Language Research

Updated (March 2007)

MORAVIANS - A NATIONAL MINORITY?

The Czech law gives special rights to minorities who make up at least 10 percent of the population in towns and villages. This gives them the right to use their mother tongue when dealing with public authorities and to have public signs in their language.

A ridiculous situation has arisen under this law, which defines members of another ethnic minority as persons who proclaim to have other than Czech ethnicity in a census. In the 2001 census, about 380,000 people claimed to be of "Moravian nationality" and thus are entitled to enjoy the same rights as other ethnic minorities. Therefore, municipalities where a large number of Moravians live must in theory establish a special committee to deal with Moravian minority issues, support their education and culture in their minority language and issue official documents in Moravian.

Yet the Moravian language as such does not exist. It is classified only as a dialect of the Czech language, for differences between the dialect and standard Czech are not large.

People feel it is nonsense to treat Moravians as a minority since a standard Moravian language does not exist.

Currently, the mayors do not face any sanctions for non-observance of the law in the case of the "Moravian minority" as no one has complained about it yet.

Nevertheless, the cause of the problem, the vague definition of ethnic minorities in the law, remains unresolved.

Minister without Portfolio, Dzamila Stehlikova (Greens), who is in charge of ethnic minorities, is aware of the problem. She says that Moravian ethnicity is merely a "cultural phenomenon" and possible social or economic discrimination is out of question in this case.

Stehlikova did not confirm that she would consider amending the law. The Interior Ministry, responsible for the definition of minorities in the laws on municipalities and regions, is not preparing any changes in this respect either.

The law on the rights of ethnic minorities was passed in mid-2001 when the census's results were known already; the next census, which might change the proportion, is planned in 2011.

Source: Prague Daily Monitor/ČTK, March 14, 2007 http://launch.praguemonitor.com/en/43/czech_national_news/3003/

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Updated (June 2007)

THE HOUSE OF ETHNIC MINORITIES OPENED IN PRAGUE

The House of Ethic Minorities, the first multicultural center in the Czech Republic, was opened in Prague on June 21 2007.

Providing a location for its members to meet and organize a range of activities, the center's program is intended to help enrich social life and culture of the capital and to contribute to the minorities' integration.

Source: Romea NGO, Aktuality, June 17, 2007 http://www.romea.cz/english/index.php?id=detail&detail=2007_311

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