The Use of Spanish Regional Official Languages in the Court of Justice of the European Communities

Abstract

Currently an important issue in the EU is the status of languages spoken in member state countries which are only official in a limited part of their territory. The political activism in countries such as Spain, in response to internal requests from nationalist parties, has played a key role in having EU institutions acknowledge the demand for recognition of those languages. The friendly approach of EU institutions to that claim is justified not only by the need for a greater involvement of EU citizens in the integration process, but also by the commitment to respect the national identities of member states. The agreements signed by Spain and several EU institutions, including the ECJ, contribute to the rise of a new category of languages to be recognized along with the EU official and working languages.Spanish citizens and residents are therefore granted the ability to send written communications to the ECJ in any of the official regional languages of Spain. The scope and ambit of these agreements are still very limited and symbolic. They might generate some practical problems. But, it’s an opportunity for the EU to define an incipient linguistic policy.