On the disappearance and presence of the Slovene-speaking minority in Carinthia (Austria)

Insights into the use of language and ethnic affiliation in leisure time from a practice-theoretical perspective

Bibliographic Data

ID6256408
AuthorsJennifer Kolb (0000-0001-7935-1855, Universität Innsbruck, corresponding author)
Year2023
Volume23
Issue3
Pages475-499
Publication date2023-06-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueEthnicities (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1468-7968 • E-ISSN: 1741-2706
PublisherSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/14687968221096159
OpenAlexW4229052316
LanguageEN
Citations received1
References cited24

For many decades, the question of setting up bilingual place-name signs accompanied the ethnic conflict between the German-speaking majority and the autochthonous Slovene-speaking minority in Carinthia (Austria). On the 10th anniversary of the 2011 compromise concerning the dispute about place-name signs, this article takes a closer look at the characterization of ethnic relations in Carinthia in the past few decades. According to a practice–theoretical empirical approach, the key to understanding this ethnic minority is the disappearance of the Slovene language. This article examines the manifold strategies used by young people to perform Carinthian Slovenian identity during leisure time in the context of, or apart from, cultural associations. With these strategies, adolescents actively try to react to the threatened disappearance of their language as they advocate for its preservation and ensure its enduring presence. The central role of the symbolic dimension of Slovenian language usage is striking. The social cohesion of the Slovene-speaking population must therefore be understood as performative ethnicity

Context (archaeology · Ethnic group · German · Linguistics · Minority language · Performative utterance · Sociology · Anthropology · Eastern European Communism and Reforms · Gender Studies · History · Linguistic research and analysis · Linguistics, Language Diversity, and Identity

Tools

Open DOIOpen Access