LANGUAGE POLICY IN ISRAEL IN THE 21 ST CENTURY: THE CASE OF ARABIC IN PUBLIC SPACE
LANGUAGE POLICY IN ISRAEL IN THE 21 ST CENTURY: THE CASE OF ARABIC IN PUBLIC SPACE

Summary/Abstract: The focus in the present paper is on Arabic Language use on road signs in Israel in 21 century. Legally, both Hebrew and Arabic have a status as official language, based on Article 82 of the Palestine Order in Council, 1922 of Mandatory Palestine. This order was incorporated into Israeli legislation in 1948. The equal legal status of the two languages is merely theoretical. In 2008 was proposed a bill in Israeli Parliament to remove Arabic's status as an official language.The public space as a focus of attention in language policy as well as in language use is a relatively new area of attention, and refers to specific language objects as road signs and street names. It uses as an arena for conducting battles for national identity, recognition, and self-expression. The use of Arabic in the public space on the road signs was not provided until the Supreme Court in 2002 ruled that Arabic must also be included on signs in cities where a significant number of Arabs live. In the years since that ruling changes in practice of language are harder to account for. The linguistic landscape remained mostly Hebrew and English. Anti-Arabic vandalism has appeared in mixed cities, such as Akko and Jerusalem. In 2009 the Israeli media revealed that nationalist groups have been spraying over Arabic names on road signs. On the other hand the Palestinian Authority project to place non-Hebrew road signs throughout the West Bank. In 2009 the Israeli transport minister suggested to change the orthography of city names on road signs so that they are transliterations of the Hebrew name. In 2011 the Supreme Court held a hearing on a motion for contempt of court and implementation of the court's ruling from 2002.

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