Communication Across Europe
Europe is a community with a multilingual citizenry. There are 11 official languages in just the EU but of course there are many more languages across Europe and in all countries minority languages, including sign languages, are used.
Speak Out! on European citizenship offers you the opportunity to engage in a discussion around language-related issues that concern you, in English, French, German, Italian or Spanish.
As a citizen of the EU you have the right to live, study and work in any of the EU countries. However, lack of language skills might prevent you from taking advantage of these opportunities. For example, a German person has the right to live and work in Spain but it might be impossible for him or her to do so if he or she does not know Spanish.
Language skills can help people enjoy travel and make new friends. Learning different languages helps you to understand different cultures and customs, which is a way of fostering tolerance and respect for other people.
So why not take up the language challenge and improve the language skills you may already have ? Or you could even learn a completely new language. It is fun and exciting and will open up new opportunities.
Minority Languages in Europe
By: Mohamed Haji-Kella, Minorities of Europe
Europe’s cultural identity is based on diversity. One of the most striking aspects of Europe’s diversity is its linguistic variety. Not only does every country in Europe have its own official languages, there are also numerous minority communities across Europe with its own traditions and languages.
Who are the minorities?
There is still no collective political definition of minorities in Europe today. The Council of Europe Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities, which most of the European Union member states have signed, does not agree on a specific definition of “minorities”. However there is a clear consensus in Europe of the characteristics of a minority. According to Minorities of Europe, a minority is anyone who feels disadvantaged and discriminated against by a perceived majority backed by power simply because of his/her race, language, religion, sex or ethnicity.
What are the minority languages?
Europe is a continent full of minority languages and minorities, but it is difficult to quantify the exact number of minority languages. The phrase “A minority there can be a majority here and vice versa” is a clear demonstration of this. For example, Swedish is a minority language in Finland spoken by a little over 4% by the Swedish minority. Finnish has also very recently acquired a minority language status in Sweden. It can nevertheless be said that the European Union is estimated to have more than 40 indigenous minority languages and Europe as a whole over 100. These include immigrant languages or languages of residents from other continents.
Examples of minority languages:
Some examples of minority languages spoken in Europe include; Welsh in the United Kingdom, Sammie in Sweden and Finland, Flemish in Belgium, Basque in Spain and parts of France, the Roma language in East and Central Europe, Sardinian in Italy, and Russian in the Baltics. In addition, immigration into Europe brings with it the development of new minority communities with their own languages. These groups include Magrebs in France, Chinese, Indians, Irish and West Indians in the UK, Albanians in Italy, Zairians in Belgium, Turkish and Polish in Germany, Brazilians and Africans from the ex-Portuguese colonies of Portugal, and migrants from Surinam in the Netherlands.
Minorities of Europe feel that the role of language in cultural and other policy areas should be fully recognised and action should be taken to ensure that minority languages are protected to prevent them from extinction. One way this could be done is through the support and encouragement of language teaching and learning, which will also reinforce the cultural traditions of minority communities.
Sign Languages in Europe
By: Johanna Lakeman, British Deaf Association
There are as many or maybe even more sign languages in Europe as there are spoken languages! So what are they? Well, sign languages have existed across the world for thousands of years and are the first or preferred languages of around 400,000 Deaf people in Europe alone. They are visual languages that have a distinctive grammar and use hand shapes, facial expressions, gestures and body language to convey meaning.
Contrary to popular belief, sign language is not international. Each country has its own sign language. In countries where there are two or more spoken languages, such as Belgium and Spain, there will be the same number of sign languages.
Sign languages are not dependent on the spoken languages of their respective countries. This is illustrated by the fact that Great Britain, Ireland and the United States are all English speaking countries but have completely different sign languages. In fact American Sign Language (ASL) is closer to French (Langue de Signes Français – LSF) than it is to British Sign Language (BSL). The explanation is simple: the roots of ASL lie in France and not in Britain.
Deaf people across Europe have been campaigning hard for their respective sign languages to be given official status. For example, in Britain the campaign has been led by the British Deaf Association (BDA). The BDA has asked the UK government to officially recognise British Sign Language in the Council of Europe’s Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. The BDA has been urging the Government to recognise BSL under this Charter, since countries that sign up are required to improve access for minority language users to public services such as education, health and the justice system. They are also expected to promote the learning and study of minority languages.
Not only are sign languages incredibly beautiful and expressive, they are also really good fun to learn.
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