Language Rights as Human Rights

In the last 60 years, we have seen the growing development and articulation of human rights, particularly within international law and within and across supranational organizations. However, in that period, the right to maintain one's language(s), without discrimination, remains peculiarly under-represented and/or problematized as a key human right. This is primarily because the recognition of language rights presupposes a recognition of the importance of wider group memberships and social contexts - conceptions that ostensibly militate against the primacy of individual rights in the post-Second World War era. This paper will explore the arguments for and against language rights, particularly for minority groups within Europe, arguing that language rights can and should be recognized as an important human right. In so doing, the paper will draw on theoretical debates in political theory and international law, as well as the substantive empirical example of Catalonia.