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“The Langue d'Oc Is Bringing People Together”: Debating the Place of Regional Languages in France
Author(s) -
Connor Janet E.
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
journal of linguistic anthropology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.463
H-Index - 49
eISSN - 1548-1395
pISSN - 1055-1360
DOI - 10.1111/jola.12215
Subject(s) - negotiation , ideology , context (archaeology) , value (mathematics) , sociology , signage , relation (database) , linguistics , political science , history , law , social science , politics , art , philosophy , archaeology , machine learning , computer science , visual arts , database
France is well known for its strong standard language ideologies, based in the idea that equality among citizens depends on the universality of a standard national language. In this context, a recent push to allow bilingual signage in French and regional languages may seem surprising. This article analyzes recent public debates in France surrounding the use and value of regional languages. These debates reached a climax after a local administrative council banned bilingual signs in French and Occitan in a town on the Mediterranean coast. I argue that these debates are an instance of the negotiation of new understandings of the relation between regional languages and place. First, the debates reinforced the connection between regional languages as entire codes and sets of practices that are authentically linked to the French territory. Second, the debates worked to rescale regional languages to no longer belong just to speakers and their descendants, but as universally owned by the nation as a whole. This kind of universal value was founded on perceived authenticity of regional languages. By renegotiating the place of regional languages within the French nation, they became a form of “safe” diversity to be celebrated and promoted instead of feared.