The languages of the European Union are languages used by people within the member states of the European Union. They include the twenty-three official languages of the European Union along with a range of others. The EU asserts that it is in favour of linguistic diversity and currently has a European Commissioner for Multilingualism, Leonard Orban. An official language is a language that is given a special legal status in the countries, states, and other territories. ... Leonard Orban Barroso Commission, 2007 to 2009 The European Commissioner for Multilingualism is the member of the European Commission responsible for language policy of the European Union, i. ... Leonard Orban (born June 28, 1961) is a Romanian independent technocrat who currently serves as the Commissioner for Multilingualism in the European Commission, the executive body of the European Union (EU). ...

In the European Union, language policy is the responsibility of member states and EU does not have a common language policy; European Union institutions play a supporting role in this field, based on the "principle of subsidiarity". Their role is to promote cooperation between the member states and to promote the European dimension in the member states language policies. The EU encourages all its citizens to be multilingual; specifically, it encourages them to be able to speak two languages in addition to their mother tongue. Though the EU has very limited influence in this area as the content of educational systems is the responsibility of individual member states, a number of EU funding programmes actively promote language learning and linguistic diversity. ^[1] Many countries have a language policy designed to favour or discourage the use of a particular language or set of languages. ... Subsidiarity is the principle which states that matters ought to be handled by the smallest (or, the lowest) competent authority. ... Bilingual redirects here. ... First language (native language, mother tongue, or vernacular) is the language a person learns first. ... The manner in which a child acquires language is a matter long debated by linguists and child psychologists alike. ... Bilingual redirects here. ...

It should be noted that according to statistics the plurality of EU citizens speaks German, while the absolute majority can understand English and speak German, English, French or Italian as mother languages. For the use of the term in political theory, see Pluralism (political theory). ... Absolute majority is a supermajoritarian voting requirement which is stricter than a simple majority. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... First language (native language, mother tongue, or vernacular) is the language a person learns first. ...

French is an official language common to the three cities that are political centres of the Union: Brussels (Belgium), Strasbourg (France) and Luxembourg city (Luxembourg), while Catalan, Galician and (in the Baltic states) Russian are the most widely used non-recognized languages in the EU. An official language is a language that is given a special legal status in the countries, states, and other territories. ... It has been suggested that oneseat. ... This article is about the settlement itself. ... For other uses, see Strasburg. ... The Old town, seen from the ground Luxembourg City, population 82,268 (2002), is the capital of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. ... Catalan IPA: (català IPA: or []) is a Romance language, the national language of Andorra, and a co-official language in the Spanish autonomous communities of Balearic Islands, Catalonia and Valencia, and in the city of LAlguer in the Italian island of Sardinia. ... Galician (Galician: galego, IPA: ) is a language of the Western Ibero-Romance branch, spoken in Galicia, an autonomous community with the constitutional status of historic nationality, located in northwestern Spain and small bordering zones in neighbouring autonomous communities of Asturias and Castilla y León. ... The three Baltic states: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. ...

Official EU languages

Sign in the entrance of the European Parliament building in Brussels written in the 20 official languages used in the European Union as of July 2006.

The official languages of the European Union, as stipulated in the amended EEC Council: Regulation No 1 determining the languages to be used by the European Economic Community of 1958-04-15,^[2] are:^[3] Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (641x1767, 294 KB)[edit] Summary author: Nuno Nogueira == Licensing == ur mom fool I, the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (641x1767, 294 KB)[edit] Summary author: Nuno Nogueira == Licensing == ur mom fool I, the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... Established 1952, as the Common Assembly President Hans-Gert Pöttering (EPP) Since 16 January 2007 Vice-Presidents 14 Rodi Kratsa-Tsagaropoulou (EPP) Alejo Vidal-Quadras (EPP) Gérard Onesta (Greens – EFA) Edward McMillan-Scott (ED) Mario Mauro (EPP) Miguel Angel Martínez Martínez (PES) Luigi Cocilovo (ALDE) Mechtild... This article is about the settlement itself. ... An official language is a language that is given a special legal status in the countries, states, and other territories. ... An official language is a language that is given a unique status in the constitutions of countries, states, and other territories. ... Jan. ... is the 105th day of the year (106th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

The number of member states exceeds the number of official languages, as several national languages are shared by two or more countries. Namely, Dutch is official in the Netherlands and Belgium, French in France, Belgium and Luxembourg, German in Germany, Austria, Belgium, and Luxembourg, and Greek in Greece and Cyprus. English and Swedish are also shared, the former by the United Kingdom, Ireland and Malta and the latter by Sweden and Finland, but the fact that they are co-official in Ireland, Malta and Finland with languages unique to those countries, namely Irish, Maltese and Finnish respectively, means that the overall ratio of member states to national languages is unaffected. Image File history File links Flag_of_Bulgaria. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_Czech_Republic. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Denmark. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_Netherlands. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Belgium_(civil). ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Ireland. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Malta. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Estonia. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Finland. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Belgium_(civil). ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Luxembourg. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Germany. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Austria. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Belgium_(civil). ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Luxembourg. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Greece. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Cyprus. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Hungary. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Ireland. ... This article is about the modern Goidelic language. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Italy. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Latvia. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Lithuania. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Malta. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Poland. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Portugal. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Romania. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Slovakia. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Slovenia. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Spain. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Sweden. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Finland. ...

Furthermore, not all national languages have been accorded the status of official EU languages. These include Luxembourgish, an official language of Luxembourg since 1984, and Turkish, an official language of Cyprus. Luxembourgish (Luxembourgish: , French: , German: , Walloon: ), also spelled Luxemburgish, is a West Germanic language spoken in Luxembourg. ...

All languages of the EU are also working languages.^[4] Documents which a Member State or a person subject to the jurisdiction of a Member State sends to institutions of the Community may be drafted in any one of the official languages selected by the sender. The reply shall be drafted in the same language. Regulations and other documents of general application shall be drafted in the twenty-three official languages. The Official Journal of the European Union shall be published in the twenty-three official languages. A working language (also procedural language) is a language that is given a unique legal status in a supra-national company, society, state or other body or organization as its primal mean of communication. ... The Official Journal of the European Union is the gazette of record for the European Union. ...

Legislation and documents of major public importance or interest are produced in all twenty-three official languages, but that accounts for a minority of the institutions' work. Other documents (e.g. communications with the national authorities, decisions addressed to particular individuals or entities and correspondence) are translated only into the languages needed. For internal purposes the EU institutions are allowed by law to choose their own language arrangements. The European Commission, for example, conducts its internal business in three languages, English, French and German, and goes fully multilingual only for public information and communication purposes. The European Parliament, on the other hand, has Members who need working documents in their own languages, so its document flow is fully multilingual from the outset.^[5] Non-institutional EU bodies are not legally obliged to make language arrangement for all the 23 languages (Kik v. OHIM, Case No. C-361/01, 2003 ECJ I-8283). Berlaymont, the Commissions seat The European Commission (formally the Commission of the European Communities) is the executive branch of the European Union. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Established 1952, as the Common Assembly President Hans-Gert Pöttering (EPP) Since 16 January 2007 Vice-Presidents 14 Rodi Kratsa-Tsagaropoulou (EPP) Alejo Vidal-Quadras (EPP) Gérard Onesta (Greens – EFA) Edward McMillan-Scott (ED) Mario Mauro (EPP) Miguel Angel Martínez Martínez (PES) Luigi Cocilovo (ALDE) Mechtild... There are currently five institutions of the European Union which govern the Union. ... Categories: Stub | European Union law | Intellectual property organizations ... Official emblem of the ECJ The Court of Justice of the European Communities, usually called the European Court of Justice (ECJ), is the highest court in the European Union (EU). ...

According to the EU's English language website,^[6] the cost of maintaining the institutions' policy of multilingualism (i.e. the cost of translation and interpretation) was €1123 million in 2005, which is 1% of the annual general budget of the EU, or €2.28 per person per year.

