Language and National Identity: Comparing France and Sweden

317 Pages·2001·1.399 MB·

by  Leigh Oakes

<ATSKSWVUIIDUEOZTIBYDOTEFLJWFHTECESHHCOOIEN"ETTRRLFI"aDG1O"n""5SIH4"gm0"uT">"pa"ga"ec2t2a01n"3d"NationalIdentity:ComparingFranceandSweden"
LanguageandNationalIdentity
Impact: Studies in language and society
impactpublishesmonographs,collectivevolumes,andtextbooksontopicsin
sociolinguisticsandlanguagepedagogy.Thescopeoftheseriesisbroad,with
special emphasis on areas such as language planning and language policies;
languageconflictandlanguagedeath;languagestandardsandlanguagechange;
dialectology;diglossia;discoursestudies;languageandsocialidentity(gender,
ethnicity,class,ideology);andhistoryandmethodsofsociolinguistics
Generaleditor
AnnickDeHouwer
UniversityofAntwerp
Advisoryboard
UlrichAmmon WilliamLabov
GerhardMercatorUniversity UniversityofPennsylvania
LaurieBauer ElizabethLanza
VictoriaUniversityofWellington UniversityofOslo
JanBlommaert JosephLoBianco
GhentUniversity TheAustralianNationalUniversity
PaulDrew PeterNelde
UniversityofYork CatholicUniversityBrussels
AnnaEscobar DennisPreston
UniversityofIllinoisatUrbana MichiganStateUniversity
GuusExtra JeanineTreffers-Daller
TilburgUniversity UniversityoftheWestofEngland
MargaritaHidalgo VicWebb
SanDiegoStateUniversity UniversityofPretoria
RichardA.Hudson
UniversityCollegeLondon
Volume13
LanguageandNationalIdentity:ComparingFranceandSweden
byLeighOakes
Language and National Identity
Comparing France and Sweden
Leigh Oakes
QueenMary,UniversityofLonden
JohnBenjaminsPublishingCompany
Amsterdam(cid:1)/(cid:1)Philadelphia
TM ThepaperusedinthispublicationmeetstheminimumrequirementsofAmerican
8
NationalStandardforInformationSciences–PermanenceofPaperforPrinted
LibraryMaterials,ansiz39.48-1984.
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
Oakes,Leigh.
Languageandnationalidentity:comparingFranceandSweden/ LeighOakes.
p. cm.(Impact:Studiesinlanguageandsociety,issn1385–7908;v.13)
Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.
1.Anthropologicallinguistics--France.2.Anthropologicallinguistics--Sweden.3.
Ethnicity--France.4.Ethnicity--Sweden.5.Nationalism--France.6.Nationalism--Sweden.
I.Title.II.Impact,studiesinlanguageandsociety;13.
P35.5.F8 O18 2001
306.44’089--dc21 2001043496
isbn902721848(cid:3)X(Eur.)/158811116(cid:3)4(US)(Hb;alk.paper)
©2001–JohnBenjaminsB.V.
Nopartofthisbookmaybereproducedinanyform,byprint,photoprint,microfilm,orany
othermeans,withoutwrittenpermissionfromthepublisher.
JohnBenjaminsPublishingCo.·P.O.Box36224·1020meAmsterdam·TheNetherlands
JohnBenjaminsNorthAmerica·P.O.Box27519·Philadelphiapa19118-0519·usa
Contents
Preface vii
Acknowledgements ix
1. Introduction 1
1.1 Aimsofthebook 3
1.2 Structureofthebook 5
2. Basicconcepts 9
2.1 Ethnicityandtheethnicgroup 9
2.2 Nationalismandthenation 11
2.3 Languageandlinguisticvariation 18
2.4 Language,ethnicityandnationalism 21
3. Theoreticalframework 29
3.1 Languageattitudes 29
3.2 Socialidentityandethnolinguisticidentitytheories 33
4. Languageandnationalidentity:Ageneralperspective 49
4.1 Linguisticconsciousness 49
4.2 LanguageandidentityinFrance:Ahistoricaloverview 53
4.3 LanguageandidentityinSweden:Ahistoricaloverview 64
4.4 FrenchandSwedishattitudestolanguagechangeand
spellingreform 71
5. Languageandnationalidentityinthenationalarena 79
5.1 Ethnolinguisticminorities 79
5.2 LanguageandnationalidentityinFrance:
Thenationalarena 88
5.3 LanguageandnationalidentityinSweden:
Thenationalarena 104
5.4 FrenchandSwedishattitudestowardstheteaching
ofminoritylanguagesandtheCharterforRegional
orMinorityLanguages 116
vi Contents
6. LanguageandnationalidentityintheEuropeanarena 127
6.1 TheEuropeanarena:Anewculturalbattlefield? 127
6.2 English:TheEuropeanlinguafranca? 131
6.3 LanguageandidentityinFrance:TheEuropeanarena 136
6.4 LanguageandidentityinSweden:TheEuropeanarena 140
6.5 FranceandSwedenintheEuropeanarena:Futurechallenges 145
7. Languageandnationalidentityintheglobalarena 147
7.1 Anewglobalculture? 147
7.2 English:Agloballanguage? 149
7.3 LanguageandidentityinFrance:Theglobalarena 154
7.4 LanguageandidentityinSweden:Theglobalarena 163
7.5 FranceandSwedenintheglobalarena:Past
andfuturechallenges 170
8. LanguageandnationalidentityinFranceandSweden:Asurvey 175
8.1 Aimsofsurvey 175
8.2 Methodology 177
8.3 Resultsandcomparativediscussionofthesurvey 185
9. Conclusion 229
9.1 Summaryoffindings 230
9.2 Futureresearch 235
Notes 239
AppendixA:QuestionnaireinFrench 249
AppendixB:QuestionnaireinSwedish 257
References 265
Indexofsubjects 293
Indexofnames 300
Preface
Theaimofthisbookistore-examinetherelationshipbetweenlanguageand
national identity. Unlike many previous studies, it employs a comparative
approachforamorecomprehensiveunderstandingofthisrelationship.France
and Sweden have been chosen as case studies both for their similarities (e.g.
both are member states of the European Union) as well as their important
differences (e.g. France, at least in principle, subscribes to a civic model of
national identity, whereas the basis of Swedish identity is undeniably ethnic;
language is so obviously a core value of French identity, but at first does not
appear to be so for Swedish identity). It is precisely differences such as these
whichallowforamorecompleteunderstandingoftheethnolinguisticimpli-
cations of some of the major challenges currently facing France, Sweden and
other European countries: regionalism, immigration, European integration
andglobalisation.
The present volume also differs from others on the market because of the
variety of methods of inquiry used. Most previous studies of language and
national identity are not reinforced by an empirical component, which adds
weighttotheinvestigation.Thisistheaimofthesurvey,whichisthefocusof
Chapter8. The book also uses a multidisciplinary approach that brings
together materials from a range of fields (e.g. the sociology of language,
sociolinguistics, socialpsychology, political science,history, economics) fora
comprehensive examination of the role of language in national identity.
Finally, it is worth noting that much of the French and especially Swedish
literature reviewed in this book has traditionally been neglected by English-
speaking researchers because of language barriers. All translations from
foreign-languagesourcesarethoseoftheauthor,unlessotherwisespecified.
The origins of this book lie in a Ph.D. dissertation completed at the
UniversityofMelbourne,Australia,inAugust2000.

