Language policy and support for the rights of minorities

The Language issue in recent years increasingly become a subject of political rhetoric, campaign promises and flirting with voters. Often it is only cover urgent problems in social and economic spheres, but there are countries where the issue of a language as a public “edge”. Language policy of the state, as a set of measures aimed at supporting one language or multiple languages, are always intended to unite the various peoples inhabiting the country into a single whole state-nation. Another thing, how exactly to achieve the desired.

We are before the eyes of many historical examples, when inept language policy led to a completely opposite result-instead of unite the people, she had cut off, fueled separatist sentiment and led to internal tension, sometimes ending civil conflicts. So, in the UK in the mid-twentieth century, the teachers punished students who used in the speech of Welsh, Irish or Scottish words. The armed conflict in Northern Ireland was religious in nature (Catholic versus Protestant), and language (Irish vs. English).

In France in 1794, the Republic adopted a law that prohibits the use of any other languages and dialects in the country, in addition to literary French (in fact, is a dialect of the province of île-de-France). This law was repealed only in 1951, but for half a century, Occitan, Basque, Provencal, Breton, Italian in Corsica and others — have almost completely disappeared. Did this language policy to the unity of the people? Not at all – and mass demonstrations demanding the revival of regional languages living in France peoples are a Prime example.

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In the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the language policy was focused on maneuvering and a kind of appeasement of conquered territories. Despite the fact that communication between the monopoly and the colonies was in German, the Austro-Hungarian government supported national languages are: Slovak, opened schools, maintained creative Ukrainian and Polish groups, to sponsor talented Italian youth. Therefore, “Spring of Nations”, and later the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian was not a language issue as purely political.

In contrast to tsarist Russia, which suppressed all ‘non-Russian" in 1917 was promoted ideology support regional languages. However, beyond the propaganda business didn't come. In the 30-ies had been of the opinion that the Soviet Union is home to only 15 of the fraternal peoples, and these 15 languages of the Union republics was actively maintained. At the same time without any support from the state remain, for example, German, old Mongolian, Finnish and other languages, whose speakers compactly or sparsely lived on the territory of the USSR. In addition, the government proclaimed the languages of some of the "underdeveloped" require "language building” - thus, Moldovans were forcibly transferred from Latin alphabet to Cyrillic. In the 50-60-ies of the language policy of the Soviet Union implicitly but radically changed: despite the Declaration of support languages of the Union republics, not to speak in Russian, to be ‘national minorities" has become unfashionable, it was a sign of backwardness and country of origin. The sad consequences of this policy, we can see the example of Russified Kazakhstan, Belarus, partly in Ukraine and Moldova.

Language policy in Russia, unfortunately, has inherited many of the trends of the late USSR. In addition to the declarations, claiming the support of languages of national counties, States and territories, the Russian government often forget the languages of the minorities living on the territory of the state. Of course, every citizen must know the official language of their country, but this does not mean that he is forbidden to speak and teach their children to speak in their native language. If the state will not be at the highest level to support languages of national minorities, using the levers of administrative power, the media and the promotion of writers writing in the languages of national minorities, after some time, these languages and dialects will die out, and we will remain a feeling of dissatisfaction, resentment and national strife.