Language, Ethnicity, and the State: Minority Languages in the EU

1. Language, Ethnicity, and the State: Minority Languages in the EU Ch1: Introduction: Minority Languages…in the EU By Camille C. O’Reilly

2. The changing political climate • By end of 20th c, ethnicity & nationalism displaced class as defining political issues • Culture, ethnicity, nation are key to modern identity politics, but they need to be defined

3. Ethnicity: a “natural” part of being human 1) Common proper name 2) Myth of common ancestry 3) Shared historical memories 4) Common culture, customs, or language 5) A homeland 6) Group solidarity

4. Three approaches to ethnicity • Primordialist: • Ethnic identity is ancient, essential • Instrumentalist: • Ethnic identity is a resource • Constructivist: • Ethnic identity is a modern construct of social interaction All three have their advantages and disadvantages…

5. “State” and “Nation” • State -- a contiguous demarcated territory within which all citizens are subject to same government • Nation -- a state that is ethnically, culturally, and linguistically homogeneous • [note of disagreement -- there are nations that do not have states!] • Shared culture gives legitimacy to nation

6. Primordialist vs. Constructivist • It is true that nationalism is a modern ideology motivated by industrialization • It is also true that many ethnic groups can claim significant time depth

7. Gellner’s zones • Zone 1: Atlantic coast (Lisbon, Madrid, Paris, London) -- uniform culture coincided with state in medieval times -- little change required to adjust to nationalism (except: Ireland) • Zone 2: Holy Romany Empire (Germany, Italy) -- historic fragmentation made unification a pressing need -- strong destructive nationalism developed

8. The role of language • As nationalism developed, language was seen as essential to unification of the state • Some languages became the languages of state, others became minority languages • Minority languages had no place in the ideology of “1 nation, 1 state, 1 language” and became stigmatized and disadvantaged

9. What dilemmasdominority languages face? • In order to assert their rights and be economically viable, speakers of a minority language must learn and express themselves in the majority language • By using a majority language, minority speakers are endangering their own language • A minority will be lost if not strongly supported by the state, especially in the education system • Minority languages add up to tens of millions in Europe

10. EU and multilingualism • Member states identify strongly with their various state languages (thus EU monolingualism is impossible) • Support of multilingualism is advantageous for minorities, but there has been little concrete action or support • Little funding is available, and is spent mainly on multilingualism for the state languages

11. What problems are there with the Council of Europe Charter on Regional or Minority Languages? • Not legally binding • Does not define minority language, but sets standards according to European heritage, territory, and distinctiveness • Gives no list of minority languages • Just a set of priorities -- states can choose what they want to implement

12. Nationalism and Globalization • Despite nationalistic pressures for homogeneity, multilingualism is on the rise • “2 ± 1” – what does this stand for? • State language speakers also speak English • Minority language speakers speak state language + English

13. W vs. E Europe • W Europe has moved on from homogenization, and now lays more focus on regional identity and linguistic diversity • E Europe is still pursuing homogenization, with some destructive effects