Language Policy: Public Policy Perspectives

Abstract

Language policy involves the governance of diversity arising from historical configurations, recent immigration, or both. Because of the widespread belief that language differences are a source of political instability and societal conflict, as well as the practical costs of multilingual administration and public services, policies are commonly designed to reduce the actual diversity encountered among the population and to minimize its potential growth. Although language has long been of concern to states, issues of language policy have achieved unprecedented prominence as a concomitant of the expansion of governmental activity and of citizen participation, as well as of the advent of postindustrial conditions that enhance the value of linguistic skills as a form of cultural capital. Among both one-language dominant and acknowledged multilingual countries, much of the impetus for change comes from disadvantaged indigenous and immigrant minorities. This is illustrated by way of case studies illustrating an array of diverse situations, including the United States, France, Belgium, Canada, and postcolonial countries in Asia and Africa. The article also reviews language issues arising at the international level, including the United Nations, the European Union, and concludes with a projection of the emerging global language system.