TRA ARMANAMI

1. Chapter 1. Lesser-used languages, regional or minority languages?: an overview. Policy makers and scholars differentiate between majority or minority languages according to various criteria, ranging from officially recognised status to actual language use. If a distinct language is spoken at a much reduced degree than the official national language, the term would thus be ‘lesser-used’. Nevertheless, ‘minority’ or ‘regional languages’ are often equally used as synonyms for ‘lesser-used’, although being considered pejorative. Whereas ‘regional’ implies the connection between language and territory, ‘minority’ rather alludes to a numerically inferior population with its own distinct language. The association with a specific territory is not as clear-cut, ‘minority’ might yet pertain to “those languages with a small territory, limited development potential, whose survival appears to be threatened” (Tabouret-Keller 1991 cited in O’Reilly, 2001: 9). Read here “Language Maintenance and Functional Expansion of Lesser-Used Languages: Case Studies on Aromanian and Irish” a scientific work done by Elena Mantu at Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg i.Br./ Germany.

14 June 2007 – Freiburg