EU MULTILINGUALISM AND THE LANGUAGES OF THE EASTERN PARTNERSHIP COUNTRIES: AN EXPLORATORY OVERVIEW
Abstract
This article provides a literature-based exploratory overview of how the European Union (EU) might deal with the linguistic challenges of incorporating the official languages of the Eastern Partnership countries – Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine – into its wider activities. In the first instance, the EU’s core concepts of multilingualism and language equality are outlined. This is subsequently complemented by a summary of the current linguistic situation regarding the Eastern Partnership countries and the potential implications of wider use of their languages for the EU’s translation and interpreting services, as well as suggestions for further research on the topic.
Keywords: European Union; translation; interpreting; Armenia; Azerbaijan; Belarus; Georgia; Moldova; Ukraine.
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References
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Gazzola, M. (2016). Multilingual communication for whom? Language policy and fairness in the European Union. European Union Politics, 17(4), 546-569. https://doi.org/10.1177/1465116516657672
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Kamusella, T. (2019a). Estonian Russian: if or when? New Eastern Europe (May 8). http://neweasterneurope.eu/2019/05/08/estonian-russian-if-or-when/
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Kużelewska, E. (2019). Impact of Brexit on the status of the English language in the European Union. Środkowoeuropejskie Studia Polityczne, (2), 213-227. https://doi.org/10.14746/ssp.2019.2.12
Kużelewska, E. (2020). Quo vadis English? The post-Brexit position of English as a working language of the EU. International Journal for the Semiotics of Law, 1-16. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11196-020-09782-x
Łachacz, O., & Mańko, R. (2013). Multilingualism at the Court of Justice of the European Union: Theoretical and practical aspects. Studies in Logic, Grammar and Rhetoric, 34(47), 75-92. https://doi.org/10.2478/slgr-2013-0024
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Moser, M. (2020). Is a Ukrainian standard of the Russian language on the agenda? Kyiv-Mohyla Humanities Journal, 7, 185-196.
O’Loughlin, J., Kolossov, V., & Toal, G. (2014). Inside the post-Soviet de facto states: a comparison of attitudes in Abkhazia, Nagorny Karabakh, South Ossetia, and Transnistria. Eurasian Geography and Economics, 55 (5), 423-456. https://doi.org/10.1080/15387216.2015.1012644
Ó Riain, S. (2010). Irish and Translation – the EU Context. Études irlandaises, 35(2). 65-80. https://doi.org/10.4000/etudesirlandaises.1958
Palmatier, R. W., Houston, M. B., & Hulland, J. (2018). Review articles: Purpose, process, and structure. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 46, 1–5. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-017-0563-4
Pavlenko, A. (2008). Multilingualism in post-Soviet countries: Language revival, language removal, and sociolinguistic theory. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 11 (3-4), 275-314, https://doi.org/10.1080/13670050802271517
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Prina, F. (2012). Language policies or language politics? The case of Moldova. Minority representation and minority language rights: Origins, experiences and lessons to be learned. Sapientia Hungarian University of Transylvania, Cluj-Napoca (October 12-14). http://kv.sapientia.ro/data/miremir/FEDERICA_PRINA.pdf
Pym, A. (2000). The European Union and its Future Languages: Questions for Language Policies and Translation Theories. Across Languages and Cultures, 1(1), 1-17.
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Snyder, H. (2019). Literature review as a research methodology: An overview and guidelines. Journal of Business Research, 104, 333–339. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2019.07.039
de Swaan, A. (2007). The language predicament of the EU since the enlargements. Sociolinguistica, 21(1), 1-21. https://doi.org/10.1515/9783484605060.1
Zeller, J.P., & Sitchinava, D. (2019). The Russian language in Belarus and Ukraine. In: A. Mustajoki, E. Protassova, & M. Yelenevskaya (Eds.), The soft power of the Russian language. Pluricentricity, politics and policies (pp. 108-122). London: Routledge.
Bartłomiejczyk, M. (2020). Tłumacze konferencyjni w Parlamencie Europejskim. Rocznik Przekładoznawczy, 15, 11-28. https://doi.org/10.12775/RP.2020.001
Benedetti, M. (2011). Interpreting in the European Commission. Gramma: Journal of Theory and Criticism, 19, 133-138. https://doi.org/10.26262/gramma.v19i0.6331
Brisset, A. (2013). Translation and redevelopment in post-communist Europe. Southern African Linguistics and Applied Language Studies. 31(4), 415-433, https://doi.org/10.2989/16073614.2013.864440
Catford, J. (1977). Mountain of tongues: The languages of the Caucasus. Annual Review of Anthropology, 6, 283-314.
Comrie, B. (2009a). Introduction. In B. Comrie (Ed.), The World’s Major Languages. London: Routledge, 1-22.
Comrie, B. (2009b). Slavonic languages. In B. Comrie (Ed.), The World’s Major Languages (pp. 269–273). London: Routledge.