Maltese

Although Maltese is an official language, the Council set up a transitional period of three years from May 1, 2004, during which the institutions were not obliged to draft all acts in Maltese.^[7] It was agreed that the Council could extend this transitional period by an additional year, but decided not to.^[8] All new acts of the institutions were required to be adopted and published in Maltese from April 30, 2007. is the 121st day of the year (122nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 120th day of the year (121st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. ...

Irish

When Ireland joined the EEC (now the EU) in 1973, Irish was accorded “Treaty Language” status. This meant that the founding EU Treaty was restated in Irish. Irish was also listed in that Treaty and all subsequent EU Treaties as one of the authentic languages of the Treaties.^[9] As a Treaty Language, Irish was an official procedural language of the European Court of Justice.^[10] It was also possible to correspond in written Irish with the EU Institutions. The European Community (EC), most important of three European Communities, was originally founded on March 25, 1957 by the signing of the Treaty of Rome under the name of European Economic Community. ... The Treaty of Rome signing ceremony Signatures in the Treaty The Treaty of Rome, signed by France, West Germany, Italy and Benelux (Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg) on March 25, 1957, established the European Economic Community (EEC). ... Official emblem of the ECJ The Court of Justice of the European Communities, usually called the European Court of Justice (ECJ), is the highest court in the European Union (EU). ...

However, despite being the first official language of Ireland and having been accorded minority-language status in Northern Ireland, Irish was not made an official working language of the EU until 1 January 2007. On that date an EU Council Regulation making Irish an official working language of the EU came into effect.^[11] This followed a unanimous decision on 13 June 2005 by EU foreign ministers that Irish would be made the 21st official language of the EU.^[12] However, a derogation stipulates that not all documents have to be translated into Irish as is the case with the other official languages.^{[13] [14]} This article is about the constituent country. ... is the 1st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. ... is the 164th day of the year (165th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

The new Regulation means that legislation approved by both the European Parliament and the Council of Ministers will now be translated into Irish, and interpretation from Irish will be available at European Parliament plenary sessions and some Council meetings. The cost of translation, interpretation, publication and legal services involved in making Irish an official EU language is estimated at just under €3.5 million a year.^[15] The derogation will be reviewed after four years and every five years thereafter. Irish is the only official language of the Union that is not the most widely spoken language in any Member State. According to the 2006 Irish census figures, there are 1.66 million speakers of Irish in Ireland out of a population of 4.24 million, though only 20,000 use Irish day-to-day.^[16] Established 1952, as the Common Assembly President Hans-Gert Pöttering (EPP) Since 16 January 2007 Vice-Presidents 14 Rodi Kratsa-Tsagaropoulou (EPP) Alejo Vidal-Quadras (EPP) Gérard Onesta (Greens – EFA) Edward McMillan-Scott (ED) Mario Mauro (EPP) Miguel Angel Martínez Martínez (PES) Luigi Cocilovo (ALDE) Mechtild... The Council of the European Union forms, along with the European Parliament, the legislative arm of the European Union (EU). ... Established 1952, as the Common Assembly President Hans-Gert Pöttering (EPP) Since 16 January 2007 Vice-Presidents 14 Rodi Kratsa-Tsagaropoulou (EPP) Alejo Vidal-Quadras (EPP) Gérard Onesta (Greens – EFA) Edward McMillan-Scott (ED) Mario Mauro (EPP) Miguel Angel Martínez Martínez (PES) Luigi Cocilovo (ALDE) Mechtild...

Status of regional and minority languages

The Spanish governments have sought to give some official status in the EU for Basque, Catalan/Valencian and Galician. The 667th Council Meeting of the Council of the European Union in Luxembourg on 13 June 2005 decided to authorise limited use at EU level of languages recognised by Member States other than the official working languages. The Council granted recognition to "languages other than the languages referred to in Council Regulation No 1/1958 whose status is recognised by the Constitution of a Member State on all or part of its territory or the use of which as a national language is authorised by law." The official use of such languages will be authorised on the basis of an administrative arrangement concluded between the Council and the requesting Member State.^[17] Established 1952 Presiding Country Portugal President Luís Amado President in Office José Sócrates Members 27 (at one time) Political parties 7, including: European Peoples Party Party of European Socialists Meeting place Justus Lipsius, Brussels, Belgium, European Union Web site http://www. ... is the 164th day of the year (165th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Luxembourgish, an official language of Luxembourg, and Turkish, an official language of Cyprus, have not yet used this provision.

Catalan, Galician, and Basque

Although Catalan, Galician and Basque are not nation-wide official languages in Spain, as co-official languages in the respective regions (pursuant to Spain's constitution, among other documents) they are eligible to benefit from official use in EU institutions under the terms of the 13 June 2005 resolution of the Council of the European Union. The Spanish government has assented to the provisions in respect of these languages. Catalan IPA: (català IPA: or []) is a Romance language, the national language of Andorra, and a co-official language in the Spanish autonomous communities of Balearic Islands, Catalonia and Valencia, and in the city of LAlguer in the Italian island of Sardinia. ... Galician (Galician: galego, IPA: ) is a language of the Western Ibero-Romance branch, spoken in Galicia, an autonomous community with the constitutional status of historic nationality, located in northwestern Spain and small bordering zones in neighbouring autonomous communities of Asturias and Castilla y León. ... Basque (native name: euskara) is the language spoken by the Basque people who inhabit the Pyrenees in North-Central Spain and the adjoining region of South-Western France. ... is the 164th day of the year (165th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

The status of Catalan, spoken by many millions of citizens, has been the subject of particular debate. On 11 December 1990, the use of Catalan was the subject of a European Parliament Resolution (resolution A3-169/90 on languages in the (European) Community and the situation of Catalan (OJ-C19, 28 January 1991). is the 345th day of the year (346th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the year. ... Established 1952, as the Common Assembly President Hans-Gert Pöttering (EPP) Since 16 January 2007 Vice-Presidents 14 Rodi Kratsa-Tsagaropoulou (EPP) Alejo Vidal-Quadras (EPP) Gérard Onesta (Greens – EFA) Edward McMillan-Scott (ED) Mario Mauro (EPP) Miguel Angel Martínez Martínez (PES) Luigi Cocilovo (ALDE) Mechtild... Catalan IPA: (català IPA: or []) is a Romance language, the national language of Andorra, and a co-official language in the Spanish autonomous communities of Balearic Islands, Catalonia and Valencia, and in the city of LAlguer in the Italian island of Sardinia. ... The Official Journal of the European Union is the gazette of record for the European Union. ... is the 28th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1991 (MCMXCI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian Calendar. ...

On November 16, 2005, the Committee of the Regions President Peter Straub signed an agreement with the Spanish Ambassador to the EU, Carlos Sagües Bastarreche, approving the use of Spanish regional languages in an EU institution for the first time in a meeting on that day, with interpretation provided by European Commission interpreters.^[18][19] is the 320th day of the year (321st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Committee of the Regions (CoR) is an institution of the European Union created by the Treaty of Maastricht. ... Peter Straub, a politician from Germany, is the President of the Committee of the Regions of the European Union. ...

On July 3, 2006, the European Parliament’s Bureau approved a proposal by the Spanish State to allow citizens to address the European Parliament in Basque, Catalan and Galician, two months after its initial rejection.^[20][21] July 3 is the 184th day of the year (185th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

On November 30, 2006, the European Ombudsman, Nikiforos Diamandouros, and the Spanish ambassador in the EU, Carlos Bastarreche, signed an agreement in Brussels to allow Spanish citizens to address complaints to the European Ombudsman in Basque, Catalan/Valencian and Galician, all three co-official languages in Spain.^[22] According to the agreement, a translation body, which will be set up and financed by the Spanish government, will be responsible for translating complaints submitted in these languages. In turn, it will translate the Ombudsman's decisions from Spanish/Castilian into the language of the complainant. Until such a body is established the agreement will not become effective. is the 334th day of the year (335th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The European Ombudsman (or sometimes Euro-Ombudsman) is an ombudsman for the European Union. ... Nikiforos P. Diamandouros (Greek: Νικηφόρος Π. Διαμαντούρος) (born June 25, 1942 in Athens) is a Greek academic and since 2003 the European Ombudsman. ...