Acknowledgements
The research on which this book is based owes much to many people. First
and foremost, I would like to thank my friend and former supervisor,
Monique Monville-Burston. For ten years, Monique has been an invaluable
source of inspiration and encouragement. Monique’s remarkable dedication
and thoroughness will forever motivate me; in fact, so much of what I have
alreadyachieved,Iowedirectlyorindirectlytoher.Forallthis,Icouldnever
thankherenough.
AnotherpersontowhomIamgreatlyindebtedisKennethHyltenstam,of
the Centre for Research on Bilingualism at Stockholm University. Kenneth
kindly accepted to supervise my work from September 1997 until December
1998, when the Swedish Institute generously offered me one of their guest
scholarshipsforoverseasresearchers.IamverygratefultoothersattheCentre
as well: to Maria Wingstedt, Barbro Allardt Ljunggren, Christopher Stroud,
TaijaNyborg,AndersPhilipssonandVeliTuomela;inessence,toeveryoneat
the Centre, I thank you so much for giving me a home, and for making me
feelwelcome.IwillalwayshavefondmemoriesofmytimeinStockholm.
MySwedishexperiencewasalsoshapedbytheassistanceofseveralothers:
Mikael Svonni, Annick Sjögren, Margareta Westman, François Aillet, César
Ibanez,AgnetaKarlsson,BirgittaLandströmandSivWiss.Therearemanyto
thank in France too: Jean-François Baldi, Jean-François Battail, Maria
Ridelberg-Lemoine,MonsieurCicaronne,MonsieurOlsem,MonsieurColpin,
Monsieur Herlemont, Madame Rault, Madame Rebuffat, Philippe Audibert,
Monsieur Rauch and Daniel Elduayen. From my time in Melbourne, I am
indebtedtoJaneWarren,TimMcNamara,CatrinNorrbyandCathyElder;in
London to Itesh Sachdev, Luc Bougniol-Laffont, Per Sörbom and to Richard
Bourhis, whom I met on a trip of his to the UK. This book also greatly
benefitedfromcommentsmadebyJohnEdwardsandDenisAger,theexam-
inersofthedoctoraldissertationwhichprecededthiswork.
At my new home, the School of Modern Languages at Queen Mary,
UniversityofLondon,IamgratefultoJennyCheshire,JamalOuHallaandto
mypredecessorHilaryWise,fromwhomIinheritedtheMAmoduleLanguage
andNation,whichallowedmetodevelopfurthertheideasonwhichthiswork