Research On Language Rights

This article focuses on the institutions and practices of language usage in public domain, which is a special aspect of legal system in multi-national country. After prudential research on language legislation and relative legal documents, the author comes to a conclusion that, language legislation regulates language relationship, especially the relationship between magistral language group and minor language group; The rights to use, learn, develop and spread their language are essential to the minority group; Language rights seek to free, equal and independent development of all languages, which is the premise and foundation of linguistic diversity.Chapter one: the background of formation of language rights. The author lays emphasis on the historical premise and social practice of language rights, mainly in three aspects:the conflict between the diversity and equality of language proved in Sociolinguistics and the inequality in practice;the profound influence of language as to cultural identification and symbol of social status,as is considered by Cultural Anthropology;the construction and destruction of uniform language in nation states considered in research of racial politics.Chapter two: pattern of language rights in the political construction of nation states. The author analyzes the political system of choosing the official language and setting the status of minority languages in different countries,which may be summarized as follows:language freedom under the single language system in West Europe;single language system in CEE and language equality in FSU in the practice of national self-determination after World Warâ… ;India's'language states'and China's national equality, national autonomy and language freedom in the movement of de-colonization and national liberation;Multilingualism policy in some western language revival and immigrant countries in the identity politics movement.Chapter three: language rights in International Law and its evolution. Taking the transition of protection objects and protection emphasis as a clue, the language protection in International law represents in the following forms:language rights was established in protection systems of minority nationality during the period of League of Nations; After the world warâ…¡,"the principle of equality and nondiscrimination"covers the contents of personal linguistic freedom and forbidding linguistic discrimination;Since 1960s, the protection for language rights has been classified into"minority rights"; Presently language rights protection in International Law is transiting from personal rights to Global Ethics and multivariant subject.Chapter four: the substantive issues in statutory Language Rights. This chapter seeks to summarize the contents of the former three chapters and to analyze the key issues faced by the decision makers and researchers in the process of legislation of language rights, such as"what"the language rights are,"who"have the rights,"what"the rights are for and"how"they should be.Chapter five: the protection of Chinese Minorities languages. The emphasis of the protection should be laid on protecting the freedom to use and develop their own language, and organizing social movement of maintaining language diversity. This is not only the public responsibility the authority should fulfill (such as enacting language protection law, improving national language education and protecting linguistic cultural inheritance), but also a social undertaking that all citizens should participate and give their support.