I am a European citizen and I also feel like one. On the other hand, I also feel Dutch. Should I then speak Dutch, French, German or English, or should I speak all of them. It is quite hard to make one rule out of it. Is the feeling where you belong connected to what language you have to speak or is language just something we learn and use?
I believe these are the underlying thoughts and questions when we come to the debate on t
he language policy of the European Union. The European Language Policy is vast and varying. Overall, the European languages are the supported by the European Language Policy. Multilingualism is in general seen as the only possible answer to the all the different languages that are spoken within the European Union.
This is of course not the only option. In the current situation in the European Union every national language is allowed. The delegates speak with each other in their own language while a translator translates. This has been the case for all the years in the past. What is however happening in every level of politics in the European Union, is that English is becoming a more used language. Documents are becoming mostly printed in English and delegates tend to use English in informal meetings. Outside of the supranational institution, European citizens are getting more used to speak English. This raised the overall question on what to do with languages within the European Union.
From the very beginning, multilingualism has been at the core of the European integration project. The European continent is characterized by huge linguistic diversity, and the importance of protecting this diversity has been recognized by the relevant European institutions from early onwards. However, given the complexities of the current age of globalisation and the rise of English as a lingua franca, European language policies face ever more difficulties.