Cosmai, D. (2014). The Language of Europe. Multilingualism and translation in the EU institutions. Brussels: Editions de l'Université de Bruxelles.
Crowcroft, O. (2020). Moldovans warned to stop calling Romanian language Moldovan. EuroNews (January 30). https://www.euronews.com/2020/01/30/moldova-warned-to-stop-calling-romanian-moldovan
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European Commission (2007a). Interpretation: where do we stand after completion of the fifth enlargement? http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_MEMO-07-77_en.htm
European Commission (2007b). Multilingualism: more translators and interpreters for the three new languages are arriving. http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_MEMO-07-75_en.htm?locale=en
European Commission (2017). Iceland. https://ec.europa.eu/neighbourhood-enlargement/countries/detailed-country-information/iceland_en
European Commission (2020a). European Neighbourhood Policy. https://ec.europa.eu/neighbourhood-enlargement/neighbourhood/european-neighbourhood-policy_en
European Commission (2020b). Work as a freelance interpreter at the EU. https://europa.eu/interpretation/index_en.html
European Commission (2021a). Use of languages. https://ec.europa.eu/info/about-european-commission/service-standards-and-principles/use-languages_en
European Commission (2021b). List of EMT members 2019-2024. https://ec.europa.eu/info/resources-partners/european-masters-translation-emt/list-emt-members-2019-2024_en
European Commission (2021c). Cooperation with non-EU countries. https://ec.europa.eu/info/departments/interpretation/international-cooperation-interpretation_en
European Council (2021). EU relations with Belarus. https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/policies/eastern-partnership/belarus/
European External Action Service (2019a). Myths about the Eastern Partnership – Factsheet. https://eeas.europa.eu/diplomatic-network/eastern-partnership/35712/myths-about-eastern-partnership-factsheet_en
European External Action Service (2019b). International Conference on Quality of EU Acquis Translation. https://eeas.europa.eu/delegations/ukraine/56458/node/56458_bs
European External Action Service (2019c). Quality EU acquis translation for better implementation of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement. https://eeas.europa.eu/delegations/ukraine/56598/node/56598_me
European External Action Service (2021). Eastern Partnership. https://eeas.europa.eu/diplomatic-network/eastern-partnership/419/eastern-partnership_en
European Parliament (2020). Multilingualism in the European Parliament. http://www.europarl.europa.eu/about-parliament/en/organisation-and-rules/multilingualism
European Personnel Selection Office (2021). Languages. https://epso.europa.eu/career-profiles/languages_en
Fischer, S. (Ed.) (2016). Not frozen! The unresolved conflicts over Transnistria, Abkhazia, South Ossetia and Nagorno-Karabakh in light of the crisis over Ukraine. SWP Research Paper 2016/RP 09. Berlin: Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik. https://www.swp-berlin.org/en/publication/not-frozen-conflicts-in-the-post-soviet-area/
Gazzola, M., & Grin, F. (2013). Is ELF more effective and fair than translation? An evaluation of the EU’s multilingual regime. International Journal of Applied Linguistics, 23(1), 93–107. https://doi.org/10.1111/ijal.12014
Gazzola, M. (2016). Multilingual communication for whom? Language policy and fairness in the European Union. European Union Politics, 17(4), 546-569. https://doi.org/10.1177/1465116516657672
Hoyte-West, A. (2019). On the road to linguistic equality? Irish and Maltese as official EU languages. Discourses on Culture, 11, 99-111. https://doi.org/10.36145/DoC2019.05
Hoyte-West, A. (2020a). Luxembourgish – the next EU language? A translation and interpreting-based perspective. In: L. Harmon & D. Osuchowska (Eds.), Translation and Power, (pp. 87-95). Berlin: Peter Lang). https://doi.org/10.3726/b17222
Hoyte-West, A. (2020b). Interpreter training in the Republic of Ireland: An overview. Verbum, 11, 8. https://doi.org/10.15388/Verb.19
Hoyte-West, A. (2021). The western Balkans and EU multilingualism: A focus on translation and interpreting. Thesis, 10(1), 43-64.
