Minority Languages and Group Identity

Minority Languages and Group Identity PDF Author: John Edwards
Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing
ISBN: 9027288682
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 243

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Book Description
The central concern in this book is the relationship between language and group identity, a relationship that is thrown into greatest relief in ‘minority’ settings. Since much of the current interest in minority languages revolves around issues of identity politics, language rights and the plight of ‘endangered’ languages, one aim of the book is to summarise and analyse these and other pivotal themes. Furthermore, since the uniqueness of every language-contact situation does not rest upon unique elements or features – but, rather, upon the particular weightings and combinations of features that recur across settings – the second aim here is to provide a general descriptive framework within which a wide range of contact settings may be more easily understood. The book thus begins with a discussion of such matters as language decline, maintenance and revival, the dynamics of minority languages, and the ecology of language. It then offers a typological framework that draws and expands upon previous categorising efforts. Finally, the book presents four case studies that are both intrinsically interesting and – more importantly – provide specific illustrations of the generalities discussed earlier.

Minority Languages and Group Identity

Minority Languages and Group Identity PDF Author: John Edwards
Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing
ISBN: 9027288682
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 243

Get Book

Book Description
The central concern in this book is the relationship between language and group identity, a relationship that is thrown into greatest relief in ‘minority’ settings. Since much of the current interest in minority languages revolves around issues of identity politics, language rights and the plight of ‘endangered’ languages, one aim of the book is to summarise and analyse these and other pivotal themes. Furthermore, since the uniqueness of every language-contact situation does not rest upon unique elements or features – but, rather, upon the particular weightings and combinations of features that recur across settings – the second aim here is to provide a general descriptive framework within which a wide range of contact settings may be more easily understood. The book thus begins with a discussion of such matters as language decline, maintenance and revival, the dynamics of minority languages, and the ecology of language. It then offers a typological framework that draws and expands upon previous categorising efforts. Finally, the book presents four case studies that are both intrinsically interesting and – more importantly – provide specific illustrations of the generalities discussed earlier.

Minority Languages and Group Identity

Minority Languages and Group Identity PDF Author: John Edwards
Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing
ISBN: 9027218668
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 242

Get Book

Book Description
The central concern in this book is the relationship between language and group identity, a relationship that is thrown into greatest relief in minority settings. Since much of the current interest in minority languages revolves around issues of identity politics, language rights and the plight of endangered languages, one aim of the book is to summarise and analyse these and other pivotal themes. Furthermore, since the uniqueness of every language-contact situation does not rest upon unique elements or features but, rather, upon the particular weightings and combinations of features that recur across settings the second aim here is to provide a general descriptive framework within which a wide range of contact settings may be more easily understood. The book thus begins with a discussion of such matters as language decline, maintenance and revival, the dynamics of minority languages, and the ecology of language. It then offers a typological framework that draws and expands upon previous categorising efforts. Finally, the book presents four case studies that are both intrinsically interesting and more importantly provide specific illustrations of the generalities discussed earlier."

Maintenance and Loss of Minority Languages

Maintenance and Loss of Minority Languages PDF Author: Willem Fase
Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing
ISBN: 9027241015
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 416

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Book Description
The papers in this volume describe a wide variety of language contact settings in which one or more languages are in a process of shift. In the first part of the book theoretical perspectives are presented, followed by linguistic, sociological and descriptive studies of languages and countries that have attracted the interest of researchers before, as well as less well known examples. Data are presented from: the Philippines, Korea, Japan, Israel, The Netherlands, Belgium, Canada, Sweden, Spain, Denmark, Morocco, Finland, Malaysia, Germany, USA, Ireland, India, Tanzania and Australia.

Minority Languages and Cultural Diversity in Europe

Minority Languages and Cultural Diversity in Europe PDF Author: Konstanze Glaser
Publisher: Multilingual Matters
ISBN: 1853599328
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 416

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Book Description
This book engages critically with debates about linguistic continuity and cultural survival in relation to Europe's authochthonous minorities. Focusing on Scotland's Gaels and Lusatia's Sorbs/Wends, it analyses and evaluates competing assumptions, rationales and ideologies which have shaped previous and present language revitalisation initiatives and that continue to pose dilemmas to language planners and politicians in the UK, Germany and beyond.

