Multilingual Israel?
Old Ideologies and New Realities
Bernard Spolsky editor Elana Shohamy editor Iair G Or editor
Format:Hardback
Publisher:Multilingual Matters
Publishing:16th Jun '26
£139.95
This title is due to be published on 16th June, and will be despatched as soon as possible.
Engages directly with the delicate intersections between homogenizing state policies and the extraordinary linguistic diversity on the ground
This book provides the most comprehensive overview to date of multilingualism in Israel, spanning Hebrew-only ideologies, immigrant and heritage languages, and grassroots initiatives. It offers essential insights for scholars, students and those interested in sociolinguistics, language policy and the complexities of Israeli society.
Engages directly with the delicate intersections between homogenizing state policies and the extraordinary linguistic diversity on the ground.
This book provides the most comprehensive overview to date of multilingualism in Israel, spanning Hebrew-only ideologies, immigrant and heritage languages, and grassroots community initiatives. The first section ('Ideologies') examines the persistence of monolingual Hebrew language ideologies and state efforts to regulate Yiddish, Arabic and other languages, and how such efforts have been contested in domains such as cinema, theatre, the printed press and digital media.
The second section ('Realities') explores the resilience of community languages, from Amharic and Russian to Chinese, Ladino and local sign languages, and demonstrates how community resilience and linguistic practices often prove stronger than official ideologies or state policy.
By situating multilingual practices within current political tensions, migration debates and language ideologies, the book offers essential insights for scholars, students and those interested in sociolinguistics, language policy and the complexities of Israeli society.
An incisive tribute to Bernard Spolsky’s unparalleled legacy, Multilingual Israel is a brilliant contribution to the different aspects of multilingualism research he spent a lifetime studying and shaping. Bold, timely, and deeply insightful, this volume advances the critical conversations Spolsky championed. An essential reading for anyone interested in multilingualism, identity, and politics. * Tommaso M. Milani, Penn State, USA *
More than 25 years after Spolsky and Shohamy’s book on multilingualism in Israel, this volume is far more than an update. It challenges the pursuit by some of uniformity, monolingualism, monoculturalism, nationalism, or extremism. The wide range of contributions and the multiple foci provide a compelling illustration of how, in Israel and beyond, multilingual policy and practice are shaped by the dynamics of globalization and mobility. This book implicitly and explicitly advocates a multilingual, multicultural, democratic, and internationally oriented society.
* Piet Van Avermaet, University of Ghent, Belgium *ISBN: 9781788929097
Dimensions: 234mm x 156mm x 21mm
Weight: unknown
318 pages