May European Union adopt a Lingua Franca?

English vs. International Auxiliary Languages (IALs)

pros and cons

Federico Gobbo
federico.gobbo@uninsubria.it

LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

Outline
1. The EU Language Policy after the
Enlargment
2. Why EU citizens need a European
Lingua Franca
3. English, Latin, or an International
Auxiliary Language (IAL)?
Concluding remarks

LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

The EU Language Policy Regime (1)

Article 1
The official languages and the
working languages of the
institutions of the European Union
shall be Czech, Danish, Dutch,
English, Estonian, Finnish,
French, German, Greek,
Hungarian, Irish, Italian, Latvian,
Lithuanian, Maltese, Polish,
Portuguese, Slovak, Slovenian,
Spanish and Swedish.

Source: EU Council Regulation No 1 of 15 April 1958, lastly amended 30 May 2005

LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

How many official and working languages?

The 5th enlargment (1 May 2004):
10 more country members entered;
in total:

25 country members;
21 official and working languages.

The 6th enlargment (2007):

Bulgaria and Romania will join;
Croatia and Turkey had requested;
former Yugoslavia States? Israel?
in total (it's a guessing!):

about 30 country members;

about 30 official languages.

LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

Source: Europa DGT web site 2005

How many languages are spoken in the EU?

Obvious remarks:
not every language spoken in EU
has such an important status:

not considered regional languages

(e.g. Welsh, Catalan);
not considered so-called community
languages (e.g. Hindi, Urdu, Swahili,
Arabic);

in total:

about 40 languages spoken in EU!

Source: Lnnroth 2004

A (multi)language planning policy has to deal with all languages spoken in the EU
LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

The EU Language Policy Regime (2)

The legal basis:
Regulation No 1/1958.
Article 21 of the Unions founding
treaty.
Roles of language policy:
language policy is a promoter of
maintaining peace in the EU;
language policy is a plank
of the EU's cohesion.
Two fundamental principles:
citizens have a right to their language
(language right as a human right);
equality of treatment between
peoples and individuals
(equity in communication).

Does EU in practice respect these two fundamental principles?

LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

Some languages are more equal than others

One example will be enough:
translating in the Commission.
1 416 817 translated pages (2003):

English originals:
French originals:
German originals:
Other EU languages:

59%;
28%;
4%;
9%.

Nota Bene:

data before the 5th enlargment;

legal obligation to translate
important texts (priority criterion).

Neither language right nor equity in communication are respected

LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

EU, why not a Lingua Franca? (1)

At an institutional level:

legal obligation to write originals

into the Lingua Franca;
in case of doubtful interpretation
in European Courts' contexts,
priority will be given to the version
into the Lingua Franca;
Lingua Franca will be the primary
working language in every
EU agency, for example;
no more 'second division' language
status in key situations
(e.g. European Patent Office).

It's the only practical solution which respects the language right principle.
LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

The ideal EU citizen speak at least 3 idioms

General agreement among scholars:

EU favours a multicultural society;

this implies multilingualism; so:

every EU citizen should be at least

trilingual.
see for example the Reccomendations
Mannheim-Florence by EurFedLing

There is no agreement how to apply:

trilingualism;
language right;
equity in communication.

How does a Lingua Franca fit into a trilingualism language regime?

LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

Proposing a triglossia regime as trilingualism

Triglossia as differentiation in context
use of three languages, according to
the social functions involved.
A language has two social functions:

group-symbolic function;
and
communicative function;

General remark:
Symbolic function becomes clearly
perceptible only if it diverges from,
or clashes with, communicative
function. (Ammon, 2004)

A road sign in English and Irish, from cafebabel.com

This scenario has strong consequences to EU education at every level

LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

Which triglossia?
THE 3-LEVEL SCHEMA
Local Language
Official Language(s)
Lingua Franca

symbolic
Identity core
National identity
EU identity

communicative
very own group
country members
EU citizenship

The local language level follows the personality principle: people may cultivate whatever 'mother
language' they want (regional, community, etc.).
The official language level follows the territoriality principle: country membership implies proficiency
in (at least one of) the official language(s) of the country.
The lingua franca level follows the territoriality principle at a European level, gives strenght to
Europeanisation.

