Minority Languages and Group Identity
Minority Languages and Group Identity

Author: John Edwards

Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing

Published: 2010-01-01

Total Pages: 242

ISBN-13: 9027218668

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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."

Standardizing Minority Languages
Standardizing Minority Languages

Author: Pia Lane

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2017-09-22

Total Pages: 252

ISBN-13: 1317298861

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The Open Access version of this book, available at https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/9781138125124, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 license. This volume addresses a crucial, yet largely unaddressed dimension of minority language standardization, namely how social actors engage with, support, negotiate, resist and even reject such processes. The focus is on social actors rather than language as a means for analysing the complexity and tensions inherent in contemporary standardization processes. By considering the perspectives and actions of people who participate in or are affected by minority language politics, the contributors aim to provide a comparative and nuanced analysis of the complexity and tensions inherent in minority language standardisation processes. Echoing Fasold (1984), this involves a shift in focus from a sociolinguistics of language to a sociolinguistics of people. The book addresses tensions that are born of the renewed or continued need to standardize ‘language’ in the early 21st century across the world. It proposes to go beyond the traditional macro/micro dichotomy by foregrounding the role of actors as they position themselves as users of standard forms of language, oral or written, across sociolinguistic scales. Language policy processes can be seen as practices and ideologies in action and this volume therefore investigates how social actors in a wide range of geographical settings embrace, contribute to, resist and also reject (aspects of) minority language standardization.

Language and Identity
Language and Identity

Author: John Edwards

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2009-09-17

Total Pages: 323

ISBN-13: 1139483285

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The language we use forms an important part of our sense of who we are - of our identity. This book outlines the relationship between our identity as members of groups - ethnic, national, religious and gender - and the language varieties important to each group. What is a language? What is a dialect? Are there such things as language 'rights'? Must every national group have its own unique language? How have languages, large and small, been used to spread religious ideas? Why have particular religious and linguistic 'markers' been so central, singly or in combination, to the ways in which we think about ourselves and others? Using a rich variety of examples, the book highlights the linkages among languages, dialects and identities, with special attention given to religious, ethnic and national allegiances.

Social Media and Minority Languages
Social Media and Minority Languages

Author: Elin Haf Gruffydd Jones

Publisher: Multilingual Matters

Published: 2013-02-22

Total Pages: 291

ISBN-13: 1847699065

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As a field in its own right, Minority Language Media studies is developing fast. The recent technological and social developments that have accelerated media convergence and opened new ways of access and exchange into spaces formerly controlled by media institutions, offer new opportunities, challenges and dangers to minority languages, and especially to their already established media institutions. This book includes debates on what convergence and participation actually mean, a series of case studies of specific social media developments in minority language, as well as comparative studies on how the cultural industries have engaged with the new possibilities brought about by media convergence. Finally, the book also offers a historical review of the development of Minority Language Media worldwide, and evidences the areas in which more extensive research is required.

Maintenance and Loss of Minority Languages
Maintenance and Loss of Minority Languages

Author: Willem Fase

Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing

Published: 1992

Total Pages: 416

ISBN-13: 9027241015

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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.

Language and Minority Rights
Language and Minority Rights

Author: Stephen May

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2013-06-17

Total Pages: 450

ISBN-13: 113683706X

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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.

Ethnic Minority Languages in China
Ethnic Minority Languages in China

Author: Qingsheng Zhou

Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG

Published: 2020-09-21

Total Pages: 325

ISBN-13: 1501511513

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This book describes and analyzes the situation of minority languages in China.

Minority Languages and Multilingual Education
Minority Languages and Multilingual Education

Author: Durk Gorter

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2013-11-04

Total Pages: 226

ISBN-13: 940077317X

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​This book presents research on the situation minority language schoolchildren face when they need to learn languages of international communication, in particular English. The book takes minority languages as a starting point and it bridges local and global perspectives in the analysis of multilingual education contexts. It examines the interaction of minority languages and cultures, majority languages and lingua franca-s in a variety of settings across different regions and countries on all continents. Even though all chapters in this book involve minority languages, the issues discussed are relevant to any context in which more than language is used in education. The book reveals challenges and opportunities of multilingual education by discussing issues such as Northern and Southern concepts, language education policies, language diversity, interethnic understanding, multimodal language practices, power, conflict, identity and prestige, among many others. “This is the volume that finally accounts for multilingual education from a truly multilingual perspective by involving proposals and research from a variety of multilingual speech communities in the world. The (linguistically) rich Ethiopia and Mexico can teach the poor Europe and other Northern countries about multilingual education. CLIL promoters may learn from Finnish Sámi and Canadian Innu and Mi’gmaq indigenous communities as well as from Basque results. Speakers and teachers of minority and international languages will certainly be glad to hear the news. There is no need for a monolingual bias or tunnel vision in acquiring English in non-English speaking communities. This volume includes new challenging pedagogical perspectives while pointing to interesting conclusions for worldwide educational authorities”. Maria Pilar Safont Jordà, Universitat Jaume I, Castelló, Spain

The State of Minority Languages
The State of Minority Languages

Author: W. Fase

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2013-12-19

Total Pages: 324

ISBN-13: 1134379420

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Many regional languages across the world are threatened by modernization and urbanization whilst the universal and rapid rise of migration has created new and unprecedented forms of multilingualism. Aspects of education, national policies and attitudes towards minority languages are documented.

Encyclopedia of Bilingualism and Bilingual Education
Encyclopedia of Bilingualism and Bilingual Education

Author: Colin Baker

Publisher: Multilingual Matters

Published: 1998

Total Pages: 776

ISBN-13: 9781853593628

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This encyclopedia is divided into three sections: individual bilingualism; bilingualism in society and bilingual education. It includes many pictures, graphs, maps and diagrams. The book concludes with a comprehensive bibliography on bilingualism.