Welsh, Scottish Gaelic and Scots

In response to a written parliamentary question tabled following the 2005-06-13 resolution on official use of regional languages, the UK Minister for Europe, Douglas Alexander, stated on 2005-06-29 that "The Government have no current plans to make similar provisions for UK languages."^[23] Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 164th day of the year (165th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the British politician. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 180th day of the year (181st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

Provision in the proposed constitutional treaty

The Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe was drafted in the (that time) 21 official treaty languages of the EU (the official languages, plus Irish), in the languages of three candidate countries: Romanian, Bulgarian, and Turkish (of which Romania and Bulgaria have now joined the union). It contains the following provision: Wikisource has original text related to this article: Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe The constitutional treaty as signed in Rome on 29 October 2004 by representatives of the EU member states The Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe (TCE), commonly referred to as the European Constitution, was an unimplemented...

Article IV-448(2): This Treaty may also be translated into any other languages as determined by Member States among those which, in accordance with their constitutional order, enjoy official status in all or part of their territory. A certified copy of such translations shall be provided by the Member States concerned to be deposited in the archives of the Council.

Note that the Constitution has been signed by all Member States and is in the ratification process. Following its rejection in referendums in France and the Netherlands, as matters stand it will not come into force.

Migrant languages

Migrant languages are not given formal status or recognition in the EU or in the EU countries and they are not covered by EU language-teaching programmes. Only national and local authorities may provide classes to help immigrants learn the language of their adopted country.^[24]

National sign languages in the European Union

Roughly one person in one thousand uses a national sign language as a first language, however there are many more that use one as their second language. An increasing number of countries have some form of recognition of their national sign language such as Belgium with Flemish Sign Language (VGT) and Belgian-French Sign Language (LSFB), the United Kingdom with British Sign Language (BSL). In Northern Ireland, Irish Sign Language (ISL) and Northern Ireland Sign Language (NISL) are recognised as official languages. Two sign language Intepreters working as a team for a school. ... The recognition of sign languages is one of the major concerns of the international Deaf community. ... This article needs to be wikified. ...

On 1988-06-17, the European Parliament unanimously approved a Resolution about national Sign Languages. This resolution asks all Member States for recognition of their national sign languages as official languages which would bring better linguistic rights and protection for sign language users especially the deaf users of sign language. Year 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday (link displays 1988 Gregorian calendar). ... is the 168th day of the year (169th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Established 1952, as the Common Assembly President Hans-Gert Pöttering (EPP) Since 16 January 2007 Vice-Presidents 14 Rodi Kratsa-Tsagaropoulou (EPP) Alejo Vidal-Quadras (EPP) Gérard Onesta (Greens – EFA) Edward McMillan-Scott (ED) Mario Mauro (EPP) Miguel Angel Martínez Martínez (PES) Luigi Cocilovo (ALDE) Mechtild...

Name of the European Union

Official languages

This is a list of the name of the European Union in its 23 official languages:

• Европейски съюз (Evropeyski sayuz; Bulgarian)
• Evropská unie (Czech)
• Den Europæiske Union (Danish)
• Europese Unie (Dutch)
• European Union (English)
• Euroopa Liit (Estonian)
• Euroopan unioni (Finnish)
• Union européenne (French)
• Europäische Union (German)
• Ευρωπαϊκή Ένωση (Eurōpaïkí Énōsī; Greek)
• Európai Unió (Hungarian)
• An tAontas Eorpach (Irish)
• Unione Europea (Italian)
• Eiropas Savienība (Latvian)
• Europos Sąjunga (Lithuanian)
• Unjoni Ewropea (Maltese)
• Unia Europejska (Polish)
• União Europeia (Portuguese)
• Uniunea Europeană (Romanian)
• Európska únia (Slovak)
• Evropska unija (also Evropska zveza) (Slovene)
• Unión Europea (Spanish)
• Europeiska unionen (Swedish)

The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ...

Other languages

The draft European constitution has also been translated into the official languages of the three candidate countries. The names of the European Union in these languages are as follows: The Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe, commonly referred to as the European Constitution, is an international treaty intended to create a constitution for the European Union. ...

• Europska unija (Croatian)
• Европска Унија (Evropska Unija; Macedonian)
• Avrupa Birliği (Turkish)

The name in the languages of official prospective candidate countries are:

• Bashkimi Evropian (Albanian)
• Evropska unija / Europska unija (Bosnian)
• Evropska unija / Европска унија (Montenegrin and Serbian)

The name in some other languages of European Union states are: This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... Serbian (; ) is one of the standard versions of the Shtokavian dialect, used primarily in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia, and by Serbs in the Serbian diaspora. ...

• Unión Europeya (Aragonese)
• Xunión Europea (Asturian)
• Europar Batasuna (Basque)
• Unvaniezh Europa (Breton)
• Unió Europea (Catalan/Valencian)
• Unyans Europek (Cornish)
• Unione Europea (Corsican)
• Union Europeane (Friulian)
• Unión Europea (Galician)
• Union Europenga (Piedmontese)
• Uniùn d'Euròpa (Western Lombard)
• Eùropejskô Ùnijô (Kashubian)
• Eirōpõd Īt (Livonian)
• Europäisch Union (Low German)
• Europäesch Unioun (Luxembourgish)
• Ounion Ouropeia (Mirandese)
• Ünjôn Ürëpéj (Neapolitan)
• Union Europèa (Occitan)
• Европейский Союз (Yevropeyskiy Soyuz; Russian)
• Eurohpa Uniovdna (Sami)
• Unione Europea (Sardinian)
• Aonadh Eòrpach (Scottish Gaelic)
• Uniuni Europea (Sicilian)
• Union Uropeyinne (Walloon)
• Undeb Ewropeaidd (Welsh)
• Jeropeeske Uny (West Frisian)
• אײראָפּעיִשער פֿאַרבאַנד (Ayropeisher Farband; Yiddish)

The name in some other languages is: Aragonese redirects here. ... Asturian, Leonese, Astur-Leonese or Bable (Asturianu in Asturian, Llïonés in Leonese) is a Romance language spoken in some parts of the provinces of Asturias, León, Zamora and Salamanca in Spain, and in the area of Miranda de Douro in Portugal (where it is officially recognized as... Basque (native name: euskara) is the language spoken by the Basque people who inhabit the Pyrenees in North-Central Spain and the adjoining region of South-Western France. ... Breton (Brezhoneg) is a Celtic language spoken by some of the inhabitants of Brittany (Breizh) in France. ... Catalan IPA: (català IPA: or []) is a Romance language, the national language of Andorra, and a co-official language in the Spanish autonomous communities of Balearic Islands, Catalonia and Valencia, and in the city of LAlguer in the Italian island of Sardinia. ... For the Cornish-English dialect, see West Country dialects. ... Public sentiment in favor of Corsu. ... This article includes a list of works cited or a list of external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. ... Galician (Galician: galego, IPA: ) is a language of the Western Ibero-Romance branch, spoken in Galicia, an autonomous community with the constitutional status of historic nationality, located in northwestern Spain and small bordering zones in neighbouring autonomous communities of Asturias and Castilla y León. ... Piedmont is a region of northwestern Italy. ... Western Lombard is a Lombard language spoken in Italy, in Lombard provinces of Milan, Monza, Varese, Como, Lecco, Sondrio, little part of Cremona (Crema and neighbors), Lodi and Pavia, and Piedmont provinces of Novara, Verbano-Cusio-Ossola and little part of Vercelli (Valsesia), and Switzerland (Canton Ticino and part of... Kashubian or Cassubian (Kashubian: kaszëbsczi jãzëk, pòmòrsczi jãzëk, kaszëbskò-sÅ‚owiÅ„skô mòwa) is one of the Lechitic languages, which are a group of Slavic languages. ... Livonian (LÄ«võ kēļ) belongs to the Finnic branch of the Finno-Ugric languages. ... Low German (also called Niederdeutsch, Plattdeutsch or Plattdüütsch) is a name for the regional language varieties of the West Germanic languages spoken mainly in Northern Germany where it is officially called Niederdeutsch (Low German), and in Eastern Netherlands where it is officially called Nedersaksisch (Low Saxon). Low refers to... Luxembourgish (Luxembourgish: , French: , German: , Walloon: ), also spelled Luxemburgish, is a West Germanic language spoken in Luxembourg. ... The Mirandese language (Lhéngua Mirandesa in Mirandese; Língua Mirandesa or Mirandês in Portuguese) is spoken in northeastern Portugal. ... Neapolitan (autonym: napulitano; Italian: ) is a Romance language spoken in the city and region of Naples, Campania (Neapolitan: Nàpule, Italian: Napoli); close dialects are spoken throughout most of southern Italy, including the Gaeta and Sora districts of southern Lazio, parts of Abruzzo, Molise, Basilicata, northern Calabria, and northern and... Occitan, or langue doc is a Romance language characterized by its richness, variability, and by the intelligibility of its dialects. ... Sami is a general name for a group of Uralic languages spoken in parts of northern Norway, Sweden, Finland and extreme northwestern Russia, in Northern Europe. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... // Scottish Gaelic (Gàidhlig) is a member of the Goidelic branch of Celtic languages. ... Sicilian (, Italian: ) is a Romance language. ... Walloon (Walon) is a regional Romance language spoken as a second language by some in Wallonia (Belgium). ... Welsh redirects here, and this article describes the Welsh language. ... The West Frisian language (Frysk) is a language spoken mostly in the province of Fryslân in the north of the Netherlands. ... Yiddish ( yidish or idish, literally: Jewish) is a non-territorial Germanic language, spoken throughout the world and written with the Hebrew alphabet. ...