So, which consequences at the educational level?

LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

EU, why not a Lingua Franca? (2)

At an educational level:

the local language will be vehicle of

history, local traditions, etc. (freedom for allophones to establish their
own schools/classes);
the official language will be vehicle
of literature, national law, etc. (and it
is prerequisite to obtain country
membership);
the Lingua Franca will be vehicle of
science and international disciplines
(and guarantees people mobility).

Again, it's the only solution which respects the language right principle.
LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

Main features of Lingua Franca candidates

In order of importance:

pan-European character: every EU

citizen may find something familiar;
ethnic neutrality: not owned or tied
by a single group or country
member;
high hybridism: it should have a lot
of language substrata and it should
be high receiptive to accept new
words.
living language: it must be a
language used in real context, not a
project to be tested yet.

Let's see pros and cons of the main candidates

LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

English: the status quo choice (1)

Pros:

pan-European character: it's felt as

the de facto 'global language';
ethnic neutrality: soon in the world
there will be more L2 speakers than
native ones (Crystal): it's not owned
by any ethnos, even British (position
strengthened by a spelling reform);
high hybridism: it is German in
character, but Romanced in lexicon;
it accepts almost everything.
living language: it's the strongest
language in the world.

Moreover, English would strenghten the Euro-Atlantic partnership

LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

English: the status quo choice (2)

Cons:

pan-European character: it's not so

'pan': europeanization does mean
globalisation?
ethnic neutrality: English belongs to
its native speakers, who are at risk of
monolingualism (Eurydice report);
high hybridism: Slavic roots and
others will enter in everyday use.
living language: finally it will
emerge a new variety, an ELFE
English as a Lingua Franca for
Europe, from EU English Style docs.

Will cats and dogs rain everywhere in the continent?

LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

ELFE will transform itself in Europanto?

In Bruxel, de europaica capitaal cite, elke
day millieros van fonzouvrieros
(fonkzionarios ouvrieros) travallabant
por make de europaica maschina werke.
Finalmently, eine only lingua erat
gespoken: de Europanto. Partodo in
Europa de Hoge Europantico Instituto
organizabat cursos zo dat alles europeos
Europanto als secunda lengua
koneuropaico fonkzionarios elke jaaro
hadde eine Europanto examen to helde.

from: 'Cabillot versus der malefieko finnko'

A fine linguistic joke as Europanto may teach us something

LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

Latin: back to European roots (1)

Pros:

pan-European character: it's

language substratum of every
language in EU, more or less;
ethnic neutrality: it doesn't
belong to a living ethnos;
high hybridism: after the contact
with Ancient Greek, it is very low;
living language: it is spoken today
only in circles of enthusiasts as an
IAL, a 'language for holydays'
(septimanae latinae europeae, 100
people max).

It gives a clear direction to European Union identity towards Christianity

LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

Latin: back to European roots (2)

Cons:

pan-European character and ethnic

neutrality: it gives a clear advantage
to speakers of Romance languages;
living language: it has some traits of
classical Latin (morphology, syntax)
and some traits of vulgar Latin (exp.
phonetics);

Probably Latin in wide use will change

in a Latino maccheronico form.
Again: a Europanto risk!

A question: how Latin may fit everyday needs in contemporary world?

LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

Harrius Potter may give us a cue

English original:
At that moment the telephone rang
and Aunt Petunia went to answer while
harry and Uncle Vernon Watched Dudley
unwrap the racing bike, a video camera, a
remot control airplane, sixteen new
computer games, and a VCR.

