Language Policy and Planning in Western European Countries

The recent events promoting European integration have far-reaching consequences for language management. Such management may form an explicit part of policy, though often it is reflected implicitly in interventions dealing with other aspects of social and political organization. This article will highlight both explicit and implicit language planning issues at the European level, the latter being more the result of policy interventions rather than deliberate attempts to manipulate language usage. Given constraints on space, it is impossible to handle more specific language planning issues at national or regional levels except as illustrations.