'This is a fine book...I believe we need to reconceptualise this area of sociolinguistics and this a is a first step in that direction. Sue Wright's intellectually provocative book holds real implications for EU policies, for educational policies, and for governments that still act as they did in the nineteenth century.'Christina Paulston, University of Pittsburgh, USA 'One of the best attempts to treat the subject of language in modern Europe I've ever read. Sue Wright not only masters the relevant details of European history but also the historical interpretations of those details.' John E. Joseph, Professor of Applied Linguistics, University of EdinburghA comprehensive advanced textbook, covering not only language learning imposed by economic or political agendas but also language choices entered into freely for reasons of social mobility, economic advantage or group identity. The first part of the book reviews the development and role of standard languages in the construction of national communities and identities. The second part examines the linguistic accommodation of groups in contact, major lingua francas and the case of 'International English'. The third section explores reactions to nationalism and globalization, with some attention to language rights. The book further deals with methodological problems of working in this interdisciplinary area, and provides detailed illustrations from a range of countries and communities.ContentsAcknowledgementsIntroductionPART ONE: COMMUNITY AND THE ROLE OF NATIONAL LANGUAGEFrom Language Continuum to Linguistic Mosaic: European Language Communities from the Feudal Period to the Age of NationalismLanguage Planning in State Nations and Nation StatesNation Building in the Wake of Colonialism: Old Concepts in New SettingsPART TWO: TRANSCENDENCE AND LANGUAGE LEARNINGTranscending the Group: Languages of Contact and Lingua FrancasFrench: The Rise and Fall of a Prestige Lingua FrancaEnglish: From Language Empire to the Language of GlobalisationLanguage in a Post-national Era: Hegemony or Transcendence?PART THREE: RENAISSANCE AND REVITALISATION IN SMALL LANGUAGE COMMUNITIESNew Discourse, New Legal Instruments and a New Political Context for Minorities and their LanguagesThe Fragmentation of the Old Nation States and the Rise of Small NationsEndangered LanguagesConclusion: Identity and Community: Communication and TranscendenceBibliographyIndex