Developing a Policy for Teaching a Minority Language: The Case of Frisian

Abstract

Frisian, a unique minority language in the Netherlands, is in the middle ranks of threatened European minority languages in Europe. In recent decades a framework for language policy has been developed in which the educational domain is one of the spearheads. This article provides an overview of language policy and language rights for Frisian language in education. After a brief outline of the sociolinguistic context, a detailed description is given of the development of policy for language education in relation to the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. A wider perspective is offered by comparing the case of Frisian with some other European minority languages. The legal obligation to teach Frisian as a subject may seem to place the language among the stronger minorities in the European Union, but the implementation of the minority language as medium of instruction is fairly marginal. From the comparison with other minority language communities it becomes clear that in the field of education Frisian takes an intermediate position. Most schools are currently a weakening factor for the minority language in society, contrary to what is demanded by the European Charter.