• الاتحاد الأوروبي (al-Ittiḥād al-'Ūrūbī, Arabic)
• Եվրոպական Միություն (Evropakan Miutyun; Armenian)
• 欧洲联盟 (Simplified) / 歐洲聯盟 (Traditional) (Pinyin: Oūzhou Liánméng, Chinese)
• Eŭropa Unio (Esperanto)
• Evropeiska samveldið (Faroese)
• Kaisahang Yuropeo (Filipino)
• Unione Europea (Tigrigna)
• האיחוד האירופי (Ha-ʹiẖud Ha-ʹeropi) (Hebrew)
• ಯೂರೋಪು ಒಕ್ಕೂಟ (Europe Okkoota) (Kannada)
• यूरोपीय संघ (Yūropīya Saṅgh; Hindi)
• Evrópusambandið (Icelandic)
• Uni Eropa (Indonesian)
• Union Europee (Interlingua)
• 欧州連合 (Ōshū Rengō) or ヨーロッパ連合 (Yōroppa Rengō) (Japanese)
• ევროპის კავშირი (evrop'is k'avširi) (Georgian)
• 유럽연합 / 유럽聯合 (Yureop Yeonhap) (Korean)
• Unio Europaea (Latin)
• Kesatuan Eropah (Malay)
• Den europeiske union (Norwegian Bokmål)
• Den europeiske unionen (Norwegian Nynorsk)
• สหภาพยุโรป (Sahaphaap Yurohp) (Thai)
• Європейський Союз (Jevropejśkyj Sojuz; Ukrainian)
• Еўрапейскі Саюз (Jeŭrapiejski Sajuz; Belarusian)
• یورپی یونین (Yūrapī Yūniyan) (Urdu)
• Yevropa Ittifoqi (Uzbek)
• ஐரோப்பிய ஒன்றியம் (Airoppiya Onriyum) (Tamil)

Arabic redirects here. ... Simplified Chinese character (Simplified Chinese: or ; traditional Chinese: or ; pinyin: or ) is one of two standard sets of Chinese characters of the contemporary Chinese written language. ... Traditional Chinese characters refers to one of two standard sets of printed Chinese characters. ... Pinyin, more formally called Hanyu Pinyin (Simplified Chinese: ; Traditional Chinese: ; Pinyin: ), is the most common variant of Standard Mandarin romanization system in use. ... This article is about the language. ... Tigrigna (or ትግሪኛ) is a Semitic language spoken in Eritrea, where it is the official language, and in parts of Ethiopia and Israel. ... Hebrew redirects here. ... “Kannada” redirects here. ... -1... This article is about the auxiliary language created by the International Auxiliary Language Association. ... For other uses, see Latins and Latin (disambiguation). ... Not to be confused with the Malayalam language, spoken in India. ... BokmÃ¥l (lit. ... Nynorsk (literally New Norwegian) is one of the two officially sanctioned orthographic standards of the Norwegian language, the other being BokmÃ¥l. ... The phrase Zaban-e Urdu-e Mualla written in Urdu Urdu () is an Indo-European language of the Indo-Aryan family that developed under Persian, Turkish, Arabic, Hindi, and Sanskrit influence in South Asia during the Delhi Sultanate and Mughal Empire (1200-1800). ... Tamil ( ; IPA: ) is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people, originating on the Indian subcontinent. ...

Language skills of citizens

This article or section needs to be updated. Please update the article to reflect recent events / newly available information, and remove this template when finished.

The following tables are based on "Special Eurobarometer 243" of the European Commission with the title "Europeans and their Languages" (summary full text), published on February 2006 with research carried out in November and December 2005. The survey was published before the 2007 Enlargement of the European Union, when Bulgaria and Romania acceded. This is a poll, not a census. 28,694 citizens with a minimum age of 15 were asked in the 25 member-states as well as in the future member-states (Bulgaria, Romania) and the candidate countries (Croatia, Turkey) at the time of the survey. Only citizens, not immigrants, were asked. Eurobarometer is a series of surveys regularly performed on behalf of the European Commission since 1973. ... The European Union (EU) was created by six founding states in 1957 (following the earlier establishment by the same six states of the European Coal and Steel Community in 1952) and has grown to 27 member states. ... Look up poll in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Image:1870 census Lindauer Weber 01. ...

The first table shows what proportion of citizens said that they could have a conversation in each language as their mother tongue and as a second language or foreign language (only the languages with at least 2% of the speakers are listed): First language (native language, mother tongue, or vernacular) is the language a person learns first. ... A second language (L2) is any language learned after the first language or mother tongue (L1). ... A foreign language is a language not spoken by the indigenous people of a certain place: for example, English is a foreign language in Japan. ...

Languages of the European Union

Language	(EU Countries)	As a mother tongue (% of EU population)	As a language other than mother tongue (% of EU population)	Can speak the language (% of EU population)
English		13%	38%	51%
German		18%	14%	32%
French		12%	14%	26%
Italian	[25]	13%	3%	16%
Spanish		9%	6%	15%
Polish		9%	1%	10%
Dutch		5%	1%	6%
Russian		1%	6%	7%
Swedish		2%	1%	3%
Greek		3%	0%	3%
Czech		2%	1%	3%
Portuguese		2%	0%	2%
Hungarian		2%	0%	2%
Slovak		1%	1%	2%
Catalan		1%	1%	2%

Source: [1], data for EU25, published before 2007 enlargement. The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Ireland. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Malta. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Germany. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Austria. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Luxembourg. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Belgium_(civil). ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Italy. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Belgium_(civil). ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Luxembourg. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Italy. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Italy. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Malta. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Spain. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Poland. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_Netherlands. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Belgium_(civil). ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Estonia. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Latvia. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Lithuania. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Finland. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Sweden. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Finland. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Greece. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Cyprus. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_Czech_Republic. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Portugal. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Hungary. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Slovakia. ... Catalan IPA: (català IPA: or []) is a Romance language, the national language of Andorra, and a co-official language in the Spanish autonomous communities of Balearic Islands, Catalonia and Valencia, and in the city of LAlguer in the Italian island of Sardinia. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Spain. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Italy. ... The European Union (EU) was created by six founding states in 1957 (following the earlier establishment by the same six states of the European Coal and Steel Community in 1952) and has grown to 27 member states. ...

At 18% of the total number of speakers, German is the most widely spoken mother tongue, while English is the most widely spoken language at 51%. 100% of Hungarians, 100% of Portuguese, and 99.5% of Greeks speak their state language as their mother tongue.