Latin translation:

illo momento telephonium sonuit et

Matertera Petunia abiit responsum dum
Harrius et Avunculus Vernon spectant
Dudleum detegentem birotulam
cursoriam, cinematographicam
machinulam, aeroplanum ex longiquo
directum, sedecim novos ludos
computatorios, televisificum
exceptaculum.

Conclusion: Living Latin is similar to a IAL candidate.

Let's see the three IAL candidates as EU Lingua Franca

LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

General traits of IAL candidates

Regardless of specs:

ethnic neutrality: they doesn't

belong to a living ethnos;

BUT

living language: we will consider

only IALs with an established
speech community (non-ethnic
base);

There are more than 1,000 IAL

projects who either died with their
authors or were revitalized recently,
throughout the World Wide Web.

So, we have only 3 IAL candidates: Esperanto, Ido and Interlingua

LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

Esperanto: the tradition of IALs (1)

Pros:

pan-European character: every

European may find something
familiar, at a glance (also Slavic);
ethnic neutrality: it doesn't belong to
any ethnos, but there are 1,000
families using it;
high hybridism: language substrata:
Latin, French, German (Yiddish),
English, Russian, Polish;
living language: from 1887. many
meetings (even 1,000+ people).

It is well used in a lot of contexts, both formal (e.g. academic) and informal
LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

Esperanto: the tradition of IALs (2)

Cons:

pan-European character: its demos

feels itself as world wide, not
European in character;
high hybridism: phonemic writing
system, LEGO-like morphology, ease
borrowing, is paid by strange
compunds at a glance: e.g. foresto
(being away), malliberulejo (prison),
easy only for speakers;
living language: for a minority, it is
so valuable, worthy of use and study,
to concede the role of International
Language to English.

1905: 668 people from 20 countries. It still lives after a century.

It prefers productivity regardless the language background

LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

Ido: the only Esperanto offspring survived (1)

Pros:

pan-European character: its more

familiar and easier to pronounce for
Romance language and English
speakers than Esperanto (scienco >
cienco, science, pruco > spricar, to
spray);
high hybridism: less hybrid than
Esperanto (no more Slavic elements,
few Germanic), it prefers derivation
to borrowing (a precize and rich
system);
living language: from 1908. Few
congresses (100 people max).

It tries a synthesis between productivity and readability for Europeans

LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

Ido: the only Esperanto offspring survived (2)

Cons:

pan-European character and high

hybridism: Slavic and German roots
less European than Romance? Word
derivation may be very complex and
accumulates suffixes in heavy
compounds: talent-oz-a templ-o
buddh-ist-al instead of talent-a
templ-o budh-ist-a;
living language: many supporters
ex-Esperantists, more engaged in
IAL disputes than in practical uses.

Louis de Beaufront and Luis Couturat (picture by Ric Berger)

Its structure is less flexible than Esperanto and too influenced by French
LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

A compare: the Maastricht Treaty (Clause 3B)

English original:

Ido translation (by Adrian Pilgrim):

The community shall act within the limits of the powers La Komuneso devas agar interne di la limiti dil
conferred upon it by this treaty and the objectives autoritato quan ica kontrato grantis ad ol e dil skopi
assigned to it therein. In areas which do not fall within atribuita ad ol en la kontrato. En domeni qui ne
its exclusive competence the community shall take trovesas en olua resortiso exkluziva la Komuneso devas
action in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity agar segun la principi di subsidiareso nur se e til ke la
only if and insofar as the objectives of the proposed skopi dil ago projetita ne povas suficante atingesor dal
action cannot be sufficiently achieved by the member- membro-stati e povas do plu bone atingesor dal
states and can therefore by reason of the scale or effects Komuneso pro la skalo o rezulti dil ago projetita.
of the proposed action be better achieved by the
community.
Esperanto translation (by William Auld):
Source: Progreso, Sep-Dec 1995

La Komunumo devas agi interne de la potencolimoj,

kiujn rajtigas al i tiu i traktato, kaj de la celoj itraktate difinitaj al i. En agadkampoj, kiuj ne trafas en
ian solkompetenton, la Komunumo devas agi la la
principo de akcesoreco nur se, kaj is tioma grado ke, la
celoj de la proponata agado ne sufie atingeblas de la
membro-tatoj kaj sekve pro la amplekso kaj efikoj de
la proponata agado povos esti pli bone plenumitaj de la
Komunumo.

LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

Two principles directions in IAL planning

Schemism (or: Esperanto school)

more productivity: one root, some

suffixes, a lot of words, trying not to
distort original forms

Naturalism (or: naturalistic school)

more readability: extracting from

international
natural
languages
prototype forms, trying not to
introduce irregularities.

De Wahl (in Cosmoglotta 61 (6) June

1929) said: instead of build reformed
Esperantids, one should start from
the international lexicon.

Edgard De Wahl (Occidental) and Otto Jespersen (Novial), 1935

What was the result of this different, opposite, principle?

LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

Interlingua: the naturalistic school result (1)

Pros:

pan-European character: it's panRomance (with an eye to English)

only;
high hybridism: less hybrid than
Esperanto (no more Slavic elements,
few Germanic), it prefers derivation
to borrowing (a precize and rich
system);
living language: from 1951, few
congresses (100 people max).

It is really readable at a glance from every cultivated people

LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

Interlingua: the naturalistic school result (2)

Article I-2 The Union's values

Cons:

pan-European character: it's a language

revival of vulgar Latin just before the fall of
the Roman Empire;

The Union is founded on the values of respect for

human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule
of law and respect for human rights, including the rights
of persons belonging to minorities. These values are
common to the Member States in a society in which
pluralism, non-discrimination, tolerance, justice,
solidarity and equality between women and men
prevail.

high hybridism: too low: it always depends

to Latin or Romance languages (Gonalo
Articulo I-2 Valores del Union
Neves);
living language: after about 50 years of
use, its ethymological principle sounds not
so effective (e.g. emere > acetar, 'to buy',
nimis > troppo, 'too much'), more, pronounciation is too Romance-centered.

Le Union es fundate super le valores de respecto al

dignitate human, al libertate, al democratia, al
equalitate, al Stato de Derecto e respecto al derectos
human, incluse le derectos pertinente a minoritates.
Iste valores es commun al Statos membros in un
societate characterisate per le pluralismo, le nondiscrimination, le tolerantia, le justitia, le solidaritate e
le equalitate inter feminas e viros.
Translation of EU Constitution by UMI

Neo-Romanticism: language as the main tool of (Western) civilization

LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

Esperanto, is it really only so schemistic?

Fictional example sentence: :the old weak Lady slowly took short steps away
Schemistic lexicon
mal-jun-a
mal-fort-a
mal-jun-ul-in-o
mal-rapid-e
mal-long-a
mal-proksim-i-i

Naturalistic lexicon
old-a
febl-a
dam-o
lant-e
kurt-a
dist-i-i

English words
old
weak
Lady
slowly
short
to move away

Schemistic translation:

Naturalistic translation:

La malforta maljunulino malrapide

malproksimias per mallongaj paoj

La febla olda damo lante distias per kurtaj paoj

A more realistic translation shows the unique flexibility of Esperanto:

La febla maljunulino forias malrapide per kurtaj paoj

Esperanto has a strong structure avoiding the Europanto risk

LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

A Lingua Franca: little cost, great benefit

Conclusion:

Total costs for language services combined

two main candidates.

ELFE (English as Lingua Franca for Europe)

new European-English variety;

EU enters the Inner Circle of Englishes;
Europanto risk?

year

language services

overall EU budget

2003

785

97, 500

2004 (est.) 1, 154

100, 000

2005 (est.) 3, 498

105, 000

(in millions of ; from: Directorate-General for Translation)

Esperanto

very good properties;

language right preserved;
more equity in communication.

EU citizens will finally belong to one demos?

LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July

LGC Conference 2005, Cardiff, Friday 8th July