Kamusella, T. (2018a). Nationalism and national languages. In J. Tollefson & M. Pérez-Milans (Eds.), The Oxford Handbook of Language Policy and Planning (pp. 163-182). Oxford: Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190458898.013.8
Kamusella, T. (2018b). Russian: A monocentric or pluricentric language? Colloquia Humanistica, 7, 153-196. https://doi.org/10.11649/ch.2018.010
Kamusella, T. (2019a). Estonian Russian: if or when? New Eastern Europe (May 8). http://neweasterneurope.eu/2019/05/08/estonian-russian-if-or-when/
Kamusella, T. (2019b). After Ukraine’s new language law, it is high time for Ukrainian Russian. New Eastern Europe (August 7). https://neweasterneurope.eu/2019/08/07/after-ukraines-new-language-law-it-is-high-time-for-ukrainian-russian/
Kamusella, T. (2021a). Who is afraid of the letter Ł? The Łacinka and the Belarusian dictator. Wachtyrz.eu (March 10). https://wachtyrz.eu/tomasz-kamusella-who-is-afraid-of-the-letter-l/
Kamusella, T. (2021b). Belarusian: An Extremist Language? Wachtyrz.eu (June 22). https://wachtyrz.eu/belarusian-an-extremist-language/
Kużelewska, E. (2019). Impact of Brexit on the status of the English language in the European Union. Środkowoeuropejskie Studia Polityczne, (2), 213-227. https://doi.org/10.14746/ssp.2019.2.12
Kużelewska, E. (2020). Quo vadis English? The post-Brexit position of English as a working language of the EU. International Journal for the Semiotics of Law, 1-16. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11196-020-09782-x
Łachacz, O., & Mańko, R. (2013). Multilingualism at the Court of Justice of the European Union: Theoretical and practical aspects. Studies in Logic, Grammar and Rhetoric, 34(47), 75-92. https://doi.org/10.2478/slgr-2013-0024
Latoszek, E., & Kłos, A. (2016). The Eastern Partnership as a new form of the European Union’s cooperation with the Third Countries. Studia z Polityki Publicznej, 3(4), 177-194.
Lavrelashvili, T., & Van Hecke, S. (2021). Georgia is ready to apply for membership by 2024 – is the EU ready too? Euractiv (January 28). https://www.euractiv.com/section/eastern-europe/opinion/georgia-is-ready-to-apply-for-membership-by-2024-is-the-eu-ready-too-2/
Minakov, M. (2019). On the extreme periphery. The status of post-Soviet non-recognised states in the world-system. Ideologies and Politics Journal, 1(12), 39-72.
Moser, M. (2020). Is a Ukrainian standard of the Russian language on the agenda? Kyiv-Mohyla Humanities Journal, 7, 185-196.
O’Loughlin, J., Kolossov, V., & Toal, G. (2014). Inside the post-Soviet de facto states: a comparison of attitudes in Abkhazia, Nagorny Karabakh, South Ossetia, and Transnistria. Eurasian Geography and Economics, 55 (5), 423-456. https://doi.org/10.1080/15387216.2015.1012644
Ó Riain, S. (2010). Irish and Translation – the EU Context. Études irlandaises, 35(2). 65-80. https://doi.org/10.4000/etudesirlandaises.1958
Palmatier, R. W., Houston, M. B., & Hulland, J. (2018). Review articles: Purpose, process, and structure. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 46, 1–5. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-017-0563-4
Pavlenko, A. (2008). Multilingualism in post-Soviet countries: Language revival, language removal, and sociolinguistic theory. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 11 (3-4), 275-314, https://doi.org/10.1080/13670050802271517
Phillipson, R. (2003). English-only Europe: Challenging language policy. London/New York: Routledge.
Prina, F. (2012). Language policies or language politics? The case of Moldova. Minority representation and minority language rights: Origins, experiences and lessons to be learned. Sapientia Hungarian University of Transylvania, Cluj-Napoca (October 12-14). http://kv.sapientia.ro/data/miremir/FEDERICA_PRINA.pdf
Pym, A. (2000). The European Union and its Future Languages: Questions for Language Policies and Translation Theories. Across Languages and Cultures, 1(1), 1-17.
Regulation No. 1 determining the languages to be used by the European Economic Community. 1958. Official Journal of the European Communities, 17, 6.10.1958, 385. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:01958R0001-20130701&qid=1610313972603&from=EN
RFE/RL Ukrainian Service (2021). Ukrainian PM reiterates Kyiv's plans to join EU, NATO. Radio Free Europe/ Radio Liberty (March 19). https://www.rferl.org/a/ukrainian-pm-smyhal-kyiv-ukraine-eu-nato/31159939.html
Snyder, H. (2019). Literature review as a research methodology: An overview and guidelines. Journal of Business Research, 104, 333–339. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2019.07.039
de Swaan, A. (2007). The language predicament of the EU since the enlargements. Sociolinguistica, 21(1), 1-21. https://doi.org/10.1515/9783484605060.1
Zeller, J.P., & Sitchinava, D. (2019). The Russian language in Belarus and Ukraine. In: A. Mustajoki, E. Protassova, & M. Yelenevskaya (Eds.), The soft power of the Russian language. Pluricentricity, politics and policies (pp. 108-122). London: Routledge.
Published
2021-12-19
How to Cite
Hoyte-West, A. (2021). EU MULTILINGUALISM AND THE LANGUAGES OF THE EASTERN PARTNERSHIP COUNTRIES: AN EXPLORATORY OVERVIEW. PALIMPSEST / ПАЛИМПСЕСТ, 6(12), 61-71. https://doi.org/10.46763/PALIM21612061hw
Section
ЈАЗИК / LANGUAGE
