Die Politik der Mehrsprachigkeit in der Europäischen Union

Languages play a special role in the history of Europe, as they have also played a significant role in the emergence of modern European states. In the political system of the EU, cultural and language policies are exclusive responsibilities of its member states. Therefore, the EU has little room for manoeuvre. Border or cross-border regions take on this task and thus also important bridging functions in shaping cross-national relations. This study compares three regions to show to what extent a policy of multilingualism has been able to reduce historically and culturally conditioned areas of tension and to what extent this effort is also perceived as a European task.