CARDIFF, Wales -- Travelers know they are in Wales when the sign they see on the British rail station here reads, "Caerdynn Canolog," the Welsh term for "Cardiff Central." It is one indication that in an increasingly integrated Europe, millions of people cling to local, minor languages.
Some of these small languages may be dying, but the insistent use of Welsh reflects a growing trend in parts of Western Europe to keep regional languages alive. In major nations such as Britain, France and Spain, local language usage has increasingly become a political issue.
Why this interest in minor languages at a time when easy travel and mass communication seem to be blurring cultural lines?
Besides citing the usual reasons of pride and tradition, supporters of minor languages say that the breakup of the Soviet Union and upheavals in Eastern Europe show the value of local tongues within a majority national language. Suppressing minority culture weakens the nation, they suggest.
"Conflicts are breaking out in Eastern Europe because minorities were suppressed in countries where only the national language and culture were permitted," said Donnal O'Riagain, secretary-general of the European Bureau for Lesser Used Languages. "Europe must respect regional languages. Diversity itself never caused conflict. It is the refusal to recognize diversity that leads to conflict."
Supporters estimate that 50 million people in Western Europe speak minority languages. Some tongues are alive and well. Welsh is in daily use in Wales, where all public information signs are in both Welsh and English, and Welsh backers intend to press for bilingual schools. Breton is a serious second language in northwestern France, and Catalan, Basque and Galician are alive in Spain, where Catalan will be an official language of this year's Summer Olympics in Barcelona.
But elsewhere the picture for minority languages is not so bright. In Scotland and Italy, for instance, they are fading. And even such prominent languages as Dutch and Danish could eventually be threatened.
The European Community has a long-standing policy of favoring minority linguistic and ethnic bodies. This year, the EC has budgeted about $3 million, the highest amount ever, for organizations protecting minority languages.
One of these, the Bureau for Lesser Used Languages, opened its office in Dublin, Ireland, in 1984 to provide a permanent bridge between various language associations and the EC. Another such protective group is the International Association for the Defense of Menaced Languages and Cultures, headquartered in Liege, Belgium.
