Worksheet for Minority Languages

Names of students who completed this worksheet:

The Name of the Language and Country of Location:

The Language Itself

Is the language endangered?
How many speakers are there?
What percentage of the population of the country speaks the language?

Genetic and areal factors: What languages are most closely related to this language?; Are there closely related languages contiguous to this language?; What other languages is this language in contact with?

Dialects: Does the language have significant dialects? Or is it considered a dialect itself?; What relations are there between the dialect and the standard language?

Orthography: Is the orthography latin-based?; If not, is it alphabetic?

Literary Standards and Diglossia: Is there a standardized literary variant for this language?; Is the language diglossic?; If so, what is the relationship between H&L versions?

Geography & Politics

Is the language the major language of another country?
What are the political relations of speakers of this language with other peoples in the region?
Are there any significant historical factors that influence these relations?
Is the language spoken in other countries?
What is the relation between diaspora and non-diaspora communities?

Schools: Is the language taught in schools? How many or what percentage?; Is language instruction in school supported financially by the government? Or is it funded privately?; Is the language used only for language instruction, or is other instruction in the language? How much?; Is it possible to go to a university where the language is used in instruction?

Legal Protections: Is the language used administratively?; Does the country have policies that discriminate against the language?; What sorts of protections does the government provide for minority languages?

Social & Economic Context

Literacy & Media: What percentage of the population is literate?; Is there a strong literary tradition?; Are there publishing houses that print books in this language?; Are there newspapers published in this language?; Are there TV and radio stations that broadcast in this language?

Public Use: Are there signs that use this language?; Are government forms printed in this language?; Is it possible to get a skilled job using this language?

Organizations: Are there organizations that support the language?; Are there places of worship where the language is used?