A national language is useful as one means of creating social cohesion at the level of the whole country. It is also a symbol of national identity and of a nation's distinction from other countries. Probably no nation will ever be fully satisfied with a language that is a national language in the symbolic sense only, but the symbolic function of a…

Modern Hebrew is an excellent example of a national language, an indigenous language that its speakers view as uniquely related to their common history, values, and identity. Hebrew was a unifying factor for millenia before the rise of modern national movements. When the movement for the restoration of Jewish political self-determination arose,…

The question of what a national language is good for has been asked and answered many times, and the validity of each answer depends on historical circumstances. Many assume that there is a direct relationship between language and nation. Leibniz argued in 1683, at a time when bilingualism was socially stratifying, that nation and language…

A rationale for teaching foreign languages in Venezuelan schools is discussed. An included sociolinguistic profile of Venezuela indicates that Spanish is the sole language of internal communication needs. Other languages spoken in Venezuela serve primarily a group function among the immigrant and indigenous communities. However, the teaching of…