engleski

The European Union, the Balkans and Multilinguaphobia

Since the establishment of the European Union, multiculturalism and multilingualism have been the foundations upon which rest all recommendations and legislative proposals on preserving, fostering and expanding the languages and cultures of the European continent. The Balkans and the European Union are still learning how to cope with this diversity. The idea of coexistence of different languages is difficult to accept for nations which have spent centuries building their own identity. As the idea of the European Union as a community of different languages and nations has been seriously threatened by the recent immigrant crisis, multiculturalism is looked on as a ‘failed project’ that divides rather than unifies. Some EU members and Balkan states unquestionably accept multilingualism, while others do not allow any discussion about it. The result is obvious – multilinguaphobia. The question arises as to whether all languages and nations are equal or is it just simple propaganda under the guise of democracy and of alleged democratization of Balkan and European societies.

Balkans ; European Union ; multilinguaphobia ; diversity ; minorities

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