The knowledge of foreign languages varies considerably in the specific countries, as the table below shows. The five most used, and spoken second or foreign languages in the EU are English, German, French, Russian and Spanish followed by Italian. The cases coloured in blue means that the language is one/the official language of the country and dark blue means it is the main language spoken in the country. The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ...

Knowledge of English

Knowledge of German

Knowledge of French

Knowledge of Spanish

Knowledge of Italian

Knowledge of Russian

Country (EU27)	English as a language other than mother tongue	German as a language other than mother tongue	French as a language other than mother tongue	Spanish as a language other than mother tongue	Italian as a language other than mother tongue	Russian as a language other than mother tongue
Austria	58%	4%	10%	4%	8%	2%
Belgium	59%	27%	48%	6%	3%	0%
Bulgaria	23%	12%	9%	2%	1%	35%
Cyprus	76%	5%	12%	2%	4%	2%
Czech Republic	24%	28%	2%	0%	1%	20%
Denmark	86%	58%	12%	5%	1%	1%
Estonia	46%	22%	1%	0%	0%	66%
Finland	63%	18%	3%	2%	1%	2%
France	36%	8%	6%	13%	5%	0%
Germany	56%	9%	15%	4%	3%	7%
Greece	48%	9%	8%	0%	4%	3%
Hungary	23%	25%	2%	1%	2%	8%
Ireland	5%	7%	20%	4%	1%	1%
Italy	29%	5%	14%	4%	1%	0%
Latvia	32%	14%	2%	1%	0%	70%
Lithuania	39%	19%	1%	0%	0%	80%
Luxembourg	60%	88%	90%	1%	5%	0%
Malta	88%	3%	17%	3%	66%	0%
Netherlands	87%	70%	29%	5%	1%	0%
Poland	29%	20%	3%	1%	1%	26%
Portugal	32%	3%	24%	9%	1%	0%
Romania	29%	6%	24%	3%	4%	4%
Slovakia	32%	32%	2%	1%	1%	29%
Slovenia	57%	50%	4%	2%	15%	2%
Spain	27%	2%	12%	10%	2%	1%
Sweden	89%	30%	11%	6%	2%	1%
United Kingdom	7%	9%	23%	8%	2%	1%
Candidate countries:
Croatia	49%	34%	4%	2%	14%	4%
Turkey	17%	4%	1%	0%	0%	1%

Source: [2] Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1218x1245, 83 KB) Knowledge of English in the European Union, according to: Special Eurobarometer 243 of the European Commission with the title Europeans and their Languages Made by myself File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1218x1245, 83 KB) Knowledge of English in the European Union, according to: Special Eurobarometer 243 of the European Commission with the title Europeans and their Languages Made by myself File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1218x1245, 84 KB) Knowledge of German in the European Union, according to: Special Eurobarometer 243 of the European Commission with the title Europeans and their Languages Made by myself File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1218x1245, 84 KB) Knowledge of German in the European Union, according to: Special Eurobarometer 243 of the European Commission with the title Europeans and their Languages Made by myself File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1218x1245, 83 KB) Knowledge French in the European Union, according to: Special Eurobarometer 243 of the European Commission with the title Europeans and their Languages Made by myself File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1218x1245, 83 KB) Knowledge French in the European Union, according to: Special Eurobarometer 243 of the European Commission with the title Europeans and their Languages Made by myself File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file... Image File history File links Flag_of_Austria. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Belgium_(civil). ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Bulgaria. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Cyprus. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_Czech_Republic. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Denmark. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Estonia. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Finland. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Germany. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Greece. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Hungary. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Ireland. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Italy. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Latvia. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Lithuania. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Luxembourg. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Malta. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_Netherlands. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Poland. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Portugal. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Romania. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Slovakia. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Slovenia. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Spain. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Sweden. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Croatia. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Turkey. ...

56% of citizens in the EU Member States are able to hold a conversation in one language apart from their mother tongue. This is 9 points more than was perceived in 2001 among the 15 Member States at the time [3]. 28% of the respondents state that they speak two foreign languages well enough to have a conversation. Still, almost half of the respondents, 44%, admit not knowing any other language than their mother tongue. Approximately 1 in 5 Europeans can be described as an active language learner, i.e. someone who has recently improved his/her language skills or intends to do so over the following 12 months.

English remains the most widely spoken foreign language throughout Europe. 38% of EU citizens state that they have sufficient skills in English to have a conversation (excluding the citizens of the United Kingdom and Ireland, the two English-speaking countries). 14% of Europeans indicate that they know either French or German along with their mother tongue. French is most commonly studied and used in Southern Europe, especially in Mediterranean countries, in Germany, Romania, the UK and Ireland while German is commonly studied and used in the Benelux countries, in Scandinavia and in the newer EU member states. Spanish is most commonly studied in parts of France, Italy, Luxembourg and Portugal. In 19 out of 29 countries polled, English is the most widely known language apart from the mother tongue, this being particularly the case in Sweden (89%), Malta (an ex-British colony that ia also part of the Commonwealth of Nations as well) (88%), the Netherlands (87%), and Denmark (86%), while German and French is so in three countries. Moreover, the citizens of the EU think they speak English at a better level than any other second or foreign language. 77% of EU citizens believe that children should learn English and that it's considered the number one language to learn in all countries where the research conducted but the United Kingdom, Ireland and Luxembourg. The Commonwealth of Nations as of 2008. ...

All in all, English either as a mother tongue or as a second/foreign language is spoken by 51% of EU citizens, followed by German with 32% and French with 28% of those asked.

With the enlargement of the European Union, the balance between French and German is slowly changing. Clearly more citizens in the new Member States master German (23% compared with 12% in the EU15) while their skills in French and Spanish are scarce (3% and 1% respectively compared with 16% and 7% among the EU15 group). A notable exception is Romania, where 24% of the population speaks French as a foreign language compared to 6% who speaks German as a foreign language (also 4% of the population speaks Italian as a foreign language, while 3% of the population speaks Spanish as a foreign language).

It is worth pointing out that language skills are unevenly distributed both over the geographical area of Europe and over sociodemographic groups. Reasonably good language competences are perceived in relatively small Member States with several state languages, lesser used native languages or "language exchange” with neighbouring countries. This is the case for example in Luxembourg where 92% speak at least two languages. Those who live in Southern European countries or countries where one of the major European languages is a state language appear to have moderate language skills. Only 5% of Turkish, 13% of Irish, 16% of Italians, 17% of Spanish and 18% from the UK speak at least two languages apart from their mother tongue. A "multilingual" European is likely to be young, well-educated or still studying, born in a country other than the country of residence, who uses foreign languages for professional reasons and is motivated to learn. Consequently, it seems that a large part of European society is not enjoying the advantages of multilingualism.

Free language lessons (26%), flexible language courses that suit one’s schedule (18%) and opportunities to learn languages in a country where it is spoken natively (17%) are considered to be the main incentives encouraging language learning. Group lessons with a teacher (20%), language lessons at school (18%), “one-to-one” lessons with a teacher and long or frequent visits to a country where the language is spoken are considered to be the most suitable ways to learn languages.

Regional and minority languages

According to the Euromosaic study, a number of regional or minority languages are spoken within the EU that do not have official recognition at EU level. Some of them may have some official status within the member state and count many more speakers than some of the lesser-used official languages. The official languages of EU are in bold. These include (data available for EU25): A regional language is a language spoken in a part of a country, be it may be a small area, a federal state or province, or a wider area. ... A minority language is a language spoken by a minority of the population of a country. ...

