Translation Policy in a Linguistically Diverse World
Publisher: ECMI Volume: 18 pages, pdf Description: In theory, a truly participatory, democratic state would not seek to systematically place individuals at a disadvantage due to their culture, identity, or language. And yet, as stated above, any democratic state must adopt a language policy of some sort. This is not a new reality. During the 18th and 19th centuries, states adopted homogenization policies, including homogenizing language policies, aimed at allowing the state to interact effectively with its vast number of citizens (Hobsbawm, 2000: 94). These pragmatic, efficiency-driven language policies began to be questioned as time passed, especially toward the end of the 20th century.