Managing Multilingualism in a European Nation-state: Challenges for Sweden

This text analyzes recent shifts in Swedish language policy. Special focus is given to the complex relationships of the Swedish language to both English and to indigenous and immigrant minority languages in Sweden. Key issues addressed include the current debate concerning Sweden's official majority and minority languages; the position of immigrant and indigenous languages in the Swedish school system, the influence of the spread of English on the use of Swedish, particularly in writing; and the role of Swedish within the European Union. The contributions synthesize research on the status of languages currently used in Sweden as well as policy initiatives, and taken together the papers accurately present the many sides of the complex debate taking place there. While this book focuses on one country's struggle for multilingualism, the issues presented here are highly relevant and accessible to all readers interested in linguistic rights and language policy.