Country context

Explicit recognition of Spain’s historical multilingual reality was a key priority after the introduction of democracy, and consequently it was granted a prominent place in Spain’s Constitution (article 3) in 1978 and in the subsequent Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia (art. 3) in 1979. According to both texts, Catalan and Castilian (the term officially used in the Constitution to refer to Spanish) became official languages in Catalonia. 

This recognition has been understood in different ways, and debates about language policies have retained a visible position since then. Debates focus on how to implement this ‘official status’. Differentiating between Castilian as a ’national’ and Catalan as a ‘regional’ language made little empirical sense in Catalonia, for both are widely present in all areas: in future research, both should be subsumed under a common, more adequate label, be it national, official, or another.

Some other factors have more recently promoted the relevance of multilingualism in Catalonia: (1) the significance of the tourism industry; (2) the process of European integration; (3) the rapid process of internationalisation in the Catalonian economy; and (4) the arrival, during the first decade of the 21st century, of more than 1.3 million immigrants from Spanish-speaking America and the rest of the world (alloglots). This alloglot population is extremely fragmented and scattered across the country: according to the Survey on the linguistic practices of Catalonia’s population (EULP 2008) the largest group was that of Arabic speakers (2.6% of the total population over 15 years — a figure which also includes many Tamazight L1 speakers). No other first language (L1) group reached 1%: Romanian totalled 0.9%; Galician, 0.6%; French, 0.5%; Portuguese and English, 0.4%; Russian, 0.3% were the most prominent among more than 400 different L1 groups.

Languages in official documents and databases

The national language, foreign languages, R/M languages and immigrant languages are dealt with in language legislation and/or language policy documents. The learning and teaching of Catalan abroad for children and/or adults originating from Catalonia is (co-)funded in Argentina, Ecuador, Portugal, Switzerland and the USA. The European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages has been signed and ratified by Spain. There is official provision in education, supported by the Charter, for Catalan and Aranese in Catalonia. 

Official region-wide data collection mechanisms on language diversity in Catalonia exist in terms of census data, continuously updated municipal register data and periodical survey data. In these data collection mechanisms, national and regional language varieties are addressed, based on a home language question, a main language question, and a mother tongue question. Additionally, a language proficiency question is included in terms of whether (and how well) this language can be spoken/understood/read/written.

Since the new Statute of Autonomy was voted for in 2006, Catalonia gained a third official language - Occitan, the autochthonous language of Val d’Aran, a small territory in the Catalan Pyrenees. The official status of Occitan was regulated by law by the Parliament of Catalonia in September 2010, but temporally suspended by the Spanish Constitutional Court at the demand of the Spanish Government.

Languages in pre-primary education

 

LRM

Langues R/M

LE

Langues étrangères

LM

Langues des migrants

LN - SOUTIEN SUP

Langues nationales
Groupes cibles
LRM: tous locuteurs natifs uniquement aucun soutien 
LE: tous restreint aucun soutien 
LM: tous locuteurs natifs uniquement aucun soutien 
LN - SOUTIEN SUP: tous enfants de migrants uniquement aucun soutien 
3 3 none none
Durée
≥ 2 ans 1 an <1 an   
3 3 none none
Taille minimale des groupes
aucune  5-10  >10
3 3 none none
Jours par semaine
 >1 jour  0.5-1 jour  <0.5 jour
3 1 none none
Formation initiale des enseignants
spécifique à une matière générale aucune 
3 3 none none
Formation des enseignants en cours d'emploi
spécifique à une matière générale aucune 
3 3 none none
Financement public disponible
total partiel aucun 
2 2 none none

Languages offered in pre-primary education

R/M Languages

Catalan everywhere, and Aranese Occitan in Val d’Aran

Langues étrangères

English

Langues des migrants

-

Languages in primary education

Organisation

 