Language Policy & Identity In The U.S.

Language Policy & Identity In The U.S. PDF Author: Ronald Schmidt
Publisher: Temple University Press
ISBN: 1439906092
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 297

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Book Description
An engaging discussion about the use of English and other languages in the United States.

Language, Ethnicity and the State, Volume 1

Language, Ethnicity and the State, Volume 1 PDF Author: C. O'Reilly
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 0230504639
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 194

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Book Description
Developments in the European Union over the last decade have been largely positive from the perspective of stateless and minority ethnic groups and the survival and prosperity of minority languages. This selection of sociologically and ethnographically oriented work enables the reader to compare developments in different ethno-linguistic revival movements within the European Union. The contributions also explore the impact of EU policy and discourse on the individual movements and the orientation of Western Europe as a whole towards linguistic heterogeneity and cultural diversity. A companion volume (0-333-92924-1) examines the status of minority languages in post-1989 Eastern Europe.

Handbook of Language & Ethnic Identity

Handbook of Language & Ethnic Identity PDF Author: Joshua A. Fishman
Publisher:
ISBN: 0195374924
Category : Anthropological linguistics
Languages : en
Pages : 583

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Book Description
This volume presents a comprehensive introduction to the connection between language and ethnicity.

Language and Minority Rights

Language and Minority Rights PDF Author: Stephen May
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 113683706X
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 450

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Book Description
The second edition addresses new theoretical and empirical developments since its initial publication, including the burgeoning influence of globalization and the relentless rise of English as the current world language. May’s broad position, however, remains largely unchanged. He argues that the causes of many of the language-based conflicts in the world today still lie with the nation-state and its preoccupation with establishing a 'common' language and culture via mass education. The solution, he suggests, is to rethink nation-states in more culturally and linguistically plural ways while avoiding, at the same time, essentializing the language-identity link. This edition, like the first, adopts a wide interdisciplinary framework, drawing on sociolinguistics, applied linguistics, sociology, political theory, education and law. It also includes new discussions of cosmopolitanism, globalization, the role of English, and language and mobility, highlighting the ongoing difficulties faced by minority language speakers in the world today.

Language, Ethnicity and the State, Volume 2

Language, Ethnicity and the State, Volume 2 PDF Author: C. O'Reilly
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 1403914184
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 228

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Book Description
The political and social upheavals following 1989 have had a significant impact on the minority languages of Eastern Europe. There have been attempts at enlightened treatment of minority linguistic groups in some of the new states but in others such groups have been openly oppressed. This volume draws on sociologically and ethnographically oriented work from a number of disciplines to allow the reader to compare developments in the different states, and to examine the interplay of language issues, ethnic nationalism, and processes of state formation and restructuring in the various political and historical contexts of Central and Eastern Europe. A companion volume (0-333-92925-X) examines the status of minority languages in the European Union.

Sustaining Linguistic Diversity

Sustaining Linguistic Diversity PDF Author: Kendall A. King
Publisher: Georgetown University Press
ISBN: 1589014162
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 247

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Book Description
In the last three decades the field of endangered and minority languages has evolved rapidly, moving from the initial dire warnings of linguists to a swift increase in the number of organizations, funding programs, and community-based efforts dedicated to documentation, maintenance, and revitalization. Sustaining Linguistic Diversity brings together cutting-edge theoretical and empirical work from leading researchers and practitioners in the field. Together, these contributions provide a state-of-the-art overview of current work in defining, documenting, and developing the world's smaller languages and language varieties. The book begins by grappling with how we define endangerment—how languages and language varieties are best classified, what the implications of such classifications are, and who should have the final say in making them. The contributors then turn to the documentation and description of endangered languages and focus on best practices, methods and goals in documentation, and on current field reports from around the globe. The latter part of the book analyzes current practices in developing endangered languages and dialects and particular language revitalization efforts and outcomes in specific locations. Concluding with critical calls from leading researchers in the field to consider the human lives at stake, Sustaining Linguistic Diversity reminds scholars, researchers, practitioners, and educators that linguistic diversity can only be sustained in a world where diversity in all its forms is valued.