LL-L "Language politics" 2007.06.26 (09) [E]

[Lowlands-L List]

L O W L A N D S - L  -  25 June 2007 - Volume 09

=========================================================================

From: R. F. Hahn <sassisch at yahoo.com>
Subject: Language politics

Dear Lowlanders,

Below please find a copy of an article about the continuing road sign saga
in the latest issue of Eurolang (www.eurolang.net/).

Regards,
Reinhard/Ron

***
More bilingual signs in Germany
but idea of German signs in southern Denmark sparks controversy

Biel - Bienne, Monday, 25 June 2007 by Peter Josika

A new ruling by the German Ministry of Infrastructure paves the way for more
bilingual place-name signs in Germany. The areas affected by the new rules
will be the northernmost state (Bundesland) of Germany, Schleswig-Holstein,
where autochthonous Frisians, Danes and Low-Germans live.  While bilingual
signs have already been erected in many traditional Frisian-speaking
communities, there are, as yet, no signs in Danish and Low-German.

While the Low-Germans have welcomed the new ruling, the Danish minority
initially expressed caution as the erection of Danish signs in Germany would
automatically create a case for German signs in Denmark, where there is a
German minority in the southern Danish district of
Sønderjylland/Nordschleswig. Minority rights on both sides of the
German-Danish border have traditionally been reciprocal.

However, chances of a reciprocal agreement on the matter of bilingual signs
have become increasingly remote after a proposal by the German minority in
Denmark was universally rejected by Danish politicians and the media. The
recently elected President of the German minority in Denmark, Hinrich
Jürgensen, openly suggested the erection of bilingual signs in four Danish
municipalities with traditional German minorities - Aabenraa /Apenrade,
Haderslev/Hadersleben, Sønderborg/Sonderburg and Tønder/Tondern. Mr
Jürgensen appealed to make these four towns "examples of tolerance and
openess".

But Mr Jürgensen's suggestion was immediately condemned by the Danish
right-wing populist Søren Krarup, Pastor and MP of the Danish People's
Party. "Danish signs must be Danish. This commands the respect for the
majority", Mr Krarup said.

The Lord Mayor of Aabenraa /Apenrade, Ms Tove Larsson, also rejected the
proposal stating in a newspaper interview: "Our town is called Aabenraa. The
Germans know that. Anything else would be the wrong signal". And underlining
how many politicians often fail to distinguish between autochthonous and
migrant minorities, Ms Larsson added: "Should we put up signs in Arabic and
Turkish as well?"

The Danish daily "Jyllands-Posten" called the proposal "silly" as it is
"provocative" and "creates unnecessary conflict". The paper also expressed
the opinion that some older Danes that lived through the Nazi occupation may
be offended by the sight of German place-names.

Mr Peter Dragsbo from the Sønderborg Regional Museum belongs to a small
group of Danes that support bilingual signs on both sides of the border. He
criticised that while people do not hesitate to put up "Zimmer Frei" ("Room
available" in German) signs to gain business they often become rampant
nationalists when it comes to German signage.

In Germany, SSW, the Danish minority organisation, have decided to
officially apply for bilingual signs in the regional capital
Flensburg/Flensborg. The move is expected to be successful as most legal
obstacles have now been removed while little resistance from the German
majority is expected. The formal request was sent to the German Ministry of
Infrastructure on June 22 and has the formal support of the Lord mayor of
Flensburg, Mr Klaus Tscheuschner.

In a separate event, both the German minority in Denmark as well as the
Danish minority of Germany, have joined forces in an appeal to the Danish
Broadcasting Corporation (DR). DR plans to withdraw a local broadcasting
window for Danish radio that often focuses on minority matters. The two
minority groups sent a formal letter to DR's Chief Executive, Mr Kenneth D.
Plummer last Friday (June 22). (Eurolang 2007)

Article in Die Welt, in German

Article in Jyllands-Posten, in Danish
http://jp.dk/arkiv/?id=955295

Article in Der Nordschleswiger, in German
http://www.nordschleswiger.dk/SEEEMS/129.asp?artid=8042

Press release by the Danish minority in Germany concerning the application
for bilingual signs in Flensburg/Flensborg, in German & Danish
http://www.ssw.de/www/de/presseservice/pressemitteilungen/show.php?ID=5915
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://listserv.linguistlist.org/pipermail/lowlands-l/attachments/20070626/a77b847c/attachment.htm>