Original scientific paper

Suggesting a New European Language Policy

Peter H. Nelde

Abstract

Conflict is the most intriguing aspect of contact linguistics. Throughout history ever
since the Tower of Bable was left unfinished, contacts between speakers of different languages
have unavoidably resulted in conflicts between speakers of those languages. Without
any doubt, the European Union (EU) – above all after the decision to enlarge the
community – has accepted the multidisciplinary symbolic function of language and culture
as a basis for European political unification. Accordingly, European Union policy
makers have had to analyze conflicts caused by monolingualism and multilingualism,
all aspects of contact linguistics. Can these conflicts be solved, minimized or neutralized
by strategies of language planning, language policies and language politics? Initial results
of European language policy strategies permit at least a cautious measure of optimism
and open broad perspectives for the future of a New Multilingualism which will
be discussed in our contribution.

Keywords

language policy; New Multilingualism; conflict

Hrčak ID:

27942

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/27942

Publication date:

24.6.2004.

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