This is the first volume entirely dedicated to contested languages. While generally listed in international language atlases, contested languages usually fall through the cracks of research: excluded from the literature on minority languages and treated as mere ensembles of geographically defined… read more
It is generally accepted that the concepts ‘language’ and ‘dialect’ are not entirely linguistic notions, but also involve social, cultural and political factors. Nonetheless, it is still nowadays difficult to agree upon a set of satisfying criteria by which ‘languages’ can be differentiated from… read more
In this chapter I argue that over-reliance on socio-political criteria (i.e. Ausbau-centrism) in the linguistic literature is partly responsible for the discrimination to which speakers of contested languages are subjected at both the social and the institutional level. Further, I argue that an… read more
The literature on regional and minority languages has seen strong developments in recent years, and new frontiers have been opened on issues of minority language planning and development as well as on issues of speakers’ rights. Nevertheless, there are many varieties that are left in a sort of… read more
