilation'.... - Spain: Language politics in Francoist Spain
- Former Soviet Union: RussificationRussificationRussification is an adoption of the Russian language or some other Russian attributes by non-Russian communities...
, UkrainianizationUkrainizationUkrainization is a policy of increasing the usage and facilitating the development of the Ukrainian language and promoting other elements of Ukrainian culture, in various spheres of public life such as education, publishing, government and religion.The term is used, most prominently, for the...
, Education in the Soviet UnionEducation in the Soviet UnionEducation in the Soviet Union was organized in a highly centralized government-run system. Its advantages were total access for all citizens and post-education employment... - United Kingdom: Welsh NotWelsh NotThe Welsh Not or Welsh Note was a punishment system used in some Welsh schools in the late 19th and early 20th century to dissuade children from speaking Welsh...
- Canada: Bilingualism in CanadaBilingualism in CanadaThe official languages of Canada are English and French, which "have equality of status and equal rights and privileges as to their use in all institutions of the Parliament and Government of Canada" according to Canada's constitution...
, Official Languages Act (Canada)Official Languages Act (Canada)The Official Languages Act is a Canadian law that came into force on September 9, 1969, which gives English and French equal status in the government of Canada. This makes them "official" languages, having preferred status in law over all other languages... - Pakistan: Bengali Language Movement
- Arab world: Arabisation
- Canada: Bilingualism in Canada
- Belgium: Language legislation in Belgium
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Further reading
- Shohamy, Elana (2006). Language Policy: Hidden Agendas and New Approaches. London: Routledge.
- Crawford, James. Language Policy Website.
- Bastardas-Boada, Albert (2002). "Biological and Linguistic Diversity: Transdisciplinary explorations for a Socioecology of Languages", Diverscité langues (Montréal).
- Bastardas-Boada, Albert (2002). "World language policy in the era of globalization: Diversity and intercommunication from the 'complexity' perspective", Noves SL. Revista de sociolingüística (Barcelona)
- Bastardas-Boada, Albert (2007). "Linguistic sustainability for a multilingual humanity" Glossa. An Interdisciplinary Journal, Vol. 2 N. 2.
- Kenan Malik "Let them die". Prospect, 2000.
- Plonka Arkadiusz, L’idée de langue libanaise d’après Sa‘īd ‘Aql, Paris, Geuthner, 2004 , ISBN 2-7053-3739-3.
- Plonka Arkadiusz, "Le nationalisme linguistique au Liban autour de Sa‘īd ‘Aql et l’idée de langue libanaise dans la revue «Lebnaan» en nouvel alphabet", Arabica, 53 (4), 2006, pp. 423-471.
- Spolsky, Bernard, ed. 2012. The Cambridge Handbook of Language Policy. Cambridge University PressCambridge University PressCambridge University Press is the publishing business of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by Henry VIII in 1534, it is the world's oldest publishing house, and the second largest university press in the world...
. (in press, but expected out by January 2012) - Zuckermann, Ghil'ad and Walsh, Michael 2011. 'Stop, Revive, Survive: Lessons from the Hebrew Revival Applicable to the Reclamation, Maintenance and Empowerment of Aboriginal Languages and Cultures', Australian Journal of Linguistics 31.
External links
- Language Policy Division of the Council of EuropeCouncil of EuropeThe Council of Europe is an international organisation promoting co-operation between all countries of Europe in the areas of legal standards, human rights, democratic development, the rule of law and cultural co-operation...