LRM

Langues R/M

LE

Langues étrangères

LM

Langues des migrants
Programmes scolaires
cohérent et explicite général pas de lignes directrices   
3 3 none
Enseignement EMILE (enseignement d'une matière intégrée à une langue étrangère)
  généralisé localisé aucun   
3 3 none
Groupes cibles
LRM: tous locuteurs natifs uniquement aucun soutien 
LE: tous restreint aucun soutien 
LM: tous locuteurs natifs uniquement aucun soutien 
3 3 none
Démarrage de l'enseignement en langue
A partir de la 1ère année à mi-étape en fin d'étape uniquement   
3 3 none
Planification
pendant le temps scolaire en partie pendant le temps scolaire hors temps scolaire    
3 3 none
Taille minimale des groupes
aucune 5-10 >10  
3 3 none
Surveillance des compétences linguistiques
surveillance nationale standardisée propre à l'établissement aucune   
3 3 none
Niveau requis
Autres LN: normes nationales ou régionales normes propres à l'établissement non spécifié 
LE: dépend du CECRL des normes nationales ou de l'établissement non spécifié 
LM: normes nationales ou régionales normes propres à l'établissement non spécifié 
3 2 none
Financement public disponible
total partiel aucun   
3 3 none

 

LN

Autres langues nationales
Programmes scolaires
cohérent et explicite général pas de lignes directrices   
3
Soutien supplémentaire pour les nouveaux arrivants
avant la phase d'intégration pendant aucun   
2
Evaluation diagnostique à l'entrée
tous immigrants uniquement aucune   
2
Surveillance des compétences linguistiques
surveillance nationale standardisée propre à l'établissement aucune   
3

Teaching

 

LRM

Langues R/M

LE

Langues étrangères

LM

Langues des migrants
Qualifications des enseignants
enseignants en langues enseignants en matières générales non qualifiés   
3 3 none
Formation initiale des enseignants
spécifique à une matière générale aucune   
3 3 none
Formation des enseignants en cours d'emploi
spécifique à une matière générale aucune   
3 3 none
Mobilité
intégrée dans la formation soutien financier informel aucune non applicable  
0 3 0

 

LN

Autres langues nationales
Qualifications des enseignants
enseignants en langues enseignants en matières générales non qualifiés   
3
Formation initiale des enseignants
spécifique à une matière générale aucune   
3
Formation des enseignants en cours d'emploi
spécifique à une matière générale aucune   
3

Languages offered in primary education

R/M Languages

Catalan everywhere, and Aranese Occitan in Val d’Aran

Langues étrangères

English: compulsory

Langues des migrants

-

During the last two decades, education in Catalonia has been based on the ‘conjunction model’, which establishes that children shall not be separated according to first language; Catalan is the main language of education (children are, however, entitled to be taught in Castilian in their first years of education if their parents ask for it); and all children shall be bilingual and biliterate in these two languages by the end of compulsory education. Comparative results show that this model results in the bilingualism of most children, although Castilian is still better known (see Vila 2008, 2010). The reason for such results is to be found in a mixture of demolinguistic and sociolinguistic factors: Castilian is the main lingua franca between Catalan, Castilian and alloglot speakers, and given its powerful status and ubiquity in society, it is rapidly picked up by non-native speakers. It should also be remembered that while the data used in the Language Rich Europe research are declared by official sources, both observational and self-declared data by children show that Castilian is quite often used in interaction with teachers in classes especially where Castilian-speakers and alloglots are in the majority. In 2010, a much debated ruling on Catalonia’s new Statute of Autonomy (2006) from the Constitutional Court required that Castilian should have a wider presence as a vehicular language in Catalonian schools, and thus opened the door to a major legal and political conflict which is still ongoing.

Languages in secondary education

Organisation

 

LRM

Langues R/M

LE

Langues étrangères

LM

Langues des migrants
Programmes scolaires
cohérent et explicite général pas de lignes directrices 
3 3 none
Enseignement EMILE (enseignement d'une matière intégrée à une langue étrangère)
généralisé localisé aucun   
3 2 none
Groupes cibles
LRM: tous locuteurs natifs uniquement aucun soutien 
LE: tous restreint aucun soutien 
LM: tous locuteurs natifs uniquement aucun soutien
3 3 none
Planification
pendant le temps scolaire en partie pendant le temps scolaire hors temps scolaire   
3 3 none
Taille minimale des groupes
aucune 5-10 >10  
3 3 none
Surveillance des compétences linguistiques
surveillance nationale standardisée propre à l'établissement aucune   
3 3 none
Niveau requis
Autres LN: normes nationales ou régionales normes propres à l'établissement non spécifié not applicable
LE: dépend du CECRL des normes nationales ou propres à l'établissement non spécifié not applicable
LM: normes nationales ou régionales normes propres à l'établissement pas de normes not applicable
3 2 none
Financement public disponible
total partiel aucun   
3 3 none

