Presents a classification of 11 language planning functions or goals that academies, committees, and commissions have been engaged in since language planning began several centuries ago or could adopt in the future. Language planning is defined as deliberate, institutionally organized attempts at affecting linguistic or sociolinguistic status or…

A paradox is discussed that underlies the aims of linguists who attempt to influence, deliberately and systematically, the linguistic behavior of a community, while trying to avoid charges of prescriptivism. A balance between promoting feasible economic units and preserving linguistic diversity is advocated. (57 references) (Author/LB)

It is argued that in the states of Francophone Africa, French is not always the language of the masses and that in light of sociolinguistic data, choice, or actual usage, new language policy accentuating national idioms is more viable than exclusive promotion of French. (38 references) (Author/MSE)

Discusses the failed attempt to cultivate Oriya as a modern language and to make it the official language of Orissa, India, in the 19th century. The reasons for this failure are a lack of language consciousness among the Oriyas, the pro-English attitude of the Oriya bureaucrats, and an irresolute corpus planning exercise. (eight references)…

Discusses, with reference to the covert policy goals of the American refugee program, the failure of U.S. Refugee Training Centers to facilitate Southeast Asian refugees' self-sufficiency after resettlement in the United States. Five characteristics of covert policy show how such covert policies have ensured their programs' ineffectiveness.…

Chronicles Ethiopia's history of language policy, and describes the first three years of the country's initiative to provide native language instruction to all its people, focusing on the materials development process and program effectiveness. Teachers are working to develop content-area instructional materials in eight of over fifty languages.…

Language-spread policy (LSP) is policy promulgated by groups seeking to spread their languages to speakers or communicative domains. LSP can be internal or external, overt or disguised, and related in different ways to national policy. Intent may be to increase native-language advantage in international communication, disseminate ideology, create…

Examines the place of Arabic in language education and language planning activities in Nigeria, highlighting its uses from the nineteenth century to present, methods and content of Arabic education, contributions to historical documentation in pre-colonial Nigeria and lexical expansion of Nigerian languages, and decline in its status and role. (34…

It is noted that Belgium, particularly Flemish Belgium, is opposed to European unification because of the likelihood of even greater intrusion of foreign influence into the country, especially in Brussels, and an already common negative attitude toward the spread of English. (12 references)

Discusses the policies of Sri Lanka concerning the status of Sinhala as official language and the status of Tamil and English. The first independent government relegated English to unofficial status as a language of special domains, but it has recently been suggested that it be recognized as a neutral link-language. (SED)

Examines the role of language policy in South African education. An historical overview of language planning is presented, and then several examples of current language policies are discussed, including the "Mother Tongue Principle," the introduction of Black languages into White schools, and the creation of a lexicon for the deaf. (CFM)

A discussion of the language situation in India focuses on the demand for inclusion of the Manipuri language in a list of privileged languages in the Indian constitution. The general language situation in India, linguistic reorganization of its states, population composition, and related linguistic issues are examined. (15 references) (Author/MSE)

Describes DLT, the multilingual machine translation system that uses Esperanto as an intermediate language in which substantial portions of the translation subprocesses are carried out. The criteria for choosing an intermediate language and the reasons for preferring Esperanto over other languages are explained. (Author/DJD)

Evaluates the past performance of the tradition of language planning, in view of a theoretical, conceptual, and methodological improvement of future language planning studies. Sketches the historical development of these studies, discusses ideological features present in much traditional language planning work, and raises various issues related to…

The consequences of economic integration for Europe's lesser-used languages are examined. Applying theoretical predictions to a set of 12 minority languages, this paper shows that 5 will likely be in a more favorable position, 4 may lose as a result of economic integration, and no clear effect can be predicted for the remaining 3. (18 references)…