View
215
Download
0
Category
Tags:
Preview:
Citation preview
Challenges for medium sized language communities: a multilingual cities perspective
An overview of the situation of Dutch in Brussels
Philippe HambyeCentre de recherche Valibel – Discours et Variation
Institut Langage & CommunicationUniversité de Louvain
Barcelona, 30th septembre 2010
Use of languages in Brussels
Figures from a 2005 survey amongst 2500 speakers (Janssens 2007, 2008)
Declared knowledge of languages (good or perfect)
Use of languages in Brussels
French 96% Portuguese 2%
English 35% Turkish 1%
Dutch 28% Lingala 1%
Greek 1%
Spanish 7% Russian 0,5%
German 6% Amazigh 0,3%
Italian 6%
Arabic 6%
Demolinguistic balance in Brussels
French 57%
Dutch 7%
French + Dutch 9%
French + other 11%
Other 16%
Social distribution of languages in Brussels
French as a lingua franca in Brussels
Weak position of Dutch in Brussels (60% of Dutch-speakers in Belgium)
The demolinguistic ratio do not reflect the importance of Dutch
- due to its official status
- due to its major role in the workplace
Migration movements
Increasing number of languages (1999 > 2005)
95% of newcomers learn French rather than Dutch
Municipalities with a high rate of immigrants in Brussels have the highest birthrate in Belgium
Migration movements
France 46006 Roumanie 8741
Maroc 39101 Royaume-Uni 8607
Italie 26695 Congo-Kinshasa 7955
Espagne 19210 Grèce 7780
Pologne 15697 Pays-Bas 6750
Turquie 10667 Japon 3129
Allemagne 8886 États-Unis 3083
Migration movements
Bulgarie 2452
Algérie 2338
Suède 2336
Chine 2071
Cameroun 2049
Serbie/Mont. 1990
Integration policies
Houses of Dutch
Non Dutch-speakers as a priority group in primary schools
Some initiatives to use/promote immigrant languages
No political measures on the Francophone side
Attitudes
Multilingualism as a richness, bilingualism as a necessity
Negative attitudes towards the Flemish community, esp. amongst newcomers
Linguistic landscapeBrussels is officially bilingual, mainly French-speaking, and largely multilingual
No regulation of signage in the private sector
- French only- Official bilingualism
- English with/without French/French-Dutch- + immigrant languages- « non languages »
BOZAR (beaux-arts/schone kunsten)
Linguistic landscapeBrussels is officially bilingual, mainly French-speaking, and largely multilingual
No regulation of signage in the private sector
- French only- Official bilingualism
- English with/without French/French-Dutch- + immigrant languages- « non languages »
CINEMATEK (cinémathèque/cinemateek)
Linguistic landscapeBrussels is officially bilingual, mainly French-speaking, and largely multilingual
No regulation of signage in the private sector
- French only- Official bilingualism
- English with/without French/French-Dutch- + immigrant languages- « non languages »
KIOSK (kiosque/kiosk)
Linguistic landscapeBrussels is officially bilingual, mainly French-speaking, and largely multilingual
No regulation of signage in the private sector
- French only- Official bilingualism
- English with/without French/French-Dutch- + immigrant languages- « non languages »
BOOTIK (boutique/boetiek)
Public services
All public services in both official languages
Compulsory : not a political choice
Double monolingualism
Ratio at the advantage of Dutch speakers
Private services
Language use highly variable (// signage)
Dutch more present in services provided to Flemish workers (ex. restaurants)
English for international services (hotels, tourism, airport)
Brussels a microcosm ?
Coexistence of two monolingual communities
One of the few place where people experience bilingualism
The only place where an bicultural identity emerges
Political debate concerning this exceptional status of Brussels
Recommended