 

LN

Autres langues nationales
Programmes scolaires
cohérent et explicite général pas de lignes directrices 
3
Soutien supplémentaire pour les nouveaux arrivants
avant pendant aucun   
2
Evaluation diagnostique à l'entrée
tous immigrants uniquement aucune   
3
Surveillance des compétences linguistiques
surveillance nationale standardisée propre à l'établissement aucune   
3

Teaching

 

LRM

Langues R/M

LE

Langues étrangères

LM

Langues des migrants
Qualifications des enseignants
enseignants en langues enseignants en matières générales non qualifiés   
3 3 none
Formation initiale des enseignants
spécifique à une matière générale aucune   
3 3 none
Formation des enseignants en cours d'emploi
spécifique à une matière générale aucune   
3 3 none
Mobilité
intégrée dans la formation soutien financier informel aucune non applicable  
0 3 0
Niveau de langue requis
dépend du CECRL des normes nationales ou régionales non spécifié non applicable  
0 3 0

 

LN

Autres langues nationales
Qualifications des enseignants
enseignants en langues enseignants en matières générales non qualifiés   
3
Formation initiale des enseignants
spécifique à une matière générale aucune   
3
Formation des enseignants en cours d'emploi
spécifique à une matière générale aucune   
3
Niveau de langue requis pour les locuteurs non natifs
dépend du CECRL des normes nationales ou propres à l'établissement non spécifié non applicable  
3

Languages offered in secondary education

R/M Languages

Catalan everywhere, and Aranese Occitan in Val d’Aran

Langues étrangères

Compulsory: One from English, French, occasionally German and Italian
Optional: Ancient Greek, Latin and others

Langues des migrants

-

The research is quite accurate in depicting the position of most languages. The distinction between ‘foreign’ and ‘immigrant’ languages obscures the fact that two of the main L1 foreign groups — namely French and English speakers - find it relatively easy to get tuition in their L1 within the educational system (see figures above). A number of private foreign schools — American, French, Italian, and ‘international’ — also cater for relatively well-off foreign residents and locals wishing their children to be plurilingual.

Languages in Further and Higher Education

Further Education (in three institutions)

 

Établissement A Établissement B Établissement C

LRM

Langues R/M

LE

Langues étrangères

LM

Langues des migrants

LRM

Langues R/M

LE

Langues étrangères

LM

Langues des migrants

LRM

Langues R/M

LE

Langues étrangères

LM

Langues des migrants
Gamme de programmes de soutien en langue
large variété limitée aucun 
3 3 none 2 2 none 3 3 none
Programmes scolaires
cohérent et explicite général pas de lignes directrices 
1 3 none 3 3 none 2 3 none
Niveau requis
dépend du CECRL des normes nationales non spécifié non applicable
0 3 0 0 3 0 0 1 0
Financement public disponible
total partiel aucun 
3 3 none 3 3 none 3 2 none

LN - SOUTIEN SUP

Langues nationales

LN - SOUTIEN SUP

Langues nationales

LN - SOUTIEN SUP

Langues nationales
Gamme de programmes de soutien en langue
large variété limitée aucun 
3 2 2
Groupes cibles
tous restreint aucun 
3 3 1
Programmes scolaires
cohérent et explicite général pas de lignes directrices 
1 2 1
Compétences professionnelles
oui non 
3 1 1
Amélioration des compétences générales
oui non 
3 3 3
Financement public disponible
total partiel aucun 
3 3 3
Stages en entreprise
intégrés dans le cursus en option aucun 
3 3 3
Utilisation des instruments de l'UE
oui non 
1 1 1

Languages offered across 3 VET institutions in Catalonia

R/M Languages

Catalan

Langues étrangères

English, French, German

Langues des migrants

-

Higher Education (in three institutions)

 

