The European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages and the results of its application on the Sami languages

Irja Seurujärvi-Kari

doi:10.7557/sda.8653

Authors

Irja Seurujärvi-Kari University of Helsinki

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.7557/sda.8653

Čoahkkáigeasut

In this article I deal with the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages and the results of its application on the Sami languages in Finland, Norway and Sweden. The Charter entered into force in March 1998. By the end of 2007 it had been ratified by 22 states. The European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages is the only international legal instrument that exclusively addresses issues related to the protection and promotion of linguistic diversity. The main purpose of the Charter is cultural, that is to protect regional or minority languages spoken in different member states of the Council of Europe, thereby preserving the cultural wealth of our continent.

First, I discuss, the purpose and principles of the Charter and then, the protection and promotion of the Sami languages, and in conclusion, the main results of its application on the Sami languages in Finland, Norway and Sweden.

The article is mostly based on the reports and recommendations submitted during the monitoring cycles of the Charter of the Council of Europe. The study applies the concepts of Sámi language, minority language, linguistic rights and legal regulations. I approach the issue from the perspective of language policy, which is theoretically linked to sociolinguistics.

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