Languages of Slovenia

Languages of Slovenia
Most spoken languages in Slovenia (Census 2002)
Official language(s)	Slovene
Minority language(s)	Hungarian, Italian, Romani, Croatian, Serbian, German
Main immigrant language(s)	Croatian, Serbo-Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian, Romani
Main foreign language(s)	Serbo-Croatian, English, German, Italian
Common keyboard layout(s)	Slovene QWERTZ

Slovenia has been a meeting area of the Slavic, Germanic, Romance, and Uralic linguistic and cultural regions. The official and national language of Slovenia is Slovene, which is spoken by a large majority of the population. It is also known, in English, as Slovenian. Two minority languages, namely Hungarian and Italian, are recognised as co-official languages and accordingly protected in their residential municipalities. Other significant language is Serbo-Croatian and its variants, spoken by most immigrants from former Yugoslavia and their descendants. Slovenia is ranked among the top European countries regarding the knowledge of foreign languages. The most often taught foreign languages are English, German, Italian, French and Spanish.

The population of Slovenia has become more diverse in regard to its language through recent decades but is still relatively homogenous — Slovene was in 2002 the first language of 87.8% of the inhabitants. It was followed by Croatian (2.8%), Serbo-Croatian (1.8%), Serbian (1.6%) and Bosnian (1.6%). Italian and Hungarian language, protected by the Constitution of Slovenia, had lower numbers of native speakers.

Slovene

Areas where Slovene is spoken

In its Article 11, the Constitution of Slovenia stipulates that Slovene is to be the sole official and national language throughout the country. The Public Use of the Slovene Language Act of 2004 further defines the legal status of Slovene, by mandating that national and local authorities are compelled to use it in communication and legislation. As a national language, it is used on the obverse side of Slovenian euro coins, in Slovenian national anthem, by The Slovenian President, and uniquely represents Slovene culture on the international stage.

Television and radio broadcasts, newspapers, commercials, user manuals, and other printed or broadcast material must be in Slovene. Usage of material in another language is permitted, if it is accordingly subtitled, dubbed or translated. Publishing or broadcasting untranslated material, as well as selling goods without instructions and declaration in Slovene, is punishable and banned by law. Also, names of corporations and trademarks registered in Slovenia must be in Slovene; however, they may be used along with the translated name in another language if its aimed at foreign markets.

Slovene is the language of instruction at all levels of schooling, from primary to tertiary education. There is an international high school in Ljubljana with English as the language of instruction, but it admits only students from foreign diplomats and Slovenes who had been schooled abroad for several years. Undergraduate courses are run in Slovene, therefore applicants from foreign countries must prove an adequate level of knowledge of Slovene to be eligible to enroll. Graduate courses for foreign exchange students are offered in English, as well.

The Centre for Slovene as a Second/Foreign Language encourages the learning of Slovene as foreign language, offers different courses in Slovene, and grants certificates of language proficiency. One may sit for the Slovene Language Exam at three levels: Basic, Intermediate and Advanced. After having passed the exam, the applicant receives the certificate of knowledge of the Slovene language, issued by the Faculty of Arts of University of Ljubljana, which is valid throughout the European Union, and makes the holder eligible to apply to any school or university in Slovenia.

With the accession of Slovenia to the European Union on May 1, 2004, Slovene became an official language of the European Union, requiring that all Acts and Directives be translated into Slovene. Additionally, Slovenian citizens may write to any EU institution in Slovene and expect a response in the same language.

Dialects

Main article: Slovene dialects

Slovene is divided into seven regional dialectal groups, further subdivided into local dialects. Mutual comprehension between certain dialects is limited.

Prekmurje dialect

Main article: Prekmurje dialect

A proposal has been put forward to the SIL International to attribute the Prekmurje dialect a language code (code: pkm). This is the only Slovene dialect that has ever been attempted to be declared an official language in the Prekmurje region. It has a limited standardized written form, has been used in the liturgy, and has been used in modern literature, music, television and film.

Italian

Italian is officially recognised as the mother tongue of the protected Italian minority and co-official language in Slovenian Istria near the Slovenian-Italian border and at the Slovenian coastline. Public usage of Italian is permitted and protected by minority protection laws. Members of the Italian minority are entitled to primary and secondary education in their native language, as well as to radio and television programmes in Italian, and to communicating in Italian with the authorities.

