Language rights allow people to speak their native language and use it in public and private interactions. The Universal Declaration of Linguistic Rights established these rights in 1996, but implementation varies. The protection of endangered languages raises questions about whether they should be allowed to die out or be preserved. The declaration only applies to peoples and groups with a historical presence in a country or region.
Language rights are the rights people have to speak their native or first language. The rights established in 1996 by the “Universal Declaration of Linguistic Rights” and by the “European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages”, also extend to the right to use language in public and private interactions. Many of the world’s nations have acceded to the Universal Declaration, but the level of implementation varies from nation to nation. Opinions also differ on how the declaration should be put into practice.
The language rights work is part of a larger campaign to improve civil and human rights around the world. While various treaties and agreements included elements of language rights, most of the work began in the 20th century. The League of Nations laid the groundwork for a series of treaties between 1920 and 1918. After World War II, the new United Nations (UN) signed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1939.
The 1948 declaration led, little by little, to the development by the United Nations of the “Universal Declaration of Linguistic Rights in 1996”. Also called the Barcelona Declaration, the declaration sets out basic principles about a person’s right to speak and use their language. The rights in the statement include the right to receive education in the mother tongue, the right to conduct administration in the mother tongue, and the right to use the mother tongue in the judicial system.
Particular consideration was given by the declaration to the linguistic rights of minority languages and, in particular, to endangered languages. While it may be too late for many languages, such as many Native American and Cornish languages, the protection afforded by the declaration could be used to preserve others such as Welsh and Breton. The protection of endangered languages raises the question of whether languages should be able to die or be kept alive thanks to the support of artificial life.
It also raises the issue of protecting dialects. Some dialects in England, for example, remain as strong as those of North and London, but others, such as South West, have died out to be replaced by Standard Queen’s English. The Japanese government, signatory to the Declaration, still considers the Ryukyu-Okinawa and Yaeyama languages as dialects of Japanese and, therefore, not subject to protection. Other languages such as Welsh have been protected by legal requirements to translate documents and newspapers and to provide a Welsh language television channel.
In countries with high numbers of immigrants, members of the indigenous majority have raised concerns about the amount of resources allocated to address linguistic multiculturalism. The declaration, however, insists that linguistic rights apply only to peoples and groups that have a historical presence in a country or region, and not to new groups of people. New peoples are still expected to integrate into the majority language to access services.
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