Revitalizing Minority Languages: New Speakers of Breton, Yiddish and Lemko [Hardcover]

New speakers are an increasingly important aspect of the revitalization of minority languages since, in some cases, they can make up the majority of the language community in question. This volume examines this phenomenon from the viewpoint of three minority languages: Breton, Yiddish and Lemko.

It is the book's diversity, both in examining the role of the 'new speaker' in three languages, and also the sociolinguistic divergence of the speaker communities in question, that make this volume appealing and relevant to a broad readership.

-Dr Michelle Macleod, University of Aberdeen, UK

This is an innovative and thought-provoking book which whilst giving us insights into the situation of these three 'small' minority languages and highlighting their differences with larger and more successful minorities as well as introducing the role of the so-called 'new' speakers, also challenges wider thinking about the way forward for the revitalisation of minority languages.

-Professor Clare Mar-Molinero, University of Southampton, UK

Interdisciplinary in approach, this wide-raging volume critically analyses issues of identity, resource, legitimacy and authenticity for minority groups at the beginning of the twenty-first century. The book greatly enriches our understanding of cultural challenges and opportunities using three minoritized language settings as in-depth case studies. Global in scale and approach, the book is an excellent resource for academics and students as well as practitioners and policy-makers.

-Professor Ullrich Kockel, Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh, and Vytautas Magnus University, Kaunas, Lithuania