Hungarian

Hungarian is officially recognised as the mother tongue of protected Hungarian minority in Prekmurje region near the Slovenian-Hungarian border. Public usage of Hungarian is permitted and protected by minority protection laws. Members of Hungarian minority are entitled to primary and secondary education in their native language, as well to radio and occasional television broadcast in Hungarian, and to communicating in Hungarian with the authorities.

German

German and Bavarian dialects have been autochthonous since present-day Slovenia came under the rule of Bavaria in the 8th century. Whereas many immigrants from German-speaking areas adopted Slovene over the centuries, others retained their language. Until the 20th century, the most numerous German-speaking communities were found in the urban centers of Lower Styria. Alma Karlin, who is considered one of the most famous writers from Celje, wrote her books in her mother tongue German. Another German-speaking region was around Apače (Apaško polje) near the Mur river. Around Zgornja Sorica and Spodnja Sorica, a German language island (Zarz) persisted until the beginning of the 20th century. Since World War I, there have been no schools in Slovenia with German as language of instruction. After World War II, ethnic Germans were expelled after many of them had collaborated with Nazi Germany, and only few of them remained. In the census of 2002, just 1628 persons (0,1 % of the population) declared German as their mother tongue.

Gottscheerish

Gottscheerish or Granish is a Bavarian dialect of the German language and has been spoken in the Gottschee County around Kočevje (Gottschee) since 1330. For over 600 years, it was the predominant oral language of the Gottscheers in that area, whereas Standard German was their written language. Most Gottschee Germans were resettled by the German occupation forces in 1941 during World War II. Only a few hundred Gottscheers remained, most of them supporting the partisan movement. After the war, Gottscheerish was forbidden. Today there are only a few speakers left, most of them in Moschnitze valley (Črmošnjiško-Poljanska dolina) between Kočevske Poljane and Črmošnjice. Gottscheerish and German have no official status and are not protected by law.

Serbo-Croatian

During the time of its membership in Yugoslavia, Slovenia represented the most viable economy in the alliance and many citizens from Southern republics were sent/came to work in the country, most notably those from Bosnia. In 1991, a short and bloodless secession from Yugoslavia and a subsequent quick transition from socialism to a market economy. Many people sought refuge in Slovenia during the Yugoslav wars that took place throughout the 90s and early 2000s in Serbia, Croatia, and Bosnia; as a result, the vast majority of immigrants speak Serbo-Croatian.^{[citation needed]}

There is a small Serbo-Croatian speaking community in White Carniola, whose existence predates Yugoslavia. In four villages (Miliči, Bojanci, Marindol and Paunoviči), people speak the Eastern Herzegovinian dialect, with a strong influence of Slovene. People living there are descendants of Uskoks, guerilla warriors against Ottoman invasions.

Other immigrant languages

Other languages, spoken by immigrants, include: Romani, Macedonian, and Albanian.^{[citation needed]}

Foreign languages

The most commonly known foreign languages in Slovenia in 2005. According to Eurostat.

Historically, German was the lingua franca of Central European space and was perceived as the language of commerce, science and literature in Slovenia. Consequently, German used to be the first foreign language taught in schools. With the formation of Yugoslavia, Serbo-Croatian became the language of federal authorities and the first foreign language taught in school.

Nowadays, English has superseded it and is taught as the first foreign language throughout the country from pre-school onwards. German has, however, retained its strong position as an important language and is the most common second foreign language in high schools. Other second foreign languages are Italian, Spanish, French and Hungarian. Among the five subjects in the Slovenian finishing exam (Matura), one foreign language—most commonly English—is compulsory.

As a consequence of different foreign languages having been taught at different times, there is no prevailing foreign language knowledge in Slovenia. Younger generations know English and Serbo-Croatian well enough to communicate, whereas elder generations speak Serbo-Croatian better. There are also regional differences, especially among the knowledge of a second foreign language, with German being more frequently taught and used in Styria region, whereas residents of the Littoral region have better familiarity with Italian.