This paper documents the linguistic landscape of Saint Catherine Street, a major thoroughfare in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The street is taken as a microcosm of the sociolinguistic variation observable at the various levels of analysis, ranging from the neighbourhood, the city, the province, Canada as a whole, and the globally similar environment…

In this chapter, the authors offer a critical examination of a growing field of educational inquiry and social practice: the reclamation of Indigenous mother tongues. They use the term "reclamation" purposefully to denote that these are languages that have been forcibly subordinated in contexts of colonization. Language reclamation…

This article will examine the sociopolitical language contexts that exist in institutions of Canadian post-secondary education, through investigating how government policies affect the consumption and teaching of language in writing classrooms. A survey of Canadian multiculturalist policy, multilingualism, and post-secondary education in terms of…

Discusses the changing status of Quebec French, as witnessed by laws governing its use and official nature, its actual usage as a communication tool, and attitudes of Anglophones and Francophones toward it. (AM)

Portions of the law designed to ensure the pre-eminence of French in Quebec are presented. (Text is in French.) (CDSH/CLK)

This report discusses and compares language planning and the Swedish-speaking minority in Finland and the English-speaking minority in Quebec. The report discusses four issues: historical minorities and the demographic dynamic; municipalities; the language of work; and other minority language groups. It is concluded that, despite numerous surface…

Examines the principle that the rules of language to be applied in a given situation will depend on the territory or on the linguistic status of the person or persons concerned. The principles are considered in broad contexts, formally and practically, and criteria that may influence the choice of one over another is looked at. (SCC)

This book provides an overview of the history, present circumstances, and future prospects of the native languages of Quebec: Abenaki, Algonquin, Atikamekw, Cree, Inuktitut, Micmac, Mohawk, Montagnais, and Naskapi. Chapter 1, "The Situation of Aboriginal Languages in the Americas" (Jacques Maurais), discusses the linguistic demography of…

Explores the impact of Quebec language planning in favor of French on self-reports of language use in cross-cultural encounters between Francophones and Anglophones in Montreal. Results indicate that discrepancies exist between respondents' self-reports of language use and their reported experience and that motivational and normative factors…

Overviews 20 years of language planning in Quebec and examines the effect of the province's institutional instability on the economy, language planning, and relations between ethnolinguistic groups. Elucidates the causes of Quebec's efforts to preserve its language and culture and concludes that the province needs its Anglophone population for the…

The English and French languages have been in everyday use in some part of what is now Canada for almost 400 years. The constitution of Canada states that they have equal status in the Parliament and courts of Canada and in the legislature and courts of the province of Quebec. In 1969 Parliament passed the Official Languages Act, which declared…

This examination of the sociology of language in Canada focuses on the social or societal aspects of the relationship between languages and society rather than on linguistic aspects. The study is developed in seven sections: (1) an introductory discussion of language and communication systems, language acquisition, messages, and language…

In assessing the Canadian government's performance in 1976 in carrying out the spirit of the Official Languages Act, at least 80% of Ottawa's initiatives seem to have been successful, but many problems remain. This report surveys the progress made in varying sectors of government structure. The report is divided into two chapters. Chapter one,…

A discussion of language policy formation and planning in Canada covers the following: bilingualism and multiculturalism; Quebec, French, and the constitution; and aboriginal language issues. Language legislation is emphasized. (Contains 52 references.) (LB)

Argues that Canada's policy of encouraging the study of heritage/international languages not only contributes to economic and cultural development, but plays an important role in the intellectual growth of the individual and in the construction of a world where communication and peace are possible. (contains 12 references) (MDM)