New speakers of minority languages and their role in language revitalization

It is generally agreed that there are somewhere between 5,000 and 6,000 languages spoken in the world today. However, experts predict drastic changes in this picture over the course of the century. Just how many languages will disappear is widely debated but according to the most pessimistic predictions, over 4,000 of the world's languages may cease to be spoken. The most threatened languages tend to be those spoken by peoples who in the past entered into political, economic or colonial relations which favoured the use of one or more dominant languages to the detriment of the local language. These include many of Europe's minority languages such as Gaelic, Welsh, Breton, Basque, Irish and Galician.

A break in parental transmission of a language is often seen as the single most important factor determining language endangerment. This factor is also linked to the maintenance of a native speaker community, with the underlying suggestion that a language cannot survive without traditional native speakers. Although traditional communities of minority language speakers are being eroded, at the same time new speakers are emerging in many contexts. This trend is often as a result of more supportive language policies at both national and EU levels. Such policies are in many cases leading to increased provision for these languages through their inclusion in school curricula, the media and other public domains. Institutional support for these languages is giving rise to new types of speakers, on whom their future language survival is likely to depend.

The emergence of new speakers of minority languages challenges the stance that a native speaker community needs to exist in order for a language to survive. This project takes up this challenge and examines its relevance to Irish in the Republic of Ireland and Galician in north western Spain. It explores the linguistic and social practices of new speakers of these languages and the role they are playing in the process of language revitalization.

The current project examines the role of new speakers of minority languages in the process of language revitalization, with specific reference to the Irish and Galician contexts. There will be significant public interest in the new insights that will be gained from the project about the vitality of these languages within their respective communities. This public interest will range from public bodies and agencies of various kinds (including local government, education institutions), to Irish and Galician language organisations and media. The project can therefore make a significant contribution to enhanced public understanding of the changing profile of speakers of these languages and a better awareness of how such speakers can be best supported within their respective societies. Insights from the study on the social and linguistic practices of new speakers of these languages will also inform language policy and planning in Ireland and Galicia.

I have significant experience of public engagement and over the past six years have developed links with policy makers, government, educators and members of the public across a range of European contexts on minority language rights and recognition. In 2006 I acted in an advisory capacity to the Irish representative of the European Committee of the Regions and contributed to an opinion paper on the EU's New Framework Strategy for Multilingualism. I plan to present the findings of the proposed research in similar formats and to produce specific recommendations to policy makers and bodies responsible for the promotion of Irish, Galician and other European minority languages. These include Irish language bodies such as Foras na Gaeilge and Conradh na Gaeilge; Galician language organisations such as the Concelo da Lingua Galega as well as European minority language networks such as the European Language Policy Network and Mercator.

My current affiliation at a Scottish University facilitates engagement with policy developments on Scotland's autochthonous minority languages including Gaelic, Scots and British Sign Language. In September 2010 I was awarded an Edinburgh Beltane Public Engagement Fellowship, granting me a part-time secondment to further develop my public engagement and knowledge transfer activities. The Fellowship has facilitated closer links with public sector bodies, the third sector and government in a Scottish context. In this capacity, I have addressed groups concerned with the development of Gaelic and have spoken at the Scottish Parliament on minority language rights and recognition in the context of British Sign Language. I plan to present the findings from my current research in fora of this kind. I am a member of Edinburgh University's Public Policy Network and will organise workshops to bring together academics with interest and expertise in minority languages issues, public sector bodies and relevant stakeholders.

The findings of the proposed research will be of particular relevance to policy makers, administrators and practitioners in the education sector in Ireland, Galicia and other minority language contexts. I have significant experience of engagement with schools, teachers, students and parent groups in Ireland. Between 2007 and 2008 I coordinated a language awareness project in Dublin entitled 'The World and its Languages in the Classroom'. This initiative won the European Language Label in 2008. Similar initiatives will be used to disseminate the findings of the research proposed in the current project.

I am one of the founding members of Bilingual Forum Ireland, an information service for parents, children, teachers and the general public about the value of languages and the positive effects of bilingualism. This initiative was awarded the European Language Label in 2009. I am editor of its bi-annual bulletin. The association webpage will provide a relevant outlet for the outputs of my proposed research.