Group Vitality and French-English Relations in Quebec

The author points out that the linguistic development over the last thirty years in favor of French has meant that nearly ninety-five percent of the population of Quebec knows French, and that over eighty percent of its population uses French at home. The use of French at work has increased considerably, he also points out, and more than sixty-seven percent of the Quebec economy is now under the control of French-speaking Quebeckers. However, despite these advances in favor of the French-speaking majority, Quebec nationalists maintain linguistic insecurity by invoking not only the minority status of Francophones in North America, but also the threat of the presence of Anglophone and Allophone minorities in Quebec. The author argues that despite the demographic and institutional decline of the English-speaking minority in Quebec, the French-speaking majority remains ambivalent when it comes to supporting the long-term survival of this national minority, which is largely bilingual (seventy percent) and contributes to economic, social and cultural development of Quebec. He concludes by stating that, as with other majorities with dual status, a major challenge for Quebec's Francophone majority is to support the vitality of its linguistic minorities rather than treating them as rival groups threatening the authenticity of its national identity.

Wer spricht Kanadisch?: Vielfalt, Identitäten und Sprachpolitik /Who speaks Canadian?: Diversity, Identities and Language Policies /Qui parle canadien?: diversite, identites et politiques linguistiques

Bochum, Germany

Universitatsverlag Norbert Brockmeyer

2012

25-50

en