Établissement A

Établissement B

Établissement C

Langue(s) d'enseignement
n'importe quelle langue nationale et étrangère nationale uniquement 
3 3 3
Langues sur le site web
Nationales, étrangères et R/M nationales et étrangères nationales uniquement 
3 3 3
Groupes cibles pour un soutien supplémentaire dans la langue nationale
tous  restreint aucun
1 2 2
Niveau requis dans l'enseignement en langue étrangère
dépend du CECRL des normes nationales ou propres à l'établissement non spécifié
3 3 3
Recrutement d'étudiants non nationaux
Internationaux et immigrants internationaux uniquement locuteurs natifs de la langue nationale uniquement
3 3 2
Mobilité pour les étudiants en langues
obligatoire facultative aucune offre
2 2 2
Mobilité pour les autres étudiants
obligatoire facultative aucune offre
2 2 2

Languages offered across 3 higher education institutions in Catalonia

English, French, Catalan, Chinese, German, Italian, Japanese, Arabic, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Greek, Norwegian, Occitan from Val D'Aran (Aranese), Persian, Portuguese, Russian, Swedish

The research captures the general environment for language learning in Vocational Education and Training (VET) but the higher institutions looked at in the study do not highlight the wide range of language learning possibilities at many universities in Catalonia, which, beyond the big international languages, include regional languages like Occitan; widely spoken immigrant languages such as Tamazight/Berber; several medium-sized European languages such as Dutch or Swedish; and Asian languages such as Japanese, Chinese, Farsi or Turkish.

Languages in Audiovisual Media and Press

 

Barcelona

Tarragona

L’Hospitalet de Llobregat

Nombre de langues à la radio
>4 3-4 1-2 langue nationale uniquement 
2 2 2
Nombre de langues à la télévision
>4 3-4 1-2 langue nationale uniquement 
4 4 4
Productions télévisées en langues non nationales
sous-titrées doublées
4 4 4
Films au cinéma en langues non nationales
sous-titrées doublées
1 1 1
Programmes en langues R/M hors région
toujours régulièrement parfois jamais
2 2 2
Disponibilité du langage des signes à la télévision
toujours régulièrement parfois jamais
2 2 2

Languages offered in audiovisual media and press across 3 cities in Catalonia

Radio

Catalan

Television

Catalan, Arabic, Berber Languages (Tamazight Tarifit and Taixelhit), Chinese, Danish, Finish, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Languedocian Occitan, Mandingo, Norwegian, Occitan from Val d'Aran (Aranese), Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Swedish, Urdu

Journaux

Catalan (including bilingual Catalan & Spanish), English, French, German, Italian, Dutch, Arabic, Basque-Spanish bilingual, Norwegian

The research detects the predominance of Castilian as the language most in supply in mass media, followed by Catalan, and English with other languages only at a distance. Castilian is vastly predominant in television, thanks to the existence of many Spain-wide channels, and in cinema, where Castilian-dubbed products are still predominant. In comparison, the Catalan/Castilian ratio was much closer in radio and newspapers.

The position of other languages was more difficult to spot. Since digital television replaced analogue, the question of dubbing and subtitling lost importance, because most television stations broadcast the original version of foreign products, usually with subtitles, as well as a dubbed version. Listening to the original versions is popular among certain social sectors, including some groups of immigrants, but no research is available to date in this particular area. The use of satellite television was also relatively widespread among immigrant communities, but the small absolute numbers of each language group makes this consumption unnoticed.

By the end of 2011, the economic crisis was reducing the supply in all fields and languages. In December 2011, for instance, the free, Castilian-language newspaper ADN, was closed down. The crisis has especially affected local and public initiatives, such as local television stations, which were a stronghold for Catalan. Much more importantly, in late 2011 the Government of Catalonia announced severe cuts to public television, which would probably imply that two public channels — both in Catalan — would stop broadcasting.

