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Transnationalism and Minority Languages in Globalized Communication
Josu Amezaga-Albizu ([email protected])
Edorta Arana-Arrieta ([email protected])
NOR Research Group (nortaldea.com)
EMAN Research Unity
University of the Basque Country, UPV/EHU
Aim and methodology
Aim
To present some of the ideas we are working with in MULTILINGUAL TV project -specially those related to the changes in the relationship between communication and territory.
Methodology To bring some of the outcome from IML research into the approach towards RML. Case study: Basque newspaper Berria.
Communication and territory
The nation state has been a major agent of minoritization. The nation state has been based on the control over the territory. The nation can be considered a space of communication (Deutsch, Anderson, Habermas). National spaces have been privileged places for rising and declining of languages -thus for language conflict.
Changes in the national spaces of communication
Geolinguistic regions (J. Sinclair, 1996). Transnational Communities (S. Vertovec, 1997). Public sphericules (Giltin, 1998). Global private spaces (Slade, 2006). Transculturalism (K. Robins, 2007).
New spaces of communication beyond the nation state
What is being highlighted about these new spaces:
New spaces are based on media rather than on territory -thus not so dependent on nation state: media-centric spaces. They do not replace the national space; they add a new reality to the previous one -the metaphor of layers. They are inclusive rather than exclusive. They are affecting growing populations. They question the paradigm of the national space of communication.
Some questions for the re-thinking of RML To what extent have discourses about RML been based in the exclusive national paradigm? What do we nowadays mean by linguistic 'normalization'? How can linguistic policy be implemented when communication is not so dependent on state-controlled policy? Can communication spaces be built apart from the state?
A micro-example of media-centric space: Basque newspaper Berria
Scattering of speakers as a major challenge for minority languages. Basque speakers scattered among Spanish and French speakers.
60 % living in minority contexts.Basque newspaper as a basis for a communication space not based on territory.
Basque speakers (percentage)
Basque speakers (absloute)
Circulation rate of Berria
Some conclusions Research on IML can help us to better understand RML. Changes on communication are changing the conditions in which RML have been minoritized. We need to re-think some key concepts about reality and politics of RML. Importance of the media as the basis for new spaces of communication.
