Language policy
Language policy comprises laws, institutional rules, and public practices that shape which languages people use, teach, recognize, and support.
Official language: A language designated for use by a government or other public authority. Official status gives a language formal standing in government and public institutions.
Welsh language: A Celtic language spoken principally in Wales, with official status there. Welsh legislation and public services provide a prominent case of institutional language support.
Monolingualism: The use or knowledge of one language by an individual or within a community. Monolingual policies prioritize one language, unlike arrangements that recognize several.
Language shift: The process by which a community increasingly uses one language instead of another. Policy can accelerate or slow shifts by shaping education, work, and public communication.
Sociolinguistics: The study of relationships between language and social life. Language policy draws on how social structures shape language use and variation.
Language planning: Deliberate efforts to influence a language’s form, functions, or spread. Planning turns policy aims into choices about language standards, use, and learning.
Hebrew language revival: The development of modern Hebrew as a widely spoken language after centuries mainly as a literary and liturgical language. Its revival involved sustained institution-building and deliberate language planning.
Multilingualism: The use or presence of multiple languages by individuals or within a community. Multilingual policy accommodates more than one language in public or institutional life.
Language endangerment: The risk that a language will lose speakers and cease to be transmitted across generations. Exclusion from schools and public life can contribute to declining language transmission.
Language ideology: Beliefs about language that connect linguistic forms with social values and identities. Ideologies influence which languages authorities treat as useful, proper, or legitimate.