Languages in public services and spaces

Institutionalised language strategies at city level

> 4 3-4 1-2 langue nationale uniquement

fréquence d'utilisation : largement utilisée occasionnellement utilisée non utilisée

Barcelona

Tarragona

L’Hospitalet de Llobregat

Services municipaux

6 3 4

Présence dans le site web

5 4 4

Rapports municipaux annuels

4 4 4

Traducteurs et interprètes externes ou internes

6 3 3

Compétences dans des langues autres que la langue nationale dans les descriptions de postes des employés

6 4 4

Plan ou programme en place destiné à améliorer les compétences en langues

3 0 1

Recrutement de personnes multilingues pour soutenir les objectifs de l'organisation

6 4 1

Offre de formation en langues aux employés

5 4 1

Registre des compétences en langues des employés régulièrement mis à jour

5 0 0

Programmes de récompense ou de promotion pour les employés capables de communiquer correctement dans une autre langue

4 4 0

Oral Communications Facilities

>4 3-4 1-2 langue nationale uniquement

Barcelona

Tarragona

L’Hospitalet de Llobregat

Débats politiques et processus de prise de décision au niveau du conseil municipal

2 2 2

Services de l'éducation

4 4 2

Services d'urgence

3 3 2

Services de santé

4 4 4

Services sociaux

4 4 4

Services juridiques

2 2 2

Services de transport

3 2 2

Services d'immigration et d'intégration

4 4 4

Services du tourisme

4 4 1

Programmes de théâtre

2 2 2

Written Communications Facilities

>4 3-4 1-2 langue nationale uniquement 

Barcelona

Tarragona

L’Hospitalet de Llobregat

Débats politiques et processus de prise de décision au niveau du conseil municipal

2 2 2

Services de l'éducation

2 2 2

Services d'urgence

4 4 4

Services de santé

4 2 4

Services sociaux

2 2 4

Services juridiques

3 2 2

Services de transport

2 2 2

Services d'immigration et d'intégration

2 2 4

Services du tourisme

4 4 1

Programmes de théâtre

2 2 2

Languages offered in public services and public spaces across 3 cities in Catalonia (N ≥ 2)

Catalan, English, French, Arabic, Chinese, Romanian, Urdu, Russian, German, Tamazight, Italian, Japanese, Wolof, Portuguese, Armenian, Bengali, Finnish, Georgian, Hindi, Norwegian, Persian, Polish, Panjabi, Swedish, Tagalog, Ukrainian, Occitan from Val d'Aranese, Danish, Dutch, Mandingo, Swahili

The strong multilingual profile shown by the data for local public services and spaces clearly reflects the multifaceted nature of this domain, which deals simultaneously with all sorts of customers, for example locals, immigrants, and tourists. It is therefore not surprising that languages from different families and continents, from Catalan to Japanese and Finnish to Swahili, are mentioned as being present.

Languages in business - 23 companies

General Language Strategies

Largement utilisée

Occasionnellement utilisée

Non utilisée

Stratégie linguistique en place

9 5 9

Accent mis sur les compétences en langues lors du recrutement

14 6 3

Clause de mobilité internationale

5 6 12

Recours à des traducteurs/interprètes externes

8 6 9

Tenue de registres sur les compétences en langues du personnel

0 9 14

Utilisation de réseaux pour la formation en langues

5 1 17

Utilisation de programmes / financements de l'UE

4 6 13

Connaissance des programmes / financements de l'UE

0 13 10

Internal Language Strategies

Largement utilisée Occasionnellement utilisée Non utilisée

NL

BE

FL-R/M - IL

NL

BE

FL-R/M - IL

NL

BE

FL-R/M - IL

Partenariats avec le secteur de l'éducation pour les langues

0 3 3 3 4 1 20 16 19

Programmes de récompenses / promotion basés sur les compétences en langues

2 4 4 2 3 2 19 16 17

Offre d'une formation en langues

2 10 6 2 4 2 19 9 15

Utilisation du CECRL

2 5 5 0 1 0 21 17 18

Langues utilisées pour les documents sur le lieu de travail/l'intranet

21 7 11 2 5 2 0 11 10

Langues utilisées pour les logiciels, les programmes web

23 11 7 0 5 2 0 7 14

External Language Strategies

Largement utilisée Occasionnellement utilisée Non utilisée

NL

BE

FL-R/M - IL

NL

BE

FL-R/M - IL

NL

BE

FL-R/M - IL

Langues utilisées pour les rapports annuels/rapports d'activité

18 10 10 1 0 1 4 13 12

Langues utilisées pour le marketing

21 12 15 1 0 2 1 11 6

Langues utilisées pour la promotion de la marque/l'identité

20 13 14 1 1 4 2 9 5

Langues utilisées pour le site web

21 14 15 1 1 1 1 8 7

Languages other than English offered in business across 23 companies in Catalonia (N ≥ 2)

Catalan, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Galician, Basque, Norwegian

The data collected suggest that, in general terms, the private sector lags behind local public institutions in adopting multilingual strategies in their daily routine. In the business sector, Catalan moves to third position, behind Castilian and ‘Business English’, and is followed at a considerable distance by other European languages, mostly those of tourists and European residents, or other languages in Spain. Non-European languages play a negligible role in this sector, suggesting that African and Asian immigrants and the markets in these regions are not being taken into account by the firms consulted, or alternatively, they are served via ‘Business English’.

