Slav/Ling 075 Language & Nationalism Midterm Study

What criteria can you use to determine whether two people are speaking the same language?

There are no objective scientific criteria – the best you can do is to ask the speakers what languages they are speaking

Is it the case that if two people cannot comprehend each other, they are speaking two different languages?

Not necessarily! Many languages have mutually incomprehensible dialects, for example Italian and German.

What Finno-Ugric languages are spoken in Europe?

Finnish, Estonian, Hungarian, and Sami. There is some degree of mutual comprehensibility between Finnish & Estonian, but Hungarian is incomprehensible to both.

Is it ideal for a nation- state to be linguistically homogeneous?

Not really. This can lead to suppression of minorities. And there are VERY few examples of this “ideal”. Iceland is the best example, and Portugal and Slovenia come close.

Aside from Indo- European, there are only two fairly large language families represented in Europe. What are they?

Finno-Ugric (Finnish, Estonian, and Hungarian) and Turkic (Turkish)

What is a pidgin language?

A pidgin is a language with limited vocabulary and grammar, used in a limited context. It is nobody’s native language.

What’s a creole?

A creole is a full language that has been extended from a pidgin and has native speakers.

What effects has the EU had on issues of language & nationalism?

The EU is a larger authority for minority groups to appeal to, supports transnational trade, making multilingualism an asset, sets standards for treatment of minorities in education and administration.

What are some things we know about the Irish revival, and how it is taught in school?

Students find it hard and boring, and people are not using it spontaneously anymore than before, it is necessary to pass examinations in Irish, especially for some government jobs.

Why do we say that there is widespread diglossia in Italy?

Because most people speak their local dialect, but can understand Standard Italian, which is taught in school, used in the media, and has been promoted as the language of national politics since the time of Mussolini

What do we know about French, French language policy, and minority languages in France?

French is a descendant of Latin, with a Celtic substratum and Germanic superstratum; France has protectionist linguistic policies and does not collect data on minorities, nor support them well

What are the relationships between French (historically the prestige language) and Flemish and German in Belgium?

These languages are spoken in three monolingual territories, with a bilingual (French & Flemish) area for Brussels; the country is held together by historical and economic ties

What type of language is more likely to be linguistically homogeneous and well standardized?

Large national languages are more likely to be linguistically homogeneous and well standardized; smaller minority languages suffer more from dialectal fragmentation

Can you identify the following: –Corsican –Sardinian –Friulian

Can you identify the following: –Corsican –Sardinian –Friulian All three are Romance language varieties Corsican is related to French and spoken on Corsica Sardinian is distinct from and not comprehensible to Italians, spoken on Sardinia Friulian is considered a dialect of Italian, closely related also to Romansh

Describe the situation of Sami, where it is spoken, etc.

Sami is a language in the Finno-Ugric family (not comprehensible with Finnish) spoken mostly in Norway, but also in Sweden, Finland & Russia, suffered pressure to assimilate to Norwegian, and is dialectally fragmented

What is diglossia, what causes it, and what are some examples?

Diglossia arises when over time a speech community adopts a different language or language variety for “high brow” purposes. Examples: Spoken vs. Literary Czech, Haitian Creole vs. French, Swiss- German vs. Hoch Deutsch

Describe the situation of Norwegian in Norway.

Danish was used as literary language until 1814 (& still is lit lang in the Faroe Is); today there are two literary standards: Bokmål (closer to Danish and used more) and Nynorsk (closer to rural “geniune” Norwegian)

Is a national language necessary to establish a national identity? What other ingredients are essential?

No. It helps, but a nations can exist without a single national language. Essential ingredients: shared history, territory, and imagination.

Can you think of a situation where memory of historical glory can be problematic?

When nations remember larger & overlapping historical territories and attempt to regain them. This happened after WWI, with the expansions of Greece, and with the ethnic cleansings in the former Yugoslavia.

Greek has two literary varieties and Greece has changed its policy about which variety is preferred NINE times. What’s the issue?

Katharevousa enjoys higher prestige, but it is hard to learn because it includes elements of historical varieties of Greek; Dhimotiki (the version currently in favor) has lower prestige, but is close to Modern Spoken Greek

If a citizen wishes to participate in politics in Sub-Saharan Africa, what language do they need to learn (in addition to their native tongue)?

A Western language, usually English or French (or Portuguese), because the constitution is written in one of these languages.

Contrast the behavior of the British and the French as African colonizers.

The British were more racist, but supported indigenous languages. The French were less segregationist, but insisted on the promotion of French to the detriment of indigenous languages.

Why are men more multilingual than women in Africa?

Because men are more likely to serve in the army, travel to get a job, and participate in politics.

What is “Africa’s triple linguistic heritage”?

Indigenous languages + Islamic legacy + Western impact

What are Afro-ethnic languages?

The indigenous languages of Africa.

What are Afro-Islamic languages? Arabic, Swahili, Hausa, Nubi, Fulfulde, Mandinka, and languages that are strongly influenced by Arabic.

What are Afro- Western languages?

Afrikaans, Kriyol, Pidgin, Krio, Fanagalo, and nativized versions of English