Minority Rights in Europe: European Minorities and Languages

ISBN-13: 9789067041270 / Angielski / Twarda / 2001 / 606 str.

Trifunovska, Snezana

Opis

According to some sources there are around 5,000 national minority groups living in the contemporary world, and about 3,000 linguistic groups. However, this is probably a discretionary assessment as it seems that there are no exact figures with respect to the number and size of minority groups. The existing estimates are usually based on different and sometimes not very clear criteria and mostly take into account those groups and numbers which are the result of the individual choice of a person and are not based exclusively on the objective differences. Notwithstanding this, a brief calculation would indicate that in Western Europe 14. 7% of the total population belongs to minority groups, and the same percentage exists in the Central and Eastern European region - 14. 7%, whereas in the countries belonging to the Commonwealth of Independent States this percentage is slightly higher - at 18. 9%. Throughout the history of the European continent minorities have had a significant impact on political stability and security. Currently, most of the situations of internal tension as well as conflicts, whether internal or international, involve inter-ethnic relations. Thus the international community at large and - for the European minorities more importantly - the European institutions have placed minority issues high on their 'agenda.

Spis treści

Academic Discussion.- The Linguistic Rights of Minorities in Europe.- All Languages — Great and Small.- Non-Territorial Languages: Romany as an Example.- A Never-Ending Story? The Italian Draft Bill on the Protection of LInguistic Minorities.- The Frisian Language in the Netherlands.- Linguistic Rights in Spain.- Steps Towards a Minority Policy in Sweden.- International Activities and Documents.- The Protection of Minorities Within the United Nations.- Protection of Linguistic Rights Within the Council of Europe.- A Rough Orientation Through a Delicate Relationship: The European Union’s Endeavours for Its Minorities.- Linguistic Rights and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.- The Protection of Minority Language Rights Through the Work of Osce Institutions.- Protection of Rights of Persons Belonging to Minorities in the Baltic Sea States.- Activities of the Central European Initiative in the Field of Minorities.- National Activities and Documents.- Introductory Remarks.- Report on the Linguistic Rights of Persons Belonging to National Minorities in the OSCE Area.- Survey of National Activities and Documents.