In this list, constructed languages or what member states deem as mere "dialects" of an official language of member states are not included. It should be noted that many of these alleged "dialects" are widely viewed by linguists as separate languages, however. These include Scots (the Germanic language descended from Anglo-Saxon, not the Celtic language known as Scots Gaelic) and several Romance languages spoken in Italy such as Veneto, Neapolitan, and Sicilian. Arvanitika or Arvanitic (native name: arbërisht, Greek: αρβανίτικα arvanitika) is the variety of Albanian traditionally spoken by the Arvanites, a population group in Greece. ... Arbëresh (or Arbërishte or Arbërisht) is the dialect of the Albanian language spoken by the Arbëreshë and Arvanites the Albanian-speaking minorities in Italy and Greece. ... This inscription in Alsatian on a window in Eguisheim, Alsace, reads: Dis Hausz sted in Godes Hand - God bewar es vor Feyru (This house stands in Gods hand - God beware it for fire) Alsatian (French Alsacien, German Elsässisch) is a Low Alemannic German dialect spoken in Alsace, a... Arabic redirects here. ... Aragonese redirects here. ... Aromanian (also known as Macedo-Romanian, Arumanian or Vlach in most other countries; in Aromanian: limba armãneascã, armãneshce or armãneashti) is an Eastern Romance language spoken in Southeastern Europe. ... Vlach language may refer to any of the Eastern Romance languages that are spoken in South-Eastern Europe: Romanian Istro-Romanian Aromanian Megleno-Romanian See also Vlachs Timočka Krajina This is a disambiguation page — a list of pages that otherwise might share the same title. ... Asturian, Leonese, Astur-Leonese or Bable (Asturianu in Asturian, Llïonés in Leonese) is a Romance language spoken in some parts of the provinces of Asturias, León, Zamora and Salamanca in Spain, and in the area of Miranda de Douro in Portugal (where it is officially recognized as... Basque (native name: euskara) is the language spoken by the Basque people who inhabit the Pyrenees in North-Central Spain and the adjoining region of South-Western France. ... Afro-Asiatic - Berber The Berber languages (or Tamazight) are a group of closely related languages mainly spoken in Morocco and Algeria. ... Breton (Brezhoneg) is a Celtic language spoken by some of the inhabitants of Brittany (Breizh) in France. ... The Pomaks (помаци pomaci) or Muslim Bulgarians (българи мюсюлмани bălgari mjusjulmani), also known locally as Ahryani, are an Islamized Slavic speaking people of the Rhodope region. ... Banat Bulgarians in Romania (in brown) The Banat Bulgarians (Bulgarian: , banatski balgari, endonym palćene and banátsći balgare) are a Bulgarian minority group living mostly in the Romanian part of the historical region of the Banat. ... Catalan IPA: (català IPA: or []) is a Romance language, the national language of Andorra, and a co-official language in the Spanish autonomous communities of Balearic Islands, Catalonia and Valencia, and in the city of LAlguer in the Italian island of Sardinia. ... Chinese (written) language (pinyin: zhōngw n) written in Chinese characters The Chinese language (汉语/漢語, 华语/華語, or 中文; Pinyin: H nyǔ, Hu yǔ, or Zhōngw n) is a member of the Sino-Tibetan family of languages. ... For the Cornish-English dialect, see West Country dialects. ... Public sentiment in favor of Corsu. ... Position of West Flemish/Zealandic within the Dutch speaking area (mainland only) West Flemish (West Flemish: Vlaemsch, Dutch: West-Vlaams, French: Flamand occidental) is a group of dialects spoken in parts of the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. ... Franco-Provençal (Francoprovençal) or Arpitan (in vernacular: patouès) (in Italian: francoprovenzale, provenzale alpina, arpitano, patois; French: francoprovençal, arpitan, patois) is a Romance language with several dialects in a linguistic sub-group separate from Langue dOïl and Langue dOc. ... This article is about the Frisian languages, as spoken in the north of the Netherlands and Germany. ... This article includes a list of works cited or a list of external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. ... Galician (Galician: galego, IPA: ) is a language of the Western Ibero-Romance branch, spoken in Galicia, an autonomous community with the constitutional status of historic nationality, located in northwestern Spain and small bordering zones in neighbouring autonomous communities of Asturias and Castilla y León. ... Location map of the Griko-speaking areas in Salento and Calabria Griko, sometimes spelled Grico, is a language combining ancient Greek, Byzantine Greek and Italian elements. ... Aléria (Greek and Roman Alalia) is a commune in the Haute-Corse département of France, on the island of Corsica. ... Ladin (Ladino in Italian, Ladin in Ladin, Ladinisch in German) is a Rhaetian language spoken in the Dolomite mountains in Italy, between the regions of Trentino-Alto Adige and Veneto. ... Latgalian language can mean one of the following: It was a language spoken by Latgalians in a great part of the area which is now Latvia. ... Livonian (LÄ«võ kēļ) belongs to the Finnic branch of the Finno-Ugric languages. ... Luxembourgish (Luxembourgish: , French: , German: , Walloon: ), also spelled Luxemburgish, is a West Germanic language spoken in Luxembourg. ... The Karaim language is a Turkic language with Hebrew influences, in a similar manner to Yiddish or Ladino. ... Kashubian or Cassubian (Kashubian: kaszëbsczi jãzëk, pòmòrsczi jãzëk, kaszëbskò-sÅ‚owiÅ„skô mòwa) is one of the Lechitic languages, which are a group of Slavic languages. ... The Mirandese language (Lhéngua Mirandesa in Mirandese; Língua Mirandesa or Mirandês in Portuguese) is spoken in northeastern Portugal. ... Occitan (IPA AmE: ), known also as Lenga dòc or Langue doc (native name: occitan [1], lenga dòc [2]; native nickname: la lenga nòstra [3] i. ... This article is about the language spoken by Roma people. ... Rusyn is an East Slavic language (along with Russian, Belarusian and Ukrainian to which it shares a common linguistic ancestry) that is spoken by the Rusyns. ... Sami is a general name for a group of Finno-Ugric languages spoken in parts of Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia, in Northern Europe. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... // Scottish Gaelic (Gàidhlig) is a member of the Goidelic branch of Celtic languages. ... Serbian (; ) is one of the standard versions of the Shtokavian dialect, used primarily in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia, and by Serbs in the Serbian diaspora. ... The Sorbian languages are classified under the West Slavic branch of the Indo-European languages. ... Areas where Finland-Swedish populations are found shown in yellow Finland-Swedish is a general term for the closely related cluster of dialects of Swedish spoken in Finland by Finland-Swedes as a first language. ... The Tatar language (Tatar tele, Tatarça, Татар теле, Татарча) is a Turkic language spoken by the Tatars. ... Welsh redirects here, and this article describes the Welsh language. ... Yiddish ( yidish or idish, literally: Jewish) is a non-territorial Germanic language, spoken throughout the world and written with the Hebrew alphabet. ... A constructed or artificial language — known colloquially as a conlang — is a language whose phonology, grammar, and/or vocabulary have been devised by an individual or group, instead of having naturally evolved as part of a culture. ... For dialects of programming languages, see Programming language dialect. ...

Russian

Though not an official language of the European Union, Russian is widely spoken in some of the newer member states of the Union that were formerly in the Eastern bloc. Russian is the native language of about 1.3 million Slavs residing in Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania, as well as a sizeable community in Germany. Russian is also understood by many ethnic Latvians, Estonians and Lithuanians, since it was a compulsory subject of many curricula in these countries during the Soviet era. Although rarely a native language, Russian is widely understood by many in Bulgaria, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, some in Hungary, Romania and other countries. It is the 8th most spoken language in the EU. About 7% of all EU citizens speak or understand Russian to some extent. A map of the Eastern Bloc 1948-1989. ... Soviet era is the period of Russian history comprising the years 1917 – 1991, when the power was held by the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. ...

