What issues are dealt with here?

• What is the official language?

• Is there one nation-wide official language, or are there more?

• Are there languages that are official on a sub-national level? What is their alphabet and pronunciation?

Example of the Northern Sámi alphabet from the Norwegian Guidelines:

 

• Are there minority-languages in official use on a local level? What is their extent?

Sample maps showing the extent of Sámi- and Swedish-speaking minorities in Finland:

Sample maps showing the extent of Basque- and Corsican-speaking minorities in France:

 

Sample map showing the extent of German dialects in France:

 

Sample maps showing the extent of Danish- and Sorbian-speaking minorities in Germany:

 

• What is the national language?

• What is the exact status of the different languages, both nationally, regionally, and locally?

• Are there substrata of other languages visible?

• Is there a subdivision into dialects which is relevant for placenames?

 

Dialects in Germany:

 

Dialects and minority languages in France:

 

Dialects and minority language areas in Austria:

In Austria:

• German is the only nation-wide official language.

• Minority languages play a subordinate role, and are of regional and local importance only.

 

• Standard German is the national language.

• The main dialects belong to the Alemannic (Vorarlberg and some parts of Tyrol) and Bavarian dialect groups (the rest of the country) of the Germanic languages.

• The main characteristics of the dialects, and their historic background, are summarized.

• Austria officially recognizes four minority languages: Slovenian (in Carinthia), Burgenland Croatian (in Burgenland), Hungarian (also in Burgenland), and Czech (in Vienna).

• A map is enclosed.

• The alphabets of these languages, and in the case of Burgenland Croatian (native to Austria only) a pronunciation key, are presented, and their official and de facto status for toponymic use is explained.

 

Back to the checklist of Toponymic guidelines