These conclusions should nevertheless be taken with a grain of salt: not only was the sample of firms analysed small, it was also internally heterogeneous, including firms from different sectors, some of them being international, some working throughout Spain, and others only working in Catalonia. Comparison between the public services and spaces domain, where only local institutions were analysed, and the business domain, is less than straightforward.

Key Findings overall

1. Differentiating between Castilian as a ‘national’ and Catalan as a ‘regional’ language made little empirical sense in Catalonia, for both were widely present in all areas: in future research, both should be subsumed under a common, more adequate label, be it national, official, or another.

2. The Language Rich Europe project is focussed on language policies on supply, but supply can only be duly analysed when demand and results are taken into consideration. In its current linguistic ecosystem, a comparatively small supply of Castilian at school produces high results in language proficiency, while a small supply of English produces low results in this language. In other words, the ways that lead to plurilingualism may be different for each language in each situation, and the whole linguistic ecosystem has to be taken into account. In this sense there is certainly room for development in foreign language learning in the Catalonian linguistic ecosystem. 

3. As a whole, the questionnaire adequately reflects the weak position of ‘immigrant languages’ in Catalonia, a position consistent with both their recency and their heterogeneity. In its current design, the questionnaire is conceived to detect only initiatives which affect large tracts of society. In the future the methodology could be developed to incorporate community initiatives more available to new, less established immigrant groups — such as extra-school language courses, community libraries and bookshops, satellite television or television consumption via the Internet. In any case, pedagogic attention to these languages should increase if the immigrant children’s linguistic heritage is to be preserved for their benefit and that of Catalonian society.

Promising initiatives and pilots

1. Several programmes of Language volunteers, sponsored by both public and private initiatives, have resulted in the creation of ‘linguistic couples’ which have made it possible for thousands of Catalan-language learners to practice the language with fluent speakers all over Catalonia (cf. Boix-Fuster, Melià and Montoya 2011). 

2. Vila (2010) describes a number of activities addressed at raising awareness of minority languages developed in Catalonia such as the Language Gymkhana or the Amazigh Spring. 

3. Proxecto Galauda (http://phobos.xtec.cat/galauda/ [in Galician]) is a project which has taught Galician in Catalonia and Catalan in Galicia in several secondary education centres as a way to enlarge the linguistic repertoire and raise awareness about the value of linguistic diversity.

References

Boix-Fuster, Emili, Joan Melià, and Brauli Montoya. 2011. ‘Policies promoting the use of Catalan in oral communications and to improve attitudes towards the language.’ Pp. 150-181 in Democratic Policies for Language Revitalisation: The Case of Catalan edited by M. Strubell i Trueta and E. Boix-Fuster. Basingstoke, England: Palgrave.

EULP 2008: Enquesta d'usos lingüístics de la població 2008. Available at: < http://www20.gencat.cat/portal/site/Llengcat/menuitem.b318de7236aed0e7a129d410b0c0e1a0/?vgnextoid=d5349cede4c43210VgnVCM1000008d0c1e0aRCRD&vgnextchannel=d5349cede4c43210VgnVCM1000008d0c1e0aRCRD&vgnextfmt=default >

Vila i Moreno, F. Xavier. 2008. ‘Catalan in Spain.’ Pp. 157-183 in Multilingual Europe: Facts and Policies edited by G. Extra and D. Gorter. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.

Vila i Moreno, F. Xavier. 2010. ‘Making choices for sustainable social plurilingualism: some reflexions from the Catalan language area.’ Pp. 131-154 in International Perspectives on Bilingual Education: Policy, Practice, and Controversy edited by J. Petrovic. Charlotte, N Caroline: Information Age Publishing series.

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