Migrant languages

A wide variety of languages from other parts of the world are spoken by immigrant communities in EU countries. Turkish is spoken as a first language by an estimated 2% of the population in Belgium and the western part of Germany and by 1% in The Netherlands. Other widely-used migrant languages include Maghreb Arabic (and others) (mainly in France, Belgium, United Kingdom, Cyprus and Malta), Urdu, Bengali and Hindi spoken by immigrants from the Indian sub-continent in the United Kingdom, while Balkan languages are spoken in many parts of the EU by migrants and refugees who have left the region as a result of the recent wars and unrest there. Immigration is the act of moving to or settling in another country or region, temporarily or permanently. ... Motto: Je Maintiendrai (Dutch: Ik zal handhaven, English: I Shall Uphold) Anthem: Wilhelmus van Nassouwe Capital Amsterdam1 Largest city Amsterdam Official language(s) Dutch2 Government Parliamentary democracy Constitutional monarchy  - Queen Beatrix  - Prime minister Jan Peter Balkenende Independence Eighty Years War   - Declared July 26, 1581   - Recognised January 30, 1648 (by Spain... Maghreb arabic is a dialect of Arabic spoken in the Maghreb, including Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, and Libya. ... Urdu ( , , trans. ... Bangla redirects here. ... -1... The Indian subcontinent is the peninsular region of larger South Asia in which the nations of India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka as well as parts of Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar and some disputed territory currently controlled by China are located. ... This is a list of languages spoken in the Balkans. ... Belligerents Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo Liberation Army, NATO, UCPMB SFR Yugoslavia, Republic of Srpska Serbian Krajina FR Yugoslavia, Paramilitary forces from Serbia Commanders Milan Kučan Janez JanÅ¡a, Franjo TuÄ‘man, Mate Boban Janko Bobetko, Alija Izetbegović, Sefer Halilović, Hashim Thaci, Wesley Clark, Javier Solana Bill Clinton...

There are large Chinese communities in France, UK, Spain, Italy, Romania and other countries. Some countries have Chinatowns. Old and recent Chinese migrants speak various Chinese dialects. However, Mandarin is becoming increasingly more prevalent due to the opening up of the PRC and is also, at least, one of the Chinese language varieties spoken by Chinese immigrants. Alternative meanings: Chinatown (disambiguation) The second_largest Chinatown in North America is in San Francisco, California, where signs, storefronts, proprietors, and even lamp posts bring the culture of China to the United States. ... This article is on all of the Northern and Southwestern Chinese dialects. ...

Many immigrant communities in the EU have been in place for several generations now and their members are bilingual, at ease both in the local language and in that of their community. [4] The term bilingualism (from bi meaning two and lingua meaning language) can refer to rather different phenomena. ...

Linguistic classification of the EU's official languages

The majority of the official languages of the European Union belong to the Indo-European language family, the three dominant subfamilies being the Germanic, Romance and Slavic languages. Germanic languages are widely spoken in central and northern areas of the EU and include Danish, Dutch, English, German, and Swedish. Romance languages are spoken in western and southern regions and include French, Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, and Spanish. The Slavic languages are to be found in the eastern regions and include Bulgarian, Czech, Polish, Slovak, and Slovene. The Baltic languages Latvian and Lithuanian, the Celtic language Irish, and Greek are also of Indo-European origin. Outside the Indo-European family, Estonian, Finnish, and Hungarian are Finno-Ugric languages while Maltese is the only Semitic language with official status in the EU. All official EU languages are written with the Latin alphabet, except Greek (written with the Greek alphabet) and Bulgarian (written in the Cyrillic alphabet). For other uses, see Indo-European. ... A language family is a group of languages related by descent from a common proto-language. ... The Romance languages (sometimes referred to as Romanic languages) are a branch of the Indo-European language family that comprises all the languages that descend from Latin, the language of the Roman Empire. ...  Countries where a West Slavic language is the national language  Countries where an East Slavic language is the national language  Countries where a South Slavic language is the national language The Slavic languages (also called Slavonic languages), a group of closely related languages of the Slavic peoples and a subgroup... The Baltic languages are a group of related languages belonging to the Indo-European language family and spoken mainly in areas extending east and southeast of the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. ... The Celtic languages are the languages descended from Proto-Celtic, or Common Celtic, a branch of the greater Indo-European language family. ... Finno-Ugric group with dark green on map of language families Finno-Ugric (IPA:[ËŒfɪnoʊˈjuːgɹɪk]) is a grouping of languages in the Uralic language family, comprising Hungarian, Finnish and Estonian, and related languages. ... 14th century BC diplomatic letter in Akkadian, found in Tell Amarna. ... Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz redirects here. ... This page contains special characters. ... The Cyrillic alphabet (pronounced also called azbuka, from the old name of the first two letters) is actually a family of alphabets, subsets of which are used by certain Slavic languages — Belarusian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Russian, Rusyn, Serbian, and Ukrainian—as well as many other languages of the former Soviet Union...

Legal basis

The European Union ability for legislative acts and other initiatives on language policy is based legally in the provisions in the Treaties of the European Union. In the EU, language policy is the responsibility of member states and European Union does not have a "common language policy". Based on the "principle of subsidiarity", European Union institutions play a supporting role in this field, promoting cooperation between the member states and promoting the European dimension in the member states language policies, particularly through the teaching and dissemination of the languages of the member states (Article 149.2).^[26][27] The rules governing the languages of the institutions of the Community shall, without prejudice to the provisions contained in the Statute of the Court of Justice, be determined by the Council, acting unanimously (Article 290). All languages, in which was originally drawn up or was translated due to enlargement, are legally equally authentic. Every citizen of the Union may write to any of the EU institutions or bodies in one of the these languages and have an answer in the same language (Article 314). The Treaties of the European Union are effectively the basic constitutional texts of the Union. ... Many countries have a language policy designed to favour or discourage the use of a particular language or set of languages. ... Subsidiarity is the principle which states that matters ought to be handled by the smallest (or, the lowest) competent authority. ...

In the Charter of Fundamental Rights, a legally non-binding text, the EU declares that it respects linguistic diversity (Article 22) and prohibits discrimination on grounds of language (Article 21). Respect for linguistic diversity is a fundamental value of the European Union, in the same way as respect for the person, openness towards other cultures, tolerance and acceptance of other people. The Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union is a document containing human rights provisions, solemnly proclaimed by the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union, and the European Commission in December 2000. ...

EU initiatives for language learning and linguistic diversity

Interpretation booths in the debating chamber of the European Parliament (Brussels).

Beginning with the Lingua programme in 1990, the European Union invests more than €30 million a year (out of a €120 billion EU budget) promoting language learning through the Socrates and Leonardo da Vinci programmes in: bursaries to enable language teachers to be trained abroad, placing foreign language assistants in schools, funding class exchanges to motivate pupils to learn languages, creating new language courses on CDs and the Internet and projects that raise awareness of the benefits of language learning. Image File history File linksMetadata No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File linksMetadata No higher resolution available. ... Established 1952, as the Common Assembly President Hans-Gert Pöttering (EPP) Since 16 January 2007 Vice-Presidents 14 Rodi Kratsa-Tsagaropoulou (EPP) Alejo Vidal-Quadras (EPP) Gérard Onesta (Greens – EFA) Edward McMillan-Scott (ED) Mario Mauro (EPP) Miguel Angel Martínez Martínez (PES) Luigi Cocilovo (ALDE) Mechtild... This article is about the settlement itself. ... This article is about the year. ... The European Union (EU) has an independent parliament and civil service which is distinct from those of the 27 member states. ... The Socrates programme is an educational initiative of the European Commission whose principal aim is to strengthen the European dimension of education at all levels. Some of its building blocks are The Erasmus programme The Leonardo programme The Lingua programme The Minerva programme The Grundtvig programme The Commission has proposed...

Through strategic studies, the Commission promotes debate, innovation and the exchange of good practice. In addition, the mainstream actions of Community programmes which encourage mobility and transnational partnerships motivate participants to learn languages.

Youth exchanges, town twinning projects and the European Voluntary Service also promote multilingualism. Since 1997, the Culture 2000 programme has financed the translation of around 2,000 literary works from and into European languages. This article or section should be merged with Foreign student exchange Student exchange, youth exchange or high school exchange is applied to the age group of 15 to 19 and refers to extended stays of students of one country with families in another country, such as under the supervision of... Sign denoting twin towns of Neckarsulm, Germany Town twinning is a concept whereby towns or cities in geographically and politically distinct areas are paired with the goal of fostering human contact and cultural links. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... Culture 2000 is a 7-year European Union program, which has among its key objectives preserving and enhancing Europes cultural heritage. ...

The new programmes proposed for implementation for the financial perspective 2007-2013 (Culture 2007, Youth in Action and Lifelong Learning) will continue and develop this kind of support. The financial perspective (sometimes financial framework) of the European Union is a seven-year framework for its spending. ... The Integrated action programme in the field of lifelong learning (usually referred to as the Integrated programme) is the EU Commissions proposal for a programme to supersede the actions of the Socrates programme. ...

In addition, the EU provides the main financial support to the European Bureau for Lesser-Used Languages (a non-governmental organisation which represents the interests of the over 40 million citizens who belong to a regional and minority language community), and for the Mercator networks of universities active in research on lesser-used languages in Europe. Following a request from the European Parliament, the Commission in 2004 launched a feasibility study on the possible creation of a new EU agency, "European Agency for Language Learning and Linguistic Diversity". The study concludes that there are unmet needs in this field, and proposes two options: creating an agency or setting up a European network of "Language Diversity Centres". The Commission believes that a network would be the most appropriate next step and, where possible, should build on existing structures; it will examine the possibility of financing it on a multi-annual basis through the proposed Lifelong Learning programme. Another interesting step would be to translate important public websites, such as the one of the European Central Bank, or Frontex web site also, in at least one other language than English. European flag The European Bureau for Lesser-Used Languages (EBLUL) is a non-governmental organisation promoting linguistic diversity and languages founded in 1982. ... The agencies of the European Union (or decentralised bodies of the European Union) are bodies which are distinct from the European Unions institutions, in that they have not been created by the treaties but rather by acts of secondary legislation, in order to accomplish a very specific task. ...

Although not an EU treaty, some EU member states have ratified the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. Its ratification is also a prerequisite for new member-states joining the Union. // The European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages (ECRML) is a European treaty (CETS 148) adopted in 1992 under the auspices of the Council of Europe to protect and promote historical regional and minority languages in Europe. ...

To encourage language learning, the EU supported the Council of Europe initiatives for European Year of Languages 2001 and the annual celebration of European Day of Languages on September 26. Anthem Ode to Joy (orchestral)  ten founding members joined subsequently observer at the Parliamentary Assembly observer at the Committee of Ministers  official candidate Seat Strasbourg, France Membership 47 European states 5 observers (Council) 3 observers (Assembly) Leaders  -  Secretary General Terry Davis  -  President of the Parliamentary Assembly Rene van der Linden... European Year of Languages 2001 and European Day of Languages logo Chameleon, European Year of Languages 2001 and European Day of Languages logo September 26 was proclaimed European Day of Languages by the Council of Europe, with the support of European Union, on December 6, 2001, at the end of... is the 269th day of the year (270th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

To encourage the member states to cooperate and to disseminate best practice the Commission has issued a Communication on July 24, 2003, on Promoting Language Learning and Linguistic Diversity: an Action Plan 2004 - 2006 (summary) and a Communication on November 22, 2005, on A New Framework Strategy for Multilingualism (summary). is the 205th day of the year (206th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 326th day of the year (327th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

From November 22, 2004, the European Commissioner for Education and Culture portfolio included an explicit reference to languages and became European Commissioner for Education, Training, Culture and Multilingualism with Ján Figeľ at the post. From January 1, 2007, the European Commission has a special portfolio on languages, European Commissioner for Multilingualism. The post is currently held by Leonard Orban. is the 326th day of the year (327th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Ján Figeľ Barroso Commission, 2004 to 2009 European Commissioner for Education, Training, Culture is a member of the European Commission responsible for policies in education and training, youth, sport, civil society, culture, translation, interpretation and relations with the Office for Official Publications of the European Communities. ... European Commissioner for Education, Training, Culture and Multilingualism is a member of the European Commission responsible for policies in education and training, youth, sport, civil society, culture , translation, interpretation, relations with the Office for Official Publications of the European Communities and multilingualism. ... Ján Figeľ Ján Figeľ (born 20 January 1960) is a Slovak politician, currently serving as European Commissioner for Education, Training, Culture and Multilingualism. ... is the 1st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. ... Leonard Orban Barroso Commission, 2007 to 2009 The European Commissioner for Multilingualism is the member of the European Commission responsible for language policy of the European Union, i. ... Leonard Orban (born June 28, 1961) is a Romanian independent technocrat who currently serves as the Commissioner for Multilingualism in the European Commission, the executive body of the European Union (EU). ...

EU devotes a specialised subsite of its "Europa" portal to languages, the EUROPA Languages portal.

See also

• European languages
• European Commissioner for Multilingualism – Leonard Orban
• Translation Centre for the Bodies of the European Union (CDT) - Inter-Active Terminology for Europe (IATE)
• European Day of Languages – 26 September
• Linguistic issues concerning the euro
• List of names of the official languages of the European Union in the official languages
• Euro-English
• English-speaking Europe

European languages are the object of Eurolinguistics. ... Leonard Orban Barroso Commission, 2007 to 2009 The European Commissioner for Multilingualism is the member of the European Commission responsible for language policy of the European Union, i. ... Leonard Orban (born June 28, 1961) is a Romanian independent technocrat who currently serves as the Commissioner for Multilingualism in the European Commission, the executive body of the European Union (EU). ... The Translation Centre for the Bodies of the European Union is an agency of the European Union. ... Inter-Active Terminology for Europe (IATE) is the inter-institutional terminology database of the European Union. ... European Year of Languages 2001 and European Day of Languages logo Chameleon, European Year of Languages 2001 and European Day of Languages logo September 26 was proclaimed European Day of Languages by the Council of Europe, with the support of European Union, on December 6, 2001, at the end of... is the 269th day of the year (270th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Languages of the European Union List of countries of the European Union in the official languages List of names of the European Union in the official languages List of the names of bodies of the European Union in its official languages Categories: | | ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... English-speaking Europe consists of the constituent nations of the United Kingdom (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland), a former part of the UK (the Republic of Ireland), two former British colonies (Cyprus, Malta) and a current British colony Gibraltar, plus the Crown dependencies. ...

References

is the 33rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. ... is the 37th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. ... is the 37th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. ... Established 1952 Presiding Country Portugal President Luís Amado President in Office José Sócrates Members 27 (at one time) Political parties 7, including: European Peoples Party Party of European Socialists Meeting place Justus Lipsius, Brussels, Belgium, European Union Web site http://www. ... is the 32nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. ... is the 34th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. ...

Further reading

• Michele Gazzola (2006) "Managing Multilingualism in the European Union: Language Policy Evaluation for the European Parliament", Language Policy, vol. 5, n. 4, p. 393-417.
• Hogan-Brun, Gabrielle and Stefan Wolff. 2003. Minority Languages in Europe: Frameworks, Status, Prospects. Palgrave. ISBN 1403903964
• Nic Craith, Máiréad. 2005. Europe and the Politics of Language: Citizens, Migrants and Outsiders. Palgrave. ISBN 1403918333
• Richard L. Creech, "Law and Language in the European Union: The Paradox of a Babel 'United in Diversity'" (Europa Law Publishing: Groningen, 2005) ISBN 90-76871-43-4
• Shetter, William Z., EU Language Year 2001: Celebrating diversity but with a hangover, Language Miniature No 63.
• Shetter, William Z., Harmony or Cacophony: The Global Language System, Language Miniature No 96.

External links

Official EU webpages

• Europa: Languages and Europe - The European Union portal on languages
• European Parliament Fact Sheets: 4.16.3. Language policy
• European Commission > Education and Training > Policy Areas > Languages
• EUROPA > The EU at a glance > The European countries > Languages in the EU - Hear examples of the official EU languages
• European Commissioner for Multilingualism - Leonard Orban
• European Commission Directorate-General for Education and Culture (DG EAC)
• European Commission Directorate-General for Translation (DGT)
• European Commission Directorate-General for Interpretation (former SCIC)
• European Union Publications Office
• European Union interinstitutional style guide
• The process of creating documents in this multilingual environment (PDF)

News

• EurActiv.com - Languages and Culture - news site
• Eurolang news agency covering lesser-used languages in the EU.

Other

• The European Federation of National Institutions for Language (EFNIL)
• The European Bureau for Lesser-Used Languages (EBLUL) - a EU funded NGO on lesser-used languages in the EU.
• Mercator - networks of universities active in research on lesser-used languages in Europe
• ADUM - information on minority languages EU programmes.
• MinoLa - Minority Languages in the European Union