Language choices in political documents reflect the power dynamics and policies of the time, as seen in the selection of languages on the Rosetta Stone.
Government language policies in public spaces have a significant impact on language visibility, recognition, and power dynamics within a society.
Deep dives
Language as a Symbolic Document: The Rosetta Stone
The Rosetta Stone is a significant artifact known for its three languages carved into it—Egyptian hieroglyphs, Demotic, and Greek. The choice of these languages by King Ptolemy V reflected the political climate of the time, with Greek representing the language of the government, Demotic serving the locals, and Egyptian hieroglyphs symbolizing the language of the gods. The Rosetta Stone served as a crucial key in deciphering hieroglyphs and demonstrated the importance of language choices in political documents.
Language Policies and Polities
The choice of languages by governments in public spaces speaks volumes about their policies towards language. Examples include Canada's bilingual labeling, the extensive language requirements for packaged goods, and the use of indigenous languages in legal texts in Australia. These policies can have profound effects on language visibility, recognition, and the power dynamics within a society. The discussion also highlights the need to go beyond decorative multilingualism and address the actual support and access to community services in different languages.
Bilingualism in Policy and Personal Life
The personal experiences and feelings associated with heritage languages are explored through the lens of Julie Sadevi's book, 'Memory Speaks.' Sadevi shares her journey of reclaiming her heritage Czech language, highlighting the pressures and policy-driven shift towards dominant languages in immigrant communities. The book also delves into the potential impacts of language choices in therapy, emphasizing the importance of access to services in one's most comfortable language.
Language Policies and Advocacy
International Mother Language Day and the UN's Decade of Indigenous Languages demonstrate the global efforts to address language policy and support linguistic diversity. These initiatives provide platforms for language advocates to share experiences, discuss policies, and learn from each other's efforts. The examples of language movements in Canada, Pakistan, and Bangladesh further emphasize the crucial role of policy in recognizing and supporting marginalized languages and communities.
The Rosetta Stone is famous as an inscription that let us read Egyptian hieroglyphs again, but it was created in the first place as part of a long history of signage as performative multilingualism in public places. Choosing between languages is both very personal but it’s not only personal -- it’s also a reflection of the way that the societies we live in constrain our choices.
In this episode, your hosts Lauren Gawne and Gretchen McCulloch get enthusiastic about language policy and how organizations and nation-states make language decisions that affect people’s everyday lives. We also talk about the excellent recent lingcomm book Memory Speaks by Julie Sedivy, the International Decade of Indigenous Languages (currently ongoing!), and many ways of unpacking the classic quote about a language being a dialect with an army and a navy.
Read the transcript here: https://lingthusiasm.com/post/682191718408388608/transcript-episode-67-what-it-means-for-a
Announcements:
In this month’s bonus episode we’re getting enthusiastic about word games and puzzles with Nicole Holliday and Ben Zimmer of Spectacular Vernacular! We talk about patron questions, including lots of Wordle content: what Ben and Nicole learned from interviewing the creator of Wordle, our favourite Wordle variants such as IPA Wordle and Semantle, and comparing our Wordle solving strategies with a demo game on air. www.patreon.com/lingthusiasm
Join us on Patreon to listen to this and 60+ other bonus episodes. You’ll also get access to the Lingthusiasm Discord server where you can play and discuss word games and puzzles with other language nerds! www.patreon.com/lingthusiasm
For links to all the things mentioned in this episode: https://lingthusiasm.com/post/682191350734667776/episode-67-what-it-means-for-a-language-to-be
Remember Everything You Learn from Podcasts
Save insights instantly, chat with episodes, and build lasting